Girija Oak on the dark side of viral fame: “Things Do Get to Me

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Actress Girija Oak, who recently became a viral sensation after pictures of her in a blue saree circulated widely online, has spoken about the less glamorous side of sudden fame.

The veteran actress, who has been in the entertainment industry for more than two decades, said that along with admiration, she received unsolicited and often inappropriate messages from men on social media. Speaking to News18, she said, “Eventually, you become thick-skinned. I started acting very early in my life. I've been around for 20–25 years now. Now, when some things happen, you take them with a pinch of salt.”

Oak added that while she has developed resilience over the years, she is still human and not immune to being affected. “This time around, I'd be lying if I said I wasn't affected at all. Things do get to me. But eventually, you figure out ways to handle it,” she explained. She also expressed her surprise at the sense of entitlement some men display in their messages, calling it “quite amusing.”

Girija Oak is recognized for her work in Marathi, Hindi, and Kannada films. Her notable Marathi films include Gulmohar, Lajja, and Navra Maza Bhavra, while in Bollywood, she appeared as Jabeen in Aamir Khan’s Taare Zameen Par (2007), and in Shor in the City (2010) and Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan (2023). On television, she starred in Sony TV’s Ladies Special, a show about the lives of women commuting on Mumbai’s Ladies Special train.

Oak has also featured in several OTT projects, including Modern Love: Mumbai, 13th: Some Lessons Aren’t Taught in Classrooms, and most recently, Inspector Zende alongside Manoj Bajpayee.