Accept it or deny it, nepotism pervades it all when it comes to Indian film industry, there are but a few outsiders who have tasted consistent success and Taapsee Pannu is one of them. With her talent and charm, she has kept her feet firm in the industry since her debut.

Right from Aadukalam (2011) to Naam Shabana (2017), Taapsee has given exceptional performances in all her films and this year she is going stronger than ever. She has three Hindi and a Telugu film lined up for release in the coming months and needless to say the actor has been following a packed schedule. To add to it she has also been shooting for Sujoy Ghosh’s Badla alongside Amitabh Bachchan which, of course, is no small feat.

In a recent interaction that she had with Scroll, Taapsee shared the details of her upcoming films, the experience of working in them and how being an outsider in the industry has worked in her favour.

Here are excerpts from the interview:

On juggling four films simultaneously 

Taapsee shares, “From last October to May this year, I was working nonstop with probably only 15 days off in total. That is how I completed four films back to back. I have had a month off in May, where I had my other commitments and travelled for basic rejuvenation in life. I then joined Badla in June.”

It has been quite hectic for her lately but she has no complaints whatsoever.

“It has been a busy six to seven months for me, and I am not at all complaining because all these films have been very carefully picked by me. Even now when I look back, I have such wonderful memories with each film, which is probably why I am not complaining that I did not have many offs,” she explains.

On Soorma

In Soorma Taapsee plays a hockey player. Sharing why she decided to do the film, Taapsee says, “I consider myself a huge sports enthusiast, but it was really sad that I did not know about this particular story. That was probably a very big reason for me to do the film because it is embarrassing that you did not know about the things that an ex-hockey captain went through.”

Thus signing the film was her way of ensuring that nobody missed the story and she even trained in hockey for the role. She shares, “I got to learn hockey from Sandeep [Singh, former Indian Hockey team captain] himself. That was a very good feeling to learn the sport from literally a legend.”

On Mulk

After Pink Taapsee is back to the courtroom with Mulk, this time however in a new avatar.

Sharing the experience of working on the sets of Mulk, she says, “When I was performing for Mulk, what was intimidating was that there were five cameras rolling at the same time and you have people like Rajat Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Neena Gupta and Ashutosh Rana standing next to you. I have seen all of their work growing up. They are powerful performers. I always say that I am not intimidated by big stars, but I am intimidated by really good actors.”

“When all of them were in the same frame, there was a lot of pressure. I remember Ashutosh Rana was standing in front me for a sequence and I told him I was extremely intimidated and that I have seen him in terrifying roles in Sangharsh and Dushman. He just laughed. But I am looking forward to the audience reaction, particularly for this film,” she adds.

On Manmarziyan

Shooting for Manmarziyan was an entirely different experience for Taapsee as she got to work with Anurag Kashyap. She shares, “Anurag is a director I haven’t worked with before, but he is someone I would like to work with again and again. When I met him, I became a fan of the person he is, which is beyond the work he does. The energy around him is totally different. Kashyap’s films are usually thought to be dark films.”

“It is a very intense love story. For the longest time, I have waited for a good love story to happen in my career. I have a feeling this is going to be a memorable one. My character in the film is synonymous to open, wild fire. If you are with her, you will have a difficult ride. But if you are not with her, you will crave to be with her,” she said.

On her first successful film Aadukalam

Acting happened by chance for Taapsee. Recollecting how the things unfolded for her, she says, “At that time, I was not even contemplating about getting into acting. I took up the film for fun. It was like an adventure ride kind of decision. But it turned out to be a life-changing experience for me, where I decided that I would do this for life.”

She adds, “I had no plans of pursuing acting. Had Aadukalam not worked, I wouldn’t have pursued it further.”

On picking up her roles

Taapsee also shared her method of choosing films and picking roles. She has two basic criteria when it comes to zeroing on a role.

“When I get an offer, the first thing I look out for is the director. I am a very director-dependent actor. Even a great script can be bad in the hands of the wrong person. I trust my director a lot. I need to see that person’s work before, for me to know what their sensibilities are like,” she shares.

The second criterion is the freshness of the role that she has been offered. “How new and refreshing the character I am playing is another criterion. As an audience, will I pay my hard-earned money to watch the film in the theatre? That is how I choose my script.”

On being an outsider

“I am an outsider in all possible ways. Not just because I had no relatives or friends in the industry when I started out, but also because I did not plan to become an actor. Even now I do not have a studio backing me up, where people keep giving me films even if they do not work,” says Taapsee on being an outsider in the industry.

But according to her, being an outsider has worked in her favour, as she says, “But this has truly been the backbone of my career. I keep saying this line, jiska koi nahi hota, uski janata hoti hai: A person who has nobody has audience support. That has truly worked in my favour.”

She explains, “It is a big plus point that I am an outsider because then I can play a character that an outsider can relate to because the janata is an outsider. Yes, there are negatives also. But I was always aware of them when I entered the film industry. So it is okay.”

H/T: Scroll