Haya Maraachli’s connection with audiences has never depended on her seeming larger than life. Indeed, as Lynn in the recent TV series, Hob Aa Waraq, she has drawn her viewers close through something more elusive – a familiarity in her expressions, her humour, the way she lets a feeling register before a word is spoken.

Acting has been part of Maraachli’s life since childhood – and part of her family’s life, too. But, as someone who grew up surrounded by actors, she has been careful to find her own relationship with the work. After stepping away for four years, she returned at her own pace. “I’ll follow my heart,” she says of what comes next. “I’ll respect my feelings first, whether I want to do something or not.”

I saw that same self-possession during our photoshoot. Natural in front of the lens, Maraachli was clear about what she wanted from an image, with none of the fuss that can surround a public figure. Later, seeing her in her home with her pet chihuahua Cookie, I glimpsed the quieter world she has built for herself. Warm, funny and easy to talk to, Maraachli has an openness in person that feels familiar from her onscreen presence.

“Happiness is a decision,” she tells me, explaining how a person can have everything they once wanted and still feel unhappy. On a difficult day, for example, instead of letting it affect her, Maraachli tries to notice and take joy in what’s already there. “I’m safe. I’m healthy. The people I love are well,” she says, describing the thoughts she returns to. Sometimes, she writes down her feelings and the things she is grateful for; at other times, she runs through them in her head. This is her way of paying attention, of being mindful, even when the day is hard.

At the same time, she doesn’t believe happiness requires life to be beautiful all the time. “There’s no way there won’t be pressure. There’s no way there won’t be sadness,” she shares, but “even bad is good.” Difficult feelings, in her view, belong to the experience of living, so she tries to let herself experience them, feel them, and learn from them.

Celebration needs no special occasion, either. “I don’t wait for an opportunity to celebrate,” Maraachli says. “I celebrate life itself.” In fact, she might find one reason to celebrate in the morning and another that evening. So what’s something that can improve an ordinary day? She answers with one word – “Connections.” The most important, she explains, are “the connection with myself and with God”, along with what she believes in and her bond with the people in her life.

She’s delighted by the response to Hob Aa Waraq, though she says she didn’t foresee a reaction on this scale. “Of course I wished for it. I prayed that it would succeed,” she says. “But I didn’t expect this much.” An actor, she adds, can give everything to a project and still have no idea how audiences will receive it. “You never know how people will react.”

Public success is welcome, but Maraachli has another measure for it. She tells me that getting through dark days nobody knew about felt like a success in its own right. “Your real competitor is yourself,” she notes. For her, progress means continuing to grow and overcome the things that once held her back.

That conviction shapes what she calls her discipline. Maraachli laughs when I ask how disciplined she is – it depends, she says, on what we’re talking about. One thing she guards closely is her self-respect. “I’ve been careful, for a long time, not to do anything that would make me lose respect for myself,” she explains. “My value comes from within. It can’t come from what I’m wearing, what I’m doing or where I am.” And whether others consider her at the top or somewhere far from it, she wants that sense of worth to stay with her.

Her decisions as an actress begin with feeling. Before accepting a role, Maraachli asks herself whether she can inhabit the character’s pain and joy, and whether she will enjoy the work. “If I feel I’m going to enjoy working on it, that matters to me,” she says. One dream is to portray a woman who could change the way a young girl sees herself. Still, she believes art can serve people in different ways. Sometimes an audience needs a story that raises questions, makes them think; other times, people simply need to relax, enjoy a show or a movie without overthinking. “So, even what has no meaning has meaning,” the actor quips.

But business calls for a different approach. “In art, I follow my emotions,” Maraachli explains. “But as a businesswoman, this requires a real plan, real study. You have to look ahead.” She speaks about creating things women will value using or wearing, and about ensuring her vision is present in them. Planning, though, cannot eliminate risk. On courage, she is practical. “If you think about the risks of everything you want to do, you won’t do anything,” she smiles. There are times, she says, when we simply have to strengthen our hearts.

The conversation turns to therapy, a subject she has discussed publicly before. Maraachli values what the practice can help a person uncover, but is wary of having her growth attributed entirely to it. “It’s not just that,” she says. “Otherwise, it’s your homework. It’s your effort.”

Her ideas about happiness and success have also changed with experience, and she expects them to keep changing. “Everything changes,” she says. “That’s the most beautiful thing about a person.”

Even the lighter questions lead back to her instinct for finding her own way. Getting dressed, for example, always begins with a mood for Haya Maraachli. “I wear what I feel,” she shares. Jewellery might mean several pieces layered together or one striking piece on its own – “It depends on the piece.” She cares for her skin, but has little interest in beauty advice presented as a rule for everyone. “Listen to your body. Listen to your skin,” she says. “Try to find what it’s telling you.”

When Maraachli meets someone, it is their energy she notices first. Character and mindset reveal themselves later, “little by little.” Social media offers a similar chance to see more of a person over time, and she values the connection it gives her with an audience. She knows how easy it is to be affected by comments, but no longer treats them as a measure of success or failure. Though she’d like to share more online, saving some time for herself remains precious. “I spend more time with myself than with the world or with social media,” she says.

I ask her when she feels most free – her answer brings us back to an idea that has run through our conversation. “When I don’t associate my value, my comfort, or my happiness with material things,” Maraachli responds. Freedom, for her, begins with knowing that none of those things can determine what she is worth.

As our interview comes to a close, I ask her what she’d like to say to the girls who look up to her. “I am looking up to them,” she smiles. “We all look up to each other. We develop each other.”

It’s clear to me that, even after a career that began in childhood, a four-year pause, and a return that’s brought her a new level of attention, She is someone who remains eager to learn from the people around her, seeking qualities to admire in other women just as they may see something in her. And that’s why her answer sounds exactly like Haya Maraachli – curious, secure in herself, and open to what comes next.