She’s feisty, she’s a spitfire and she calls a spade a spade. Scratch beneath the surface and there’s a powerhouse inferno. She can be as soft as gossamer or as turbulent as a storm. You can see the eddies churning behind her face. Watch her as the edgy girl in Manmarziyaan or as a cool collected woman in Thappad, Taapsee Is a woman with many stories. She will show them to you on screen. Be it Mulk or Saand Ki Aankh. Everytime you are done with a Taapsee performance, you feel you know her a little bit more. That’s Tapsee’s legacy. She will connect with you and allow you into the interiors of her mind and play with your memory. She will remind you of a lost love, she will remind you of a scar in your soul and she will also show you what it is to heal. On social media, she’s nifty and her self deprecating humour makes the most corrosive people back off. And the roles that she will do, be it Haseen Dilruba and Rashmi Rocket... only attest to her talent and let you know that roles are being written with her in mind. She’s had an impressive track record in Tamil and Telugu too, slaying the box office charts but she’s found her true metier in the Hindi film firmament. An outstanding student and a sports woman all her life, she’s now drawing the stares as an actor to reckon with. Which just adds up as the right time to ask Taaspee a few questions. And I ask:--
Your recent holiday was all over social media. Tell us about that.
This has been a tradition in my work life that after every film I take some time off. I plan my
holiday according to the number of days I get off. So, this time when I finished my Tamil film in September, I decided that before I start work on Haseen Dilruba I will take a week off. My travel agent gave me two options - Dubai and Maldives. The Maldives, regardless of whether everything is open or not, is my favourite destination. It was just picture perfect everywhere. It was indeed like a surreal dream and I woke up after seven days.
Tell us about this bikini body you’ve made and how hard you’ve worked on it?
It’s still a work in progress. I’m working towards getting the perfect sprinter’s body for Rashmi Rocket. I want to have a perfectly-muscled body. Not big muscles but lean muscles. I’m giving it all to hit the mark. I’m almost midway through the process. My fans have not seen me in bikinis because I don’t post such overtly glam photos on social media. Apart from Judwaa 2, I never had the chance to show off my body. People just never imagined me to be in a bikini.
A lot of women, children go through body issues. You are told to have the perfect skin, the perfect hair, the perfect body. Did you face any such issue during your growing up years?
I remember for the longest time in school I was skinny. I was an extremely hyperactive kid. I used to run around in school and would later come back home and keep playing whatever sport we used to play around the house. I’d only come back home to eat and to sleep. That made me thin and always hungry. The eating habits continued even when I’d cut down on physical activitiy to study before exams and hence I used to put on weight. I was never obese, but I did become slightly overweight towards the end of my school and college. When I entered the Hindi film industry, many people asked me, ‘Did David Dhawan tell you to reduce weight?’ Even for Judwaa 2, they asked me did you lose weight? I said nobody has asked me to reduce weight ever. Be it in Hindi, South, for ads…nobody has pushed me to become skinny or anorexic. I’ve been fortunate that way.
You mentioned that you were naturally inclined towards sports.I used to play basketball
for my school, which I was forced into because of my height. Otherwise, I’m not into the kind of games where you have a lot of physical contact because then it gets ugly. I love playing racket sports. I played badminton in school. I used to participate in 100m, 200m, 400m and relay races. That gave me whatever competitive spirit and sportsmanship I have as a person today. It also made me a team player. I became good at handling a team and at being part of a team. It really changed me as a person and added a lot to my personality and confidence.
Can you tell us about your early days that had an impact on you?
I had a regular, boring childhood. I never faced extremely terrible times while growing up. Even if there were bad times, it was probably something that every middle-class family would face. You know those restrictions on how much you can do as a girl and how much you can spend as a middle-class family...It was in the eighth standard that I first set a target and achieved it. I wanted to become the head girl of the school And to top that, I was declared the student of the year at my school. That made me realise that if I genuinely set my heart on something, I can achieve it. It’s not that I achieved everything I aimed for. I wanted to crack my MBA with a
90-plus percentile, which did not happen.
How did you land up in films?
I’m glad that this will break the notion that actors are either backbenchers or dropouts. I loved going to school. I used to be one of the frontbenchers and genuinely liked studying. I might not have the best attendance in the last few years because I started participating in a lot of extra-curricular activities like dancing and public speaking. But, when I was in my class, I was there. That thing of giving your 100 per cent wherever you are, I learnt from there.
Which school and college were you in?
I was in Mata Jai Kaur Public School in Ashok Vihar in Delhi. Then I was in Indira Gandhi Delhi Technical University for Women, Kashmiri Gate during my engineering days. I had this one year to myself after the MBA “failure”. In my head I was a failure because I didn’t cross the 90 percentile. I got 88. I thought okay I’ll take the exams again next year and score 90. Taking up a job wasn’t an option because once you join a proper job, then you don’t get back to studying. I thought let me just try these acting offers which I was getting thanks to a modelling stint that
I had done during college. I ended up signing two films. I googled all the names from the offers
I got. And I chose the ones I felt were most credible.
Which were the two films?
Aadukalam in Tamil and in Telugu it was Jhummandi Naadam. Raghavendra Rao launched me in Telugu and Vetrimaran in Tamil. I started getting good offers. I signed a film with Prabhas. I signed two films in Telugu and one film in Tamil even before my first film was released. The year passed, the films released and they turned out to be big hits. Then, there was no turning back.
You said you didn’t get 90 percentile, even though you scored 88. Are you generally hard on yourself?
With a few things I am. Like now, I know I have this one chance of getting the best body possible, I’m really hard on myself right now. But when I don’t want something, no matter how tempting, I will not care.
What is your take on romance? What was your first romance like?
It happened when I was in the ninth standard. However, this guy broke off as he wanted to concentrate on his tenth. There were no mobile phones back then.
I called him from a PCO and cried my heart out. I was devastated. Maybe because it was my first relationship and first relationships are always special. But after that, I was like I can’t let this affect me so much. Now I make sure the ending is mutual and amicable. Even if I’m calling it off, it’s a logical calling off. I might have had many relationships back to back but they were all committed relationships.
What are your views on a live-in relationship? Do you feel it’s a foolproof way of knowing if it’ll work out?
I don’t think it’s a foolproof way. I don’t think anything is. I’ve seen people who’ve lived in or have dated for a long time, but are still not 100 per cent sure that they’ll remain In a relationship. Live-in relationships work when you know the person from morning to night. Some people who like adventures in life, jump into it without a clue. They have this, let’s-just-get-into-it- and-we’ll-sail-through-the-
Do firang boyfriends make for better lovers? Are they more evolved than Indian men?
Obviously, they are culturally different. Things like being answerable to and expectations are different... it’s not the same when you’re with an Indian guy. And another thing that matters, in my case particularly, is the age. The age difference also decides how mature the other person is. I feel that women are more mature compared to guys their age. You need someone to be an anchor. A guy needs to be a man to be with me, he can’t be a boy. A man who is matured, who’s travelled the world and who’s lived and made his life himself can handle me well.
You are pretty open about your relationship, which is healthy...
I’ve never been in denial. But, I’ve not gone out and talked about him (Mathias Boe). Because I’ve noticed that whenever I’ve spoken about him the headlines become more about him than me and that overrides my professional life. I’ve been pretty much open. The families know about it as well. I met him during one of the badminton matches. I was a spectator, he was
a player there. We ended up chatting on Twitter a little bit and then we met each other. Since then, it’s been stable, nice, happy, calm. No baggage, no burden relationship.
Do long-distance relationships come with their own set of problems?
I don’t think long distance is a problem. If you have a life where you’re constantly hopping from one place to another then what’s the point of even staying next door. If I work normally throughout the year, I’m probably at home for 60 days in total.
What are the do’s and don’t in a relationship?
Infidelity is something that I’ve been very honest about. That doesn’t work. If you’re feeling the urge to go somewhere else that means something is not perfect here and you’re more than happy to walk off. But don’t be dishonest. You shouldn’t be scared of telling the other person something just because you fear you’ll lose them. A lot of people ask me that you’re in a profession where there are a lot of good-looking men around, don’t you feel the need or the temptation to give in?
Are there good-looking guys around?
Well, let’s just say good looks are a subjective thing so we can always debate on that. But, you should always realise what is at stake. Is that worth losing for this? I always weigh the stakes and so far, I’ve never had an experience where I found it was worth it.
It’s been almost a decade for you in the movies. How have you coped with the sexism, misogyny and all of that?
I faced some really weird things in the beginning like she isn’t pretty enough. I’ve been replaced because the hero’s wife didn’t want me to be part of the film. I was dubbing for one of my films and I was told that the hero didn’t like my dialogue so I should change it. When I refused to change it, they got a dubbing artiste to do it behind my back. There was a time when I was told the hero’s previous film didn’t work, so you slash your price because we need to control the budget. There was some hero who wanted my introduction scene changed because he felt it would overpower his introduction scene. These are the things that have happened in front of me, I don’t know what’s happened behind my back. I decided that from now on, I will only take up films that will make me genuinely happy to go to work. People advised me against it because there might be a point of no return. Whenever a girl has tried to do women-driven films there’s a tag that’s attached to her and male stars are then hesitant to take her as their leading lady. It might be a little harder, longer journey but it’s going to be one that I’m going to enjoy each day. It has worked out till now.
You’ve been active on social media in terms of saying something you really believe in. Sometimes, do you feel it would have been better if there were no social media?
I like to see the brighter side of things. But, obviously, there are moments where I’m frustrated and irritated thinking why the hell do we have to be here? But becuse of a few bad things that come on social media, I’m not going to give up on the good.
Every one of us is depressed or low at some point. Have you ever gone through something where you had to seek therapy or meet a councillor?
I had these articles written about me saying how I’m a bad luck charm. I just kept thinking that this is not the end of my life. So what if this didn’t work? I’m an engineer, and I can still do my MBA. The problem is that hope gets killed not just by your own sadness,
but also by the hate you are surrounded by and give in to. Social media has generated so much hate, I call it illusional hate. Illusional because it is virtual. When I had gone to the Maldives, it was after six-seven months of sitting at home, where your only medium of talking to people was social media and you saw so much hate day in day out that you started believing there’s so much hatred everywhere. But I almost teared up with the kind of love those people showered over me in Maldives, It made me realise the difference between virtual and real.
How does this seven month forced sabbatical feel to you? Do you feel this is like a second coming for all of us?
I hope it is. I don’t know the elasticity of the human mind if it’ll instantly snap back to how it was or it’ll learn and change from whatever it has experienced. I just know that nothing lasts forever and no plan is foolproof. It already feels like it was a weird dream or sleep paralysis that I was in for those five-six months. I want to move beyond it. I still have the notes of my recipes. I still have the YouTube links of those recipes which keep reminding me that it happened for real, where I was standing in the kitchen for like 5-6 hours everyday cooking all the three meals.
When you went on the sets for the first time after
the pandemic, were you worried that you might contract the illness?
I was worried if I could still act. You know because it’s like a muscle. You don’t exercise the muscle, it rusts. I chose a Tamil film to get back with. I didn’t speak Tamil for like the longest time ever. So, I was worried. But then it went fine. That was the only worry, not the illness.
What are your biggest pointers that make you say yes to a film?
Will I spend my hard-earned money and time in the theatre watching this film purely as an audience? Will I have a nice time on the set? Will I learn something new? Will I have fun with the character? With the people, I’m working with in the film? Will I be proud to show this film to my kids? All the films I’ve done in Hindi at least in the last three years fit into this criteria.
Tell us something about your upcoming films - Rashmi Rocket and Haseen Dilruba.
Haseen Dilruba is a romantic thriller, Kanika Dhillon, who wrote Manmarziyaan, has written it, so you can expect a lot of crazy characters. Rashmi Rocket is a film that is inspired by several true events which have happened in sports. I’m playing a sprinter so most of it is inspired from a sprinter’s life. Someone wanted me to do this film in Tamil. I read the script and felt this is a story that should be told to the whole country. That’s when I got a producer on board to pick up the script and then got it written as a pan-Indian film. Apart from that, I’m doing the Hollywood film Run Lola Run’s adaptation in Hindi which is called Loop Lapeta. It’s a quirky modern-age thriller comedy.
When you did a two-heroine film, there was talk you’d be clawing each other’s eyes out...
I have not seen anyone clawing at the other nor I have done it myself. In Saand Ki Aankh, it was a totally opposite scenario especially for me. I remember writing a long mushy message to her (Bhumi Pednekar). Telling her that we both know what we’re trying to attempt here is crazy. And from the looks of it not many would have had the courage to get into it because we knew how many people said no to our roles before we got into it. The kind of chemistry we had was not only visible on the screen, but people also spoke about it to us off-screen as well. They had never seen two actresses promoting their film like we did. We both gave it all we had. All those things of fighting with each other, I don’t know from where it started and what really gave them air. My personal experience of working with actress be it Bhumi or even Jacqueline Fernandez in Judwaa 2 or even in Thappad, I had so many women who were around but none of this ever happened.
Take a Manmarziyaan and Thappad. There is a big change in your body language. How do you achieve that kind of metamorphosis?
Manmarziyaan required instability in the head, mind and body language. Thappad required an extremely stable mind and body to pull off the role. Obviously, it’s the actor’s job to deliver both the extremes. I’ve led a normal life in a regular household where I’ve seen these kinds of characters around in person. My upbringing has made it really easy for me to play these real characters.
There is talk that you’re doing a film with Shah Rukh Khan and Rajkumar Hirani directing it.
The day I sign the film, I will be on my roof shouting and screaming. Who doesn’t want to romance Shah Rukh Khan? He was my producer for Badla. He’s the most charming man I’ve ever come across. Even though I had very limited interactions with him on very limited occasions... but some people have that charm… he has that. I think if I get the chance to share the screen with him, I’ll just be looking at him and admiring him in between shots... And Rajkumar Hirani… I will be shouting from my terrace the day I sign it. But until something is confirmed, I’m not going to talk about it.
What about Mr Bachchan? Are you doing a third film with him?
I feel blessed that I’ve got the chance to work with him twice. When you think about an Amitabh Bachchan film early in your career, you think it’ll be an Amitabh Bachchan film. To get some pretty substantial parts to play opposite or next to him is a big deal. I think the chemistry works best because I’ve switched off the button in my head that he is the Amitabh Bachchan. I treat him like any other young co-star, be it Vicky Kaushal or Varun Dhawan. I don’t treat him like a demi-god, he doesn’t treat me like someone who isn’t from his generation. We end up having a good conversation sitting next to each other. That really brings out the best in both of us. The most important thing I learnt was you’re never too old to learn. He just keeps evolving every year. His dedication towards trying to explore new kinds of stories and genres, at this age, when he could just relax is something that most of us in today’s generation can learn from.
Have you had any out of body experience while acting? Has it changed you somewhere?
I discovered a new side of me when I was doing Pink. Before Pink, I always used to say I will never be able to cry on camera. When I started working for Pink, I didn’t use glycerine at all. I just brainwashed myself into thinking that that incident has happened to me. Then, every scene came naturally. All that choking up was natural. I’ve been trying to push the envelope ever since.
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