Taapsee Pannu
After bagging the Pantaloons Femina Miss Fresh Face title and fame in Tollywood with National Award winning film Aadukalam, Pannu is all set to make her Bollywood debut with comedy drama Chashme Baddoor. She talks to SANGEETA YADAV about her acting journey in South and her experience working with David Dhawan
‘It’s a laugh riot’
Tell us about your role in Chashme BaddoorIJ
The movie is roughly based on the original plot but there are subtle changes. For instance, I play Deepti Naval’s character Neha but in this movie the name is Seema. There’s a difference between Neha and Seema. While Neha was the typical 1980s shy girl-next-door, Seema is a very today’s girl — confident, outspoken, straightforward and blunt. She will not cry over a heartbreak, preferring to move on. I’m very much like Seema in real life too. In fact, during the audition, I was asked to be just myself. That really helped me settle down in the project too.
Your reasons for accepting this filmIJ
Three years back when I was a Miss India finalist, I had decided that Bollywood would be my next stop. After the modeling assignments got done, I started approaching production houses looking for suitable roles. I did get a few offers but they were not very exciting. I wanted to make a big first impression and for that it was important that I started my career with a big banner. My debut film down south were big hits and that set the tune for me. My first Tamil movie, Aadukalam won six National Awards and my first Telugu film Jhummandi Naadam was under K Raghavendra Rao who launched big actresses like Sridevi and Jayaprada. Chashme Baddoor happened at a very right time. It is the ideal launch pad for me.
How was it working with director David DhawanIJ
David sir never made me feel that I’m a newcommer in Bollywood. As a child, I used to dance to the numbers of his movies like Hero No 1 and Coolie No 1. He is undoubtedly one of the most successful commercial directors and I was overwhelmed with the opportunity to make a debut in Bollywood in his film. He had liked my work in south Indian films and thought I fit the bill. Before my first shot, he told me to give my best and leave the rest to him.
How was the experience of shooting the fake kidnapping sceneIJ
That is the climax sequence and it’s really funny. Chashme is an out-and-out comedy film and I am sure the audience will have a fun time watching this one. There is only one emotional scene in the film that is when Sid and Seema break up. Otherwise, the rest of the movie is a joy ride.
What prompted you to leave engineering and opt for modelling and actingIJ
In my second year of engineering, I realised that I wanted to be a part of the glam world. The corporate jobs was s strict no-no for me. Many people told me to try modelling and acting. But my father was very reluctant at first but when he saw me walk the ramp for the first time he was very happy and proud of me. In my third year of college, when I was actively into modeling, I also managed to get an offer from Infosys Pvt ltd. I wanted to make a point that I am responsible and I am capable of doing two things at a time.
Being a Punjabi, was it difficult for you to naturally converse in HindiIJ
language was a bit of hurdle for me but I was ready to learn from day one. I learnt Telugu and Tamil on the sets.