Enthusiasm might as well be her middle name. The chatty, down-to-earth Parineeti Chopra seemed to be on a constant high, breezing into Bangalore on a dank morning, saying ‘Hello everybody, how are you?’ like an old friend, waving about to the gathering and bestowing her brilliant smile upon us, proclaiming with gusto her love for her Kill/Dil co-stars Ranveer Singh and Ali Zafar. And at the end of the interview even apologises for having “dull energy levels today…my throat is gone”!
Parineeti Chopra, in her short career span of three years has grabbed attention for the kind of roles she’s played, films she’s picked, and the way she’s dressed… or not. In Bangalore last week to promote her latest flick, she talks, among other things, about how she initially thought it was enough to act well, but realised dressing well was as much a part of the Bollywood deal. Excerpts from an interview.
What about Kill/Dil made you pick the film?
I was looking for a film that would be different from my previous ones. I’ve always done films that have had a basis in reality.I wanted a film that was larger than life. And Kill/Dil came at the perfect time. I wanted to experiment with my look. A couple of big reasons made me jump at it.
So you mean glamour isn’t realistic?
Noooo! Not at all like that…when I said realistic may be I used the wrong word. I meant small-town – both in Ishaqzaade and Shuddh Desi Romance they were small-town roles. As a scientist in Hasee Toh Phasee I was wearing baggy oversized clothes. So it wasn’t really about glamour. This is larger than life. In this film I play a rich kid; so I have access to the best designer clothes, the best life, to go with my character. That’s what I meant. People in real life these days are very glamorous.
Coming to which, you’ve constantly been criticised for your “look” — the clothes and styling…
I think I’ve changed now. It used to be so in my first year. But I think this year, I’ve not had bad reviews for my clothes actually! All those fashion critics etc have said ‘She’s improved a lot’, which is a pat on my back. Because I’ve actually taken care of what I wear and what is my “look”, which I never used to do before. It is important to dress well in this industry. I thought acting would be the only thing that mattered. But it isn’t. So now I take care of it and don’t get panned for my dressing now.
You started off in this industry as a PR for Yash Raj Films. Looking back, are you happy with where you are now?
(Asks a staffer for a “doodh-wallah normal filter coffee, badey mug mein” ). I need to wake up ya! What were we saying? Am I happy? A 100 per cent! I didn’t have a traditional big debut film. I held my own in my first film as one among four heroines.
Ishaqzaade gave me a National Award mention. I’ve learnt on the job, and given that history I’m very happy. Now that I’m learning about the industry, I can do better things. You have an image of being bubbly and enthusiastic. Has that worked to your advantage or has it been a limiting factorin finding roles?
Unfortunately, I’m asked this always, and when I answer people realise it’s not true. I am energetic and enthusiastic in real life. Only my first role was that of a bubbly girl, in Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, in which I played a loud Punjabi girl. After that Ishaqzaade I played an aggressive, fiery, strong, swearing, furious character. In Shuddh…
I was this laidback girl sleeping around with her boyfriend, smoking. In Hasee… I was a mad scientist…so actually I was not bubbly in any of my films. I don’t understand where that image has come from!
For Daawat-e-Ishq you did a lot of food tasting around the country. What is the one food memory that still stays with you after all these days?
None of the food that I ate was new. I’ve travelled a lot and eaten all kinds of Indian food. But yes, the meal I had at my home, which my mother cooked was the most memorable one because Aditya (Roy Kapoor, her co-star) and the whole crew whom we used to work with everyday was there. It has to be home food because you grow up on it.
