Heeramandi Casting Director Shruti Mahajan On Sharmin Segal Being Trolled: "People Have Liked Her Work Also"

Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali's niece Sharmin Segal, who also recently featured in his debut web series Heeramandi, has been at the receiving end of constant trolling for her performance in the Netflix original. Now, the web show's casting director Shruti Mahajan has come out in support of her. In an exclusive interview to Hindustan Times, Shruti Mahajan defended Sharmin's casting for the role of Alamzeb and also said that it is unfair to troll her. In the show, Sharmin portrays the character of Alamzeb, the daughter of Mallikajaan, played by Manisha Koirala. Shruti told Hindustan Times, "People have liked her work also. It is unfair to her that we always want to talk about the negative. Our mind likes to attract negative thoughts.”

“There's a lot of positives that are being talked about her as well. Most importantly, as an actor, she has given her 100 per cent to the character. She is a very hard working actor. We should appreciate that and focus on the good," she further added.

Casting director Shruti Mahajan also talked in details about the audition process that Sharmin had to undergo before being finalised for the role of Alamzeb. “She underwent the whole process just like other actors. The process for everyone was the same. They had to go through rounds of auditions, and look tests,” said Shruti, who has worked with the director on Bajirao Mastani and Gangubai Kathiawadi.

Earlier, Taha Shah Badussha, who plays Sharmin's love interest Tajdar Baloch in the series, spoke up against the trolling that his co-star is facing. Taha told ZoomTV that it is unfair to compare her to seasoned actresses like Manisha Koirala. Explaining that he was not aware that Sharmin Segal was being trolled, Taha Shah said: “I didn't know that. She has done two films. I feel she follows the method of keeping it subtle at times. I have worked with her and I do know as an actor she has tried her best. I literally felt that people would not give me any love, but not the way I am getting. So, the audience can react in a very unpredictable way, to be very honest. As far as Sharmin and her performance is concerned - I lived with her literally on set. She was always punctual. She was always there on time. She was always trying to do her best. How it comes off to the audience is a different ball game altogether and I can't comment on that. But I know she has got a great heart. She was always present on set and as an actor that's all you need"

Sharmin Segal made her acting debut in the 2019 film Malaal.