Deepika Padukone is an actor many people look up to and admire but even celebrities are criticised for their bodies and pushed to fit the mould of the perfect body image sanctioned by society. The Bollywood actor was recently interviewed by Filmfare for her latest film Gehraiyaan and she revealed that she was once advised to get breast implants at the age of 18.
Deepika Padukone was asked about the best and worst advice she’s received during the interview. She said Shah Rukh Khan gives great advice and she has learnt a lot from him. “One of the most valuable pieces of advice I got from him was to always work with people you know you are going to have a good time with, because while you are making a movie you are also living life, making memories and creating experiences.”
Revealing the worst advice she’s received, which she’s grateful to have not taken seriously, she said she was told to get breast implants. “I was all of 18 and I often wonder how I had the wisdom to not take it seriously.”
The interview also discussed her new film Gehraiyaan.
The Padmaavat actor said that the reason she said yes to the film is because, as someone who watches films, she’s drawn to movies that are “true to life; where the characters are raw, real, relatable.” She also really wanted to work with the director, Shakun Batra, whom she’s known on a personal level and found his mind “fascinating.”
Padukone chose this character because it was unlike any character she’s ever played before. “[My character is] one we’ve never seen in Indian cinema before; flawed, human and relatable.” The actor said that the majority of the characters exposed to the public through movies are either black or white and most often portrayed as doing what is conventionally right or wrong. “Humanising Alisha Khanna (Padukone’s character), infusing empathy and to portray her sans the lens of judgment was the most challenging and exciting part for me as an artiste.”
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Since cheating is a theme in the film, the cast was asked if they’ve ever cheated or been cheated on and what their views are. Padukone said she doesn’t personally endorse certain choices but one of the many things she learned through this film’s experience was “to try and not judge people for their choices and/or actions. To be empathetic and understand why people do what they do. And that isn’t restricted to infidelity alone.”
Commenting on the merging of self and character, she said, “Characters don’t exist in isolation. With every character you portray, you take away something from that experience but you also invest a lot of yourself into every character. And therefore, a screen character merging with the real self at some level is inevitable.“
Gehraiyaan has been directed by Batra and produced by Karan Johar. The film also stars Siddhant Chaturvedi, Ananya Panday, Dhairya Karwa, Naseerudddin Shah and Rajat Kapoor in pivotal roles. It’s being streamed on Amazon Prime.
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