Mukta Barve

Barve had her first acting role in the play Ghar Tighancha Hava, just after having completed school.[7] Later, when she moved to Mumbai, she got her first commercial play, Suyog's Aamhala Vegle Vhayache in 2001.[7] She made her debut in Marathi television in 1998 with the TV series Ghadlay Bighadlay, in which she played the character named Champa in rural style.[7] She later played small roles in TV series such as Pimpalpan (1998), Bandhan (1998), Buwa Aala (1999), Chitta Chor (1999), Me Ek Bandu (1999), Abhalmaya (1999), Shriyut Gangadhar Tipre (2001) and Indradhanush (2003).[8] In 2004, she made her debut in the Marathi film industry with the film Chakwa, for which she received the Maharashtra State Film Awards for Most Promising Newcomer of the year. In 2005, Barve played a cameo role in Amol Palekar's bilingual film Thang and also worked in the commercial plays Dehbhaan and Final Draft.[9] In Final Draft she played a student who is unable to grasp what the professor teaches at the academy.[10] For Dehbhaan, she received the award of Most Promising Newcomer of the year at the Alpha Gaurav Puraskar 2003 and award of Best Supporting Actress of the year at Alpha Gaurav Puraskar 2005 for the play Final Draft. Also, Barve was honoured with the awards of Best Actress in the Experimental Theatre of the year at Alpha Gaurav Puraskar 2005, Best Actress in Commercial Play of the year at Maharashtra Times Awards 2006 and Best Actress in Commercial Play of the year at Zee Gaurav Puraskar 2008.

Barve next played cameo roles in the films Shevri (2006), Blind Game (2006) and Maati Maay (2006). In 2006, Barve worked in the Marathi TV series Agnishikha, in which she played the title role.[4] Also in the same year, she did the commercial play Hum To Tere Aashiq Hain, in which she played a Muslim girl, Ruksana Saahil, who falls for a Hindu man Anil Pradhan (played by Jitendra Joshi) and marries him.[11] For her work in the play, she received the Maharashtra State Film Award for Best Actress in a Commercial Play. Barve's next release was Sawar Re (2007), in which she played Mukta. Barve's next commercial play was Jitendra Patil's debut play Kabaddi Kabaddi, in which she played a girl who wants to be a Kabaddi champion like her ostracised uncle, but her father (played by Vinay Apte) wants her to settle down like his other daughters in the United States.[12] For her work in the play Kabaddi Kabaddi, she was given the award for Best Actress in a Commercial Play at the Zee Gaurav Puraskar (2008), Maharashtra Times Awards (2007) and Maharashtra State Film Awards (2007).

Barve with costar Swwapnil Joshi at premiere of Marathi film Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai

In 2008, Barve made a special appearance in the film De Dhakka and played a cameo role of Parimal Bhosle in the Hindi film Saas Bahu Aur Sensex.[13] Saas Bahu Aur Sensex grossed ₹2.7 million (US$38,000) domestically.[14] In 2009, Barve featured in the Ashok Saraf's producer debut Ek Daav Dhobi Pachhad (2009), a comedy romance in the role of Sulakshana, who has feelings for her father's enemy's son and lies to her father that she is pregnant in order to visit the U.S.[15][16][17] Her next appearance was in Gajendra Ahire's film Sumbaran (2009), in which she played a Dhangar girl named Kalyani.[18] Barve's final appearance of 2010 was opposite Upendra Limaye in the National Award winning film Jogwa, dealing with religious superstitions in rural India.[19] She played Suli, a Jogtin, a happy and innocent girl who is forced into a lifetime of servitude to the local deity, who enters a relationship with Tayappa, a forced eunuch.[20] To prepare for the role, Barve studied the life of a Jogtin through photographs and by observing day-to-day rural behaviour.[19] For this portrayal, Barve won the awards for Best Actress at Maharashtra State Film Awards (2009) and at Marathi International Film and Theatre Awards (2010). In 2009, Barve was honoured by the Sangeet Natak Akademi with the Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for achievement in Marathi theatre.[21]

Barve's next release was the Bollywood film Thanks Maa (2010); she played a cameo role of Lakshmi, a prostitute.[22] Taran Adarsh of entertainment portal of Bollywood Hungama wrote of her performance, "Mukta Barve; effective".[23] Thanks Maa grossed ₹1.1 million (US$15,000) domestically.[24] In 2010, Barve also starred in Satish Rajwade's romantic film Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai, opposite Swwapnil Joshi.[25] Her character was a girl based in Mumbai, going to Pune and lands up meeting Joshi's character.[25] The chemistry between Barve and Swwapnil Joshi was compared with that of Bollywood's actors Kajol and Shah Rukh Khan.[26] Her next appearance was in the TV show Agnihotra (2010), in which she played Manjula Shripad Agnihotri.[17] Her next release was Aika Dajiba (2010), where she played Sharu, a girl who falls for a Gujarati grocer's son in the village.[27] Barve next featured in Vikram Gokhale's directorial debut, Aaghaat (2010) as Dr. Smita Deshmukh. For this, Barve won the award for Best Actress at the Pune International Film Festival (2011).[28][29] In 2010, she also played Adv. Meera Patwardhan in the TV show Lajja, alongside Girija Oak and Piyush Ranade.[30] At the Raja Paranjape Film Festival 2011, she was honoured with the Tarunai Sanmaan Award for her contribution to the Marathi film industry.[31] In 2011, she featured in an episode of the Marathi show Madhu Ethe Ani Chandra Tithe, opposite Swwapnil Joshi. In the episode, she played Gauri, a village belle who is married to a city boy, Siddhanth (played by Swwapnil Joshi).[32]

Barve's next appearance was opposite Swwapnil Joshi in Satish Rajwade's TV show Eka Lagnachi Dusri Goshta (popularly known as ELDG) (2012).[33] She portrayed the character of Radha Desai, an artist working in an ad agency who does contract marriage with Joshi's character due to parental pressure.[17] Her portrayal was highly appreciated by the audiences.[34] The show received great applause and high TRPs because of the love story between the protagonists - Radha and Ghanshyam.[35] In 2012, Barve worked in Satish Rajwade's Badam Rani Gulam Chor, an adaptation of the Marathi play Makadachya Hati Champagne, alongside Upendra Limaye, Pushkar Shrotri and Anand Ingale.[36] This film was Barve's second venture with actor Upendra Limaye after Jogwa.[36] Barve played Pencil in the film, her character was named according to its characteristics.[36] The Times of India wrote of her performance, "Mukta Barve (Pencil) has done a fantastic job. Mukta has shown 'Pencil's' bold attitude flawlessly".[37] In 2012, Barve also featured in the film, Gola Berij , an adaptation of the Marathi book with the same title.[38] She played a cameo role of Nandini Chaubal in the film. The film also had a cast of senior actors like Prashant Damle, Mohan Agashe, Subodh Bhave to name a few.[38]

In 2013, Barve visited Toronto for the show of her critically acclaimed play Final Draft, along with her co-star Girish Joshi.[39] In 2013, Barve worked in two back-to-back hit films, becoming one of the top performers of the year.[40] In 2013, Barve worked in her self-produced commercial play Chhapa Kata, alongside Reema Lagoo, later Lagoo was replaced by Neena Kulkarni.[41] Barve played Maitreyi Bhagwat, who runs a boutique to support the family, and lives a life where she has suppressed all her desires to be able to take care of her mother.[42] For the play Chhapa Kata, Barve won the awards for Best Play at Deenanath Mangeshkar Awards (2014) and the awards for Best Play and Best Actress at Sanskruti Kaladarpan Awards (2014).[43][44] Ajay Naik's directorial debut, a romantic musical love story, Lagna Pahave Karun was Barve's next film release. Co-starring Umesh Kamat, Siddharth Chandekar and Tejashree Pradhan Ketkar,[45] Barve was cast as Aditi Tilak, a wedding planner who wants to start her own marriage bureau.[46] Indian Nerve reviewed her performance as: "Performance wise, Mukta as a strong and determined Aditi who is scared of failing is the best character of them all. She pulled off the role very aptly."[47] Her next appearance in 2013, was opposite Swwapnil Joshi and alongside Sai Tamhankar and Kadambari Kadam in Renu Desai's Mangalashtak Once More .[48] She played the character Aarti Pathak, romantic, shy girl who surrenders to love.[49] The Times of India reviewed her performance as "Mukta too excels with her comic timing and dialogue delivery".[50] In 2014, she acted in a Konkani film, Gunaaji in the role of a shepherd alongside Upendra Limaye.[51] In 2014, she also acted in a short film, Shot, directed by Ratnakar Matkari.[52]

Barve with Satish Rajwade (center) and Swwapnil Joshi at MPM 2 Trailer Launch

In 2015, she worked opposite Ankush Choudhary in Sameer Vidwans' Double Seat.[53] Barve was cast as Manjiri Naik, an insurance agent and a straightforward, middle-class Maharashtrian girl.[54][55] The Times of India reviewed her performance as "Mukta, who too makes a return after two years, is brilliant as ever as the strong-willed, caring and accommodative wife".[56] For her work in the film, she bagged the awards for Best Actress at Maharashtracha Favourite Kon 2015 and at Zee Chitra Gaurav 2016.[57][58] Barve also bagged the most prestigious Maharashtra State Film Award for Best Actress in 2016, she received a nomination for Best Actress award at Sanskruti Kala Darpan 2016 and she also bagged the award for Best Actress in a Lead Role at Marathi Filmfare Awards 2016 for her work in Double Seat.[59][60][61] Barve's next release was Amit Trivedi's road drama film, Highway, alongside many actors where she played a sex worker.[62][63] Her next appearance was in her self-produced commercial play Lovebirds, in which she played a character with many grey shades who is a housewife, Devika.[64] Her final release of 2015 was opposite Swwapnil Joshi in Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai 2, the sequel of the hit film Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai, in which she reprised her role from the first part, Gauri Deshpande a bad tempered and confused girl to be dealt with.[65] For her work in Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai 2, Barve received positive reviews from the critics as well as the viewers.[66][67] For her work in the film, she earned a nomination for the award of Best Actress in a Lead Role at Marathi Filmfare Awards 2016.[68]

In 2016, she was honoured with the Lokmat Maharashtrian of the Year Award in Theatre category for her work in Marathi theatre.[69] In July 2016, she was honoured with the Chaturastra Abhinetri Award at Nilu Phule Sanman 2016.[70] In 2016, Barve appeared in Atul Jagdale's Ganvesh, co-starring Kishor Kadam, Dilip Prabhavalkar, Smita Tambe, Guru Thakur and many more in which she played a tough police inspector, Meera Patil, who is torn between following her duty to respect the khaki uniform and following her seniors' orders.[67] The Times of India wrote of her performance in Ganvesh, "Barve (who is an absolute pleasure to watch) delivers her usual balanced performance.[71] In 2016, she acted in and produced a play titled Codemantra, an engaging courtroom drama set up against the background of the Indian Army under the banner of Rasika Productions.[72] In this play, Barve played Ahilya Deshmukh, a military law expert.[73] Through this play, Barve won many honours which include Most Natural Performer of the Year and Special Recognition Play at Zee Natya Gaurav 2017, Best Play at Maharashtra Times Sanman Awards 2017 and Best Play and Best Actress at Sanskruti Kaladarpan Awards 2017.[74][75][76] In mid 2016, Barve featured in Sameer Vidwans' YZ, alongside Sai Tamhankar and others.[77] The Times of India wrote of her performance in the film as " In a small role too, Mukta drives the point home with her expressions."[78] In November 2016, she was honoured with the Tarunai Sanman Puraskar at Pulotsav 2016.[79] In 2017, Barve, under her own production house, produced five shows of the iconic play Sakharam Binder, specially for her backstage people.[80] Barve also acted in the play along with some other actors of Lalit Kala Kendra, wherein she played the lead role of Champa.[80] In December 2016, Barve signed for Vikram Phadnis' directorial debut film, Hrudayantar, opposite Subodh Bhave, which released on 9 July 2017 under the banner of Vikram Phadnis Productions.[81][82] The Times of India wrote about Barve's performance in the film as "Mukta, as always, is brilliant".[83] For the film Barve also received nomination in Marathi Filmfare Awards for Best Actor in a Leading Role (Female).[84]

As of August 2017, she has started featuring in a Marathi television show named Rudram, a thriller which airs on Zee Yuva as Ragini, a woman exacting her revenge on many people.[85] She is seen alongside many popular Marathi artists like Satish Rajwade, Mohan Agashe, Sandeep Pathak, Kiran Karmarkar and Vandana Gupte.[86] In February 2018, she acted in Pratima Joshi's directorial debut Aamhi Doghi, alongside Priya Bapat.[87] The Times of India reviewed her performance as "Mukta lends authenticity to Amala with her restrained portrayal and makes you feel for her".[88] In March 2018, she was honored with the Loksatta Tarun Tejankit award in the film category.[89] She was seen opposite Swapnil Joshi in December 2018 in the film Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai 3 which is the sequel of Mumbai-Pune-Mumbai 2.[90] The film released on 7 December 2018.[91] Her performance in the film was reviewed by The Times of India as "For Mukta, this is a cakewalk, but she gives it her all. Nothing seems forced in her portrayal".[92] In the year 2019 Barve acted in three films. Firstly she was seen in Saleel Kulkarni's directorial debut Wedding Cha Shinema alongside Rucha Inamdar, Shivaraj Vaychal and others.[93] She played the role of Urvi, an aspiring filmmaker, who wants to make films on serious topics.[94] Ibrahim Afghan from The Times of India reviewed her performance in the film as "Mukta, has performed sincerely and does well in her role".[95] Subsequently, she acted in the film Bandishala directed by Milind Lele alongside Sharad Ponkshe, Pravin Tarde and many others.[96] In the film she played the role of Madhavi Sawant, a tough police officer, who incurs the wrath of several powerful enemies who plan to get rid of her.[97] Her performance was critically acclaimed as "The whole responsibility of taking the story forward lies on the shoulders of Mukta, who handles it like a pro."[98] For the film Barve bagged Best actress title at Maharashtra State Film Awards 2019.[99] Her third film in the year was Vikram Phadnis' Smile Please wherein she played the role of Nandini Joshi, a photographer, who is diagnosed with an early-onset dementia, to find sense of purpose and dignity opposite Lalit Prabhakar and Prasad Oak.[100][101] Mihir Bhanage from The Times of India wrote about her performance "Mukta portrays the strong-headedness and vulnerability of Nandini with aplomb".[102]