A Russian journalist who defied Vladimir Putin's crackdown on free speech to hit out against his war on Ukraine on live TV says she fears for her life and safety but refuses to flee Russia. 

Marina Ovsyannikova, dubbed "the bravest woman in Russia" says she is "extremely concerned" after being fined $490 and interrogated for more than 14 hours. 

Ovsyannikova told reporters she was not allowed to sleep while held in police custody. 

The journalist was arrested after she walked behind the presenter during Monday's evening news show with a poster saying "stop the war, don't believe the propaganda, they are lying to you here". In English, it said "no war" at the top of the poster and "Russians against the war" at the bottom. 

Now she fears more punishment awaits. 

A Russian journalist who defied Vladimir Putin's crackdown on free speech to hit out against his war on Ukraine on live TV says she fears for her life and safety but refuses to flee Russia. 

Ovsyannikova, speaking today, said that "I absolutely don't feel like a hero" after the stunt and did it to "open people's eyes" – including her own mother who she said has been "zombified" by state propaganda. 

"I am concerned for my safety, if I'm honest. I'm quite… I believe in what I did, but now I understand the scale of the problems that I'll have to deal with." 

Speaking about her protest, she explained she wasn't sure whether she would be able to go through with it until the last minute. 

She had to bypass numerous layers of security to get in front of the camera. 

"It was really scary – scary is not even the word for that. I wasn't sure whether I could go through with it right until the last moment. 

"On Channel One – and the main news programme in the country – there are several layers of security, and it's not that easy to get into the studio. 

"And there's a member of law enforcement sitting right in front of the studio who makes sure that these kinds of incidents don't happen. I won't go into details because it was a loophole in Channel One's security arrangements." 

Marina Ovsyannikova entering an on-air TV studio during Russia's most-watched evening news broadcast, holding up a poster which reads as "No War". 

She added: "The protest had two goals: show the whole world that Russians are against the war, and to show Russian people directly: 'Don't be such zombies; don't listen to this propaganda; learn how to analyse information; learn how to find other sources of information, not just Russian state television." 

The Kremlin described the act as "hooliganism", with spokesman Dmitry Peskov warning: "The channel and those who are supposed to will get to the bottom of this. 

"As far as this woman is concerned, this is hooliganism," he said. 

Ovsyannikova's stance was an even greater risk after Putin announced anyone who opposes the war and defies him will face 15 years in jail. 

Putin has strong-armed state channels into referring to a "special military operation" instead of a "war" or "invasion", has denied suffering mass casualties, and sought to paint Ukraine as the aggressor. 

It comes as a friend of Ovsyannikova said she told her two days ago that she was going to pull the stunt. 

"The anger has been building up with her ever since the war started," the anonymous source told The Guardian's Pjotr Sauer. 

"Two days ago, she told me how she was going to do it. 

"Like someone who has been working for the state, she was extremely scared of the system and losing the life she built up. Until last night."