The Kerala Story’s Yogita Bihani says videos of Mukhtar Mai and Malala Yousafzai helped her before shoot

Yogita Bihani, who stars in the recent blockbuster hit The Kerala Story, said that she prepared for the film by seeing videos of Mukhtar Mai and Malala Yousafzai to get into character. She shared that she was empowered by the Pakistani women who rose from adversity to become global human rights activists. Directed by Sudipto Sen, the Hindi film also stars Adah Sharma, Siddhi Idnani and Sonia Balani. (Also read: The Kerala Story box office day 11 collection: Film close to entering ₹150 crore club, will beat TJMM business soon)

The film, which has garnered controversy since its release, follows the story of four young women who are classmates at a nursing school. The film focuses on the story of Shalini who converts to Islam and has to travel to Syria after being forcibly married to another man. Yogita plays Nimah, a young Catholic woman who is also caught up in this and undergoes much trauma which she eventually overcomes. The actor shared that she found several similarities between the character and herself.

In an interview with Mid-Day, Yogita spoke about her research before the film’s shoot. She said, “I watched many videos of Mukhtar Mai and Malala Yousafzai and that empowered me so much. That is where Nimah finds her soul. These are the people who have seen so much in life but they still stand and fight, not just for themselves, but for all. That’s what Nimah was for me.”

Since its release on May 5, the film has already earned ₹147.04 crore domestically. It released internationally over the weekend. It will be entering the ₹150 crore club and is looking to overtake Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar which is at the second position for overall box office this year with ₹173.90 crore in 44 days.

Yogita was first spotted by producer Ekta Kapoor during a promo with Salman Khan for the reality game show Dus Ka Dum. She acted opposite Karan Kundra in the television series Dil Hi Toh Hai from 2018 to 2020. Before The Kerala Story, Yogita had appeared in the films such as AK vs AK (2020) and Vikram Vedha (2022). This year, she was also seen with Kapil Sharma and Guru Randhawa in the music video for the song Alone.