She was once the bubbly face of Gokuldham’s favorite girl gang. Nidhi Bhanushali, who played the beloved Sonu in Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, had disappeared from the show without much noise. Fans missed her. Rumors swirled. But now, for the first time, she’s breaking her silence—and her words are anything but expected.

“It started off as maza,” she said with a nostalgic smile. “But slowly… it turned into pressure.”

Yes, that Sonu—the one we watched grow up on-screen, the one who shared laughs with Tapu Sena and taught values with every episode—now says her journey wasn’t always as happy as it looked.

In an interview that’s sending shockwaves across the internet, Nidhi opened up about the behind-the-scenes reality of growing up in front of cameras. “I was a kid when I joined,” she began. “At first it was exciting—fame, love, attention. But then… expectations kept growing. People forgot I was just a teenager. I started feeling suffocated.”

Her voice was calm, but the emotion was real. “I wasn’t unhappy all the time. But the joy started to fade. I missed being just Nidhi.”

She didn’t bash the show. In fact, she was full of gratitude. “I owe a lot to TMKOC. It gave me a platform, amazing memories, and fans who still message me. But there came a time when I had to ask myself: ‘Am I living my dream—or someone else’s?’”

It wasn’t one dramatic moment that made her leave. It was a slow realization. The long hours, the loss of privacy, the pressure to smile even when she wasn’t okay—especially as the audience saw her as Sonu, not Nidhi.

“You don’t get to cry. You don’t get to be moody. You’re on TV. You’re always supposed to be cheerful.”

And when she left, there was backlash. Trolls said she was being ungrateful. Some said she wouldn’t make it outside the show. But Nidhi stayed silent—until now.

Today, she lives a life far from the limelight. Traveling, painting, and living more on her own terms. Her social media is filled with raw, unfiltered glimpses of nature, philosophy, and freedom. “I found myself after leaving Sonu behind,” she says.

But does she regret it?

“Not for a second,” she answers firmly. “I had to choose peace over pressure.”

Her confession has sparked fresh debate about child artists, early fame, and the pressure of public image. Many fans are revisiting old episodes with a new lens. “I can’t believe she was going through this all while filming those happy scenes,” one fan commented.

Nidhi’s journey reminds us that sometimes, the biggest smiles hide the deepest struggles. And that behind every beloved character, there’s a human being just trying to breathe.

In a world obsessed with fame, Nidhi Bhanushali chose freedom. And that might just be her most powerful role yet.