Actress Manisha Koirala, who has been getting rave reviews for her stellar performance in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar'', has opened up about slipping into depression during the shoot of the series.
In an interview with NDTV, Manisha said, “Impacted by cancer, I know how body and mind are intertwined. They are dependable. Even now sometimes I work in depression. Honestly speaking, when I was doing Heeramandi, it consumed me so much, my mood swings… And I was just like ‘Sail through this phase. Once this is out, focus on your health.”
For the unversed, in 2012, Manisha Koirala was diagnosed with ovarian cancer for which she received treatment in New York. She underwent surgery and chemotherapy. In 2014, she recovered from the Big C. Manisha had told Zoom, “I wasn’t sure if I would be able to do it or if my body would take it. The makers were understanding. After 12 hours of shooting, we would stop. Sanjay understood my fear and anxiety and worked on them''.
Earlier, taking to her Instagram handle, Manisha opened up about her cancer journey as she wrote, “I have a lot to be grateful for in life… a career that saw a lot of high moments, significant roles, best directors, and friendships that have stood the test of time… and it is with God’s grace that I have been given a second life after battling cancer. I have also seen the lowest depths in life and took many wrong turns. Life has been a good teacher with all its highs and lows, and I understand the value of time more intensely now.”
Manisha stunned everyone with her comeback to acting with 'Heeramandi'. She played Mallikajaan, the matriarch of a brothel named Shahi Mahal and controls the entire Lahore. Set against the Indian freedom struggle movement against the British Raj in the 1940s, 'Heeramandi' is about the lives of tawaifs (courtesans) living in the red-light district of Lahore in present-day Pakistan.
'Heeramandi' is currently streaming on Netflix.
