Taapsee Pannu on the high of receiving praise from family and veteran actress Shabana Azmi, a new sports film and an interesting line-up
Ankita Chaurasia (MUMBAI MIRROR; October 25, 2019

Taapsee Pannu is minutes away from catching a flight back to Mumbai after a whirlwind promotional tour of her just released film, Saand Ki Aankh, in the capital. Encouraged by the positive response, the actress reveals that they began screenings for the press a week before release because they were confident of this real-life story of the Revolver Daadis, Chandro and Prakashi Tomar. “We didn’t want our little film to get lost in the noise that other bigger releases would make. After all, it isn’t a conventional festival release, what with two non-glamorous ladies running the show,” she reasons.

She was particularly thrilled when Shabana Azmi lauded the film. “I had invited her for a screening but didn’t know she was attending till the last minute. I was nervous and by the time I reached, the film was coming to an end. Shabana ji was wiping tears when she came out. She hugged us, saying how much she had liked the film and promised that she would tell everyone to watch it. Coming from a veteran actress, especially after the ageism debate, that’s a word-ofmouth that matters,” she avers.

Having dedicated the film to her mother, Taapsee also watched it for the first time with her, and a few days later, with her father and extended family. “My parents don’t say much, but these days my mother says that I can finally act. She cried while watching the film while my father was grinning from ear-to-ear. So, I assume they liked it,” she smiles.

While the actress admits the promotions have been hectic, she is also thankful for her busy schedule which didn’t allow her to suffer from “terrible” withdrawal symptoms post the wrap-up of Anubhav Sinha’s next, Thappad. “I had to know my character Amrita closely and though it was only 31 days of shoot, I felt claustrophobic getting into her mind. It was so emotionally taxing that I wanted the film to end, and at the same time, not quite,” she shares.

Taapsee is now prepping up to acquire an athlete’s physique for her next, Ronnie Screwvala’s Rashmi Rocket. While she was to kick off the new year with the film, she will now start shooting only by the end of February. “It would have gone into summer anyway. There are portions in the film for which I have to transform my body and there was no way we could have done it all during the winter,” she explains. But, by then, won’t it get really hot in the Rann of Kutch, where the film is based? “We had a choice between shooting in the heat versus shooting in January, during the Kutch mela, when there’s a lot of chaos around. We chose the former,” she informs.

Buzz is, she rolls with a Vinil Mathew-directed romantic-thriller in January. She refuses to comment on this, but admits 2020 will be a busy year. “I have some interesting projects lined up, but let the makers announce them first,” she says.

For now, she will be spending Diwali with her parents in Mumbai. Then, she plans to go on a vacation. “It will be either after Diwali or later in November. I am yet to decide where to go, but it will certainly not be a cold place as I hate the chill,” she pulls a face.


Pavail Gulati and Taapsee Pannu on the sets of Thappad