Simu Liu Humbly Shares His Advice for Stepping into the Spotlight: 'We Have to Own Our Greatness'

"I just feel like for us to collectively take next steps as a community, we have to step into the spotlight. We have to be unapologetic and unafraid," Simu Liu tells PEOPLE at the Unforgettable Gala

Photo: Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

Simu Liu is conquering what it means to own his greatness.

While chatting with PEOPLE at the Unforgettable Gala on Saturday evening, the 32-year-old actor — who recently broke barriers by becoming Marvel's first Asian superhero in the studio's film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings — opened up about being a trailblazer, though he explained that he wrestles with whether or not the descriptor accurately fits him.

"I feel like somebody who's just trying to take up space," Liu shared. "My parents raised me kind of the way that they lived, which is very humbly, very under the radar, don't want to rock the boat too much, don't want to cause a ruckus."

"I just feel like for us to collectively take next steps as a community, we have to step into the spotlight. We have to be unapologetic and unafraid and we have to own our greatness," he continued. "So that's what I'm trying to do."

Still, "to set an example," Liu adds, "it's hard because I am still my parent's son."

Jon Kopaloff/FilmMagic

This year's Unforgettable Gala, which took place at the Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California, marked the 19th iteration of the famed awards show.

The nighttime ceremony recognized "Asian and Pacific Islander leaders who have fought for API presence in the arts, entertainment and culture," according to the event's website.

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Hosted by Sherry Cola, the ceremony also saw appearances from other stars, including Sandra Oh, John Cho, Benedict Wong, and Daniel Dae Kim, among others.

Liu won this year's Breakout in Film Award, which "honors a rising talent who has impacted audiences around the world," according to a press release.

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To be recognized by his own community, Liu says, is so important and a feeling like no other.

"I first came to Unforgettable, my first time here was three years ago when I was on a little show called Kim's Convenience," he tells PEOPLE. "And that just felt so good to be a part of the community [and] to celebrate the wins."

"Crazy Rich Asians had just come out and so it's a full-circle moment for me in a lot of ways now to be surrounded by the peers that I know and love and I could spend forever just on this red carpet, shaking hands and hugging people and catching up," Liu continues. "But it's just tremendously gratifying."

Liu echoed similar remarks during his acceptance speech for his award, telling attendees, "I think I've been asked a million times over whether I feel like representing my community ever feels heavy, or like a burden, as if being a part of this community is something I can just turn on and off like a light switch."

"So to set the record straight — No, I'm not tired of being Asian," he concluded.