NOTES : MALLIKA DUA

In our latest edition of Notes, we sat down with actor & comic Mallika Dua about the method behind the madness we get to witness.

Tell us a little about your journey.

My recent journey from Delhi to Bombay is just over a year old and it’s mostly got to do with the fact that I studied theatre and then I dabbled in copywriting and then I started making videos online and that’s how I came here.

Your videos and writing reflect a deep understanding of capturing the nuances of people and their quirks, how did you come about being so observant?

Throughout my childhood and even now, any sort of confinement makes me very distracted – in classrooms and other things, I was never focusing on what was being taught but on how people talk, how they dress and behave and that’s just something that has carried over. The weirder the person is, the more intrigued I am!

When you close your eyes and think, what smell do you relate most to Happiness? Discovery? Love?

Happiness would be Tangerine or Jasmine.

For Discovery, I like the smell that the Saptaparmi Trees have, in Delhi, before the winter is about to come – the smell in the air during the festive season, before people start bursting crackers.

Love for me, is any regular perfume that everyone over-applies when they’re in love to appeal to others!

What’s your oldest memory related to smell?

When I was very young and my parents would take us out for a drive or a quick bite and I would fall asleep on my mother’s shoulder and the smell of whatever lotion or powder she had on is my oldest memory related to smell.

If somebody could bottle your personality in a fragrance, what would it be like?

I like musk, something to do with that, for sure.

What’s next on your travel list?

Bali. I’m not fixed on first discovering India and then the world – there are nice places everywhere. For me, getting a break is more important. At times, I just want to go home to Delhi and not anywhere else because it’s so much more relaxing to be in your own house.

Whose work do you follow on social media? Who are you a big fangirl of?

Meryl Streep – she’s unbelievably gifted and that’s the kind of passion and skill I want to have towards my job. I also really admire Priyanka Chopra for her ambition and drive – it’s not easy doing what they do.

What’s on your reading list?

Twitter! Always.

How has living in Bombay been? Has it changed your perspective or reinforced an existing stereotype?

It’s done both. It’s changed my perspective with respect to working hard and having work ethics – just working no matter what the weather conditions are like. In Delhi, it’s like, it’s raining so I’m not working – that doesn’t fly here. It has also reinforced the stereotype that the standard of living in this city is shit.

You have already made your foray into Bollywood, what are your aspirations from it?

I really want to act, that’s what I studied but it doesn’t matter if it’s a film, web show or a short series – the role has to matter & I’m not stuck on comedy, I’m happy to do other things as well but if it’s a film, I would want my role to be very important to it.

Which Bombay Perfumery fragrance do you think is closest to your personality?

Moire! It’s sweet but with a darker undertone.