India, Aug. 10 -- She has been a naagin on TV, a fierce villain on the big screen, and everything in between. Now, Mouni Roy is a spy. Her new web series, Salakaar, sees Mouni as an Indian spy fooling a Pakistani army officer. In a conversation with Hindustan Times, Mouni discusses her role, the exoticisation of female spies, and the pressure of being in the public eye all the time.

Salakaar gets one thing right. It depicts Mouni as a spy who thinks, without merely relegating her to a 'honey trap'. She agrees: "Thankfully, it is written in a way that isn't demeaning, and it isn't about her sexuality or sensuality. It's about what she is set out to do, and she will fulfil her mission, come what may."

But Mouni does not look down upon fem...