Tollywood actress Swatika Mukherjee has posted a note to herself on her 44th birthday on Instagram, marking her growth as an individual and her triumph over her insecurities.

“Hey love, happy 44th birthday,” the Tekka actress wished herself. “The greys you were once scared of are shining brighter than silver. You see tired eyes, I see experience. You see dark circles, I see achievements. You see laugh lines, I see a real woman,” she wrote.

Calling herself “an artist, a mother, a friend”, Swastika has set a reminder to be herself — “kind, compassionate, raw, honest” — in spite of “whatever the world has to offer”.

Birthday wishes came pouring in for Swastika from fans in the comments section. “I feel lucky every year when I remember I share my birthday with her! My inspiration,” wrote one of them.

The Kolkata-based actress had made a mark on the national OTT scene with her performances in films and web series such as Qala, Criminal Justice and Paatal Lok.

This year, Swastika starred in three films — Abhijit Sridas’s Bijoyar Pore alongside Dipankar De and Mamata Shankar, Srijit Mukherji’s Tekka opposite Dev and Dibakar Banerjee’s Love Sex Aur Dhokha 2 (LSD 2).