In a conversation with Pinkvilla, Mallika said, “Welcome ka sequel banega toh director apni girlfriend ko hi dalega na usmein, Welcome 2 bana toh usmein apni girlfriend ko daal diya batao, ab main kya karun (If a sequel of Welcome is made, then the director will only cast his girlfriend. When Welcome 2 was made, he cast his girlfriend in the film. What can I do now)?”

Mallika refrained from taking names, but she further reiterated and said, “But this is true. When they make a sequel they cast their girlfriend, the hero casts his girlfriend, what do I do then? I don’t have any boyfriend in Bollywood, I have never been with any actor, director, or producer. With me like this is my work, if you think I am worthy of your project I would love to be a part of it. But if a director or a producer or an actor – if they want to cast their girlfriends then it’s their choice,” before adding, “What should I do? That is the only reason I lost out (on Welcome Back).”

Earlier also, the Murder actress had made a similar claim. Speaking with PTI in 2019, Mallika openly talked about how male actors replaced her with their girlfriends. “I lost film projects because they thought I was opinionated. I would hear from heroes ‘don’t cast her she speaks a lot and has a lot of opinions’. They would prefer their girlfriends instead of me in projects. I can list at least 20-30 movies that I’ve lost. But it didn’t make me bitter. It was my gradual evolution. Now when I look back, they look like fools, all of them,” she had said.

On the work front, Mallika’s latest outing as an actress, a web series Nakaab is currently streaming on MX Player. The show also stars Esha Gupta and Gautam Rode. Helmed by Soumik Sen, Nakaab is an investigative murder thriller. It revolves around a high-profile death of a leading actor and subsequent investigation by the Police whether it was an accident, suicide, or murder.