Scoop writer Mrunmayee Lagoo Waikul shares her journey from an actor to a writer

Born to actor parents (Reema and Vivek Lagoo), married to a director (Vinay Waikul), graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Mass Media, stint with films as an actor and then assistant director… that, kind of, sums up Mrunmayee Lagoo’s past. Mrunmayee is in the news as the head writer of the current hot web series – Scoop.

“Why do you want to interview me?” she innocently asks. It takes a while to convince her, but she agrees.

Why did you give up acting? “That was so not me!” she confesses. “I did five Marathi films as an actor, but by the end of the fifth I had lost patience with myself, and I was convinced that I was not an actor. However, I still gave it a second shot with Thespo, Prithvi Theatre, etc. But the deeper I went, the more convinced I was that I was a bad actor. Especially after looking at my co-stars like Nimrat Kaur, Namit Das, Ali Fazal, etc. I went home one day and told my mother that this was not my cup of tea.”

Mrunmayee shares that her father always knew that acting was not her calling. “But I didn’t know what my calling was… it was thanks to his suggestion that I decided to work as an Assistant Director. Mama spread the word. One day I met Rajkumar Hirani and asked for a job. He admitted that there was no vacancy in the direction department, but I could contribute to the casting director’s department,” Mrunmayee reminisces. “I put myself out and ensured as many auditions as I could. And had a few success stories as well. I went up to Raju sir and asked if now I qualified to be an assistant director!” Her enthusiasm and hard work paid off and she joined the department as the third or the fourth assistant, Vinay Waikul being the chief assistant, for 3 Idiots.

On a personal level, that was a turning point in Mrunmayee’s life. Vinay was quite smitten by the sincerity of this young girl. The friendship bloomed and soon they were married.

Meanwhile, Mrunmayee, who loved to write, wrote many stories. “I always loved to write. My parents were my readers. So, even while assisting for quite a few films after 3 Idiots, like Talaash, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobaara, PK, We Are Family, etc. I kept writing.”

Why did you give up direction? “While I enjoyed my work and I learnt a lot from Raju sir, Dharma Productions, Reema Kagti, and of course, my husband, I was scared.” Scared of? “I am not really a people’s person. I cringe at the idea of having to manage so many people at the same time. As a director, the captain of the ship, I would have been expected to manage the entire cast and crew. I had my own doubts. I was scared of goofing up on that level.”

Then Thappad happened.

Mrunmayee had worked with Soumik Sen, the director of Gulaab Gang, a film produced and co-written by Anubhav Sinha. “During Gulaab Gang there was minimal interaction with him. But I became friends with his Executive Producer who told me that he was looking for a female writer for his next script. He also recommended my name to Anubhav Sinha, since he knew I was looking for a break in writing.”

Anubhav Sinha shared the one-line story idea with Mrunmayee. “And I kept sending him pages after pages — story, character details, etc. One day he finally called and said that I was writing the film with him! That was it… I was thrilled…”

However, it was still a bumpy ride personally for Mrunmayee. She lost her mother. “That’s my only regret. Mama didn’t live to see me as a successful writer,” Mrunmayee says with moist eyes.

“Mama was happy with my choice of partner, especially after meeting my in-laws. She knew I was in safe hands,” she adds. “So much so that she soon started worrying about Vinay… because he was married to me!” Mrunmayee quips.

Thappad’s resounding success made the industry notice this young girl for her writing skills. When Hansal Mehta read the book on Jigna Vohra’s life, which the producers gave him, he asked for Mrunmayee Lagoo as his head writer.

“That was something,” says Mrunmayee. “Those were Covid times. Therefore, going anywhere to meet anyone was not an option. All research was online, video calls, phone calls, etc. We had a journalist, Deepu Sebastian, who helped us with newsroom, prison, press sources, etc. He interviewed quite a few who had written about the case that time,” she informs.

“Hansal sir is very particular about the locations and their vibes. Therefore, getting the milieus right was extremely important. Also, we didn’t want anyone to look, sound totally black or white. And we didn’t want it to look ‘filmy’ or like a documentary. It was a tough task… but I think we managed.”

Today, Mrunmayee is on surer grounds. She knows she has found her calling. “Bappa, my father, also knows that. He is happy and proud of my success. And I am looking forward to my next assignment, again a web series based on a true story,” Mrunmayee wraps up.

Published on: Sunday, July 16, 2023, 07:00 AM IST