You can’t take glamour out of me: Neha Dhupia
December 15, 2011 by admin
Filed under Choosing Lingerie
Why can’t Pappu dance? Or is the title more symbolic?
I am happy you gave me the option ‘symbolic’ else I wouldn’t know how to answer your question (laughs). Well, the title is symbolic for the very reason that it’s trying to say there’s a pappu in each one of us. It is like one of those casual moments when we refer to someone saying ‘kya haal hai pappu‘. We have tried to bring out that pappuness in the film. I play the character of a backup dancer called Mehek Malvade who does not agree with the protagonist Vinay Pathak on some aspects. How they come together as neighbours is the gist of the story.
So is it a Vinay Pathak brand comedy?
It is primarily a comedy film but then drama is an essential element in every film, be it horror or action.
Did the onscreen comic chemistry translate into off-screen humour as well?
Certainly, at several instances! I remember of this one scene in particular where my character was required to slap Vinay Pathak. I was trying to not hit him hard but director Saurabh Shukla kept on telling me that the intensity in the scene is somewhere missing, so I must slap hard. I still couldn’t get myself to slap him hard. After several retakes, Vinay Pathak got somewhat annoyed and said ‘Your 15 mild slaps is more painful than one tight slap. So please slap me hard for once and get over with it’. It was a really funny episode and ended with that tight slap.
Are you consciously choosing comedy roles over glamourous ones?
You can’t take glamour out of Neha Dhupia (laughs). It’s hard! It’s just that I find relief in doing comic roles and it comes to me naturally.
But off-late we see you more often in small-budget independent cinema?
I don’t know why people have this notion but I have no such criteria to stick to small-budget films. I just look for flexibility that the character offers me as an actor and good scripts.
You also seem to be amongst the most popular cover girls around
Really? I don’t think that is true. But I must admit that I love being a part of the fashion fraternity. And perhaps my publicist is doing a great job!
You are also starting your lingerie line
It’s more of an e-commerce initiative. I’ll be starting websites for a lingerie line and a designer shoe line offering people a wide range to choose from.
You are not a part of the sequel to ‘Ek Chalis Ki Last Local’. Any regrets?
Ek Chalis Ki Last Local is a feather in my cap. It almost became a cult comedy. But the script usually demands that an actor not be repeated in the sequel. So it’s good that I am not a part of the sequel. We need to move on. I wish luck to director Sanjay Khanduri.
