Lessons on being an influencer amid COVID-19 from Mithila Palkar

Bubbly and often called “cute”, young actor Mithila Palkar is turning into an influential youth icon today. She has been loved for her on-screen characters in series like ‘Little Things’, ‘Girl in the City’, etc. Palkar rose to fame with her Marathi version of Anna Kendrick’s ‘Cup Song’ from the film ‘Pitch Perfect’.

Palkar has over 2.4 million followers on Instagram and over 47K followers on Twitter. She has earlier also appeared in ads for Maggi, Tata Tea and Zomato, among others. She is known to be picky about natural elements in her life, from natural soap to organic tea and veggies. Palkar was recently signed on for a campaign for the newly launched Joy Mineral Sunscreen with natural chemical free SPF.

In conversation with Adgully, Mithila Palkar speaks about her take on the new normal and how she has kept her audience engaged during the lockdown. 

Also read: Joy ropes Mithila Palkar as its brand ambassador for the Sunscreen category

On the content front how are you trying to be different and how are you engaging with your audience? Have you introduced something fresh and exciting in your content for more traction?

On the content front, I am not trying to be exceptionally different. In fact, I believe what my audience likes and what I also personally like to put out, is myself – as I am. I am not ‘creating content’ per se – haven’t done that over the last 3-4 months on any of my channels. I have just put out pictures or videos of whatever I’ve been doing and generally keeping the public updated about how I’m spending my time. That’s something I enjoy – content that is real and relatable. Especially on Instagram, because that’s one medium where people connect with me, I like to keep it honest and as close to me as possible.

During lockdown did you shoot any films for any brands? If so, how did you manage to do the same?

I did shoot a film. I live with my grandparents and hence, couldn’t get people from outside. I learned a few new skills to shoot a film. Most of the shots were done by just positioning a camera in a place and recording.

Work from home has made many celebrities discover new things in life? Did you discover something new like cooking or any new hobbies?

All of us have tried our hand at cooking and I won’t deny that I did too. Living with my grandmother made it easier, because I could learn how to cook from the best and now I know I can survive if I ever had to live alone. This is the best thing that has come out of the lockdown. Another thing that’s been very special to me is Kathak. I trained for three years, even appeared for exams, but couldn’t keep up because of the work schedules. However, now I’ve been learning it from home and it gives me hope that when I do start working again, I’ll still find a way to keep myself connected with it. My guru and my trainer have both been extremely generous and patient. They’ve been pushing me beyond my comfort level and it has been amazing.

Everyone is trying to figure out how this pandemic will change us. What is your take on this ‘new normal’?

At this point in time, none of us have an option but to get used to what is happening outside, but at the same time, we all have to be patient and take our time to get used to this situation. We have been used to a certain kind of ‘normal’ for too many years now and this is a very sudden change, which not all of us are going to be able to adjust to quickly. Speaking for myself, I haven’t spent so much time with my grandparents at a stretch due to work. None of us have had to stay inside our homes for this long and even that has taken some getting used to, because we are all used to going out, running errands and then returning home. Old habits die hard, and we don’t need to push ourselves either. We must be patient with others and ourselves, cherish this time with family because when things go back to the way they were, we will miss having time to ourselves.