MUMBAI: Taapsee reaction to Rangoli Chandel

She always has a lot of things to say. I just think that she loves me, I think both of them really love me and that’s because they give me so much of time and attention from their lives. I honestly, unfortunately, don’t feel the same so I don’t give it back, I don’t give my time and attention to them because it doesn’t matter to me in my life or in my scheme of things. I don’t want to waste my time on someone who doesn’t matter to me but apparently, I do matter, is why I get so much of love and attention and time but I honestly find it so futile to instigate me like that. If you really want to instigate me and make me say things, this is not the way.

Taapsee on Rangoli’s reaction to Saand Ki Aankh

See, first of all, when I took up this film, I honestly thought that I would be appreciated for doing such a film or taking this step because generally, all actresses conventionally don’t like to become mothers or grandmothers, or don’t like to look so de-glammed in a film. I thought that it’s going to be in my favour but clearly not because of some people. But with her, whatever I do that makes an impact will attract a certain kind of attention from her is what I have realised lately. Which is okay, it means that I am making an impact. I didn’t bother replying until I saw actresses like Neena ma’am talking about the same thing and I really respect and love her because I have worked with her in Mulk as well, I know her. So that’s when I decided to answer back by giving examples of the fact that how many times before has it happened that younger actors have become older like Saransh for that matter, Mahaan for that matter. We have such brilliant actors aging double, triple their age and that’s been okay and we have anti-ageing also happening at the same time, someone like Aamir in 3 Idiots so we’ve been all fine with that and enjoying and celebrating that as actors so why target me?

The secret of how Taapsee gets instigated

Either become someone really close to me to affect me that way and then expect an answer of that sort otherwise I will really not bother because you don’t really matter to me. You can keep saying whatever you want, it won’t affect me.  

Taapsee Pannu on gender inequality in the business

Rules are quite unfair, not just in our industry but maybe in every other industry. Because we are here, we see it more. But rules are different everywhere. And that’s what the fight is for, that’s what the struggle is right now, the whole issue of gender equality is that let’s make the rules equal. I’m not asking for an edge over them, I’m asking for equality. I’m hoping with Saand Ki Aankh and the response we are getting, it’s a step closer to that equality in one way or the other. For example, we never had a big female led Diwali release, I don’t know when did it happen last, it was always reserved for big heroes, the clash happened between two heroes. You know, when we see a calendar and we decide a release date for a female led film, we have to settle with leftovers, I’m not even kidding when I’m telling you that because I’ve done so many of them. We just sit on the calendar and we figure out, accha yeh din ke baad, yeh week khali pada hai, yahan pe kar lete hai. It actually happens like that, which is so disheartening because we also put equal amount of effort if not more and our stories are also beautiful so why not get an equal chance? Just because it’s a female led film? Is that reason enough for you to not come on a big date? Diwali we celebrate Laxmi and you know all the goddesses that we pray to, high time someone takes the step. Maybe I win, maybe I lose, but at least I will take one step to see if I can make the difference.

Taapsee’s badminton team’s lucky charm is her being in the toilet!

Because that seems to be the lucky charm for the team! The moment I went inside the toilet, the team started scoring points. I’m ready to sit in the loo for the longest ever time if they are going to win all the matches like that, trust me on that.

Why doesn’t Taapsee talk about her current boyfriend – Mathias Boe?

Too much will be written and said about it which will overtake my professional life.

Taapsee chooses the perfect combination for her perfect man

Sex appeal: Hrithik Roshan

Sense of Humour: Akshay Kumar

Intelligence: Shahrukh Khan

Charm: Ranveer Singh

Net worth: Salman Khan

Taapsee’s ideal wedding destination?

Beach, somewhere on the beach

When Taapsee yelled at the father of the bride for not paying up!

Not just once, his cheque bounced twice! For my wedding planning company, we were trying to make sure that our clients are all happy, and we give them extra from what they actually pay us for, just for the sake of word of mouth should be good. And this gentleman, he kept bargaining and we were fine with it and till the point the first cheque, the half amount payment bounced. And the second cheque that he had given was on that very day from the same account. We got to know that the first cheque bounced on that day, the wedding day itself. So I was sitting and having dinner and my sister calls me and she’s like you know, this has bounced and we are at the wedding and he has given the second cheque from the same account, which obviously will bounce. And I got so mad and when things concern my sister, I get a notch more mad than what I can get really. So I just left my dinner midway and I went out there and I was telling her that I want to talk to him right now and he was on the stage with his daughter. His daughter was getting married and you know how emotional it is to see a father with the daughter and marriage happening, I didn’t want to destruct that. But you know people have worked really hard for this and it’s your daughter’s wedding for god’s sake, you can’t be scamming people on your daughter’s wedding. I reached there and my sister knows how my fuse is like really short when it comes to dishonesty and inefficiency so she called him down and she was talking very courteously and I was fuming till the point I couldn’t take it anymore and I was like ‘sir, if you don’t pay us up right now, I will go up there and remove each and every flower from that mandap’. He was limping, he had injured his foot and all the sympathy was in his favour and I wanted to do something really crazy to him but I was like look at him, I will look like a villain. And trust me, that cheque has not come to us till date, it’s been I don’t know how many years. Even after that I called him and asked him for the money and he didn’t budge. He said jo karna hai kar lo types, you know. I sued him and now it’s going to be settled in court, I think.

Taapsee says she dislikes people who slyly taking her pictures

I am aggressive in my life pertaining to a certain people or certain situations. So In between my Manmarziyaan schedule when I had a little break, I came down to meet my sister and we were going out for dinner and standing out for our car and there was this guy on a bike. In a very sly way take out phone and click a picture, not even ask or you know nothing. And I saw it. I get usually very mad when people try to do that because I feel we are public figure not public property. There is a difference. This guy takes out the phone and I…it triggered something in me and I was like 'phone andar rakle nahi toh phone tod dungi'. I said it out and then everyone around me reacted in such a weird way. It’s like 'Taapsee iske saath nahi hai, hum iske saath nahi hai'. And they started getting, they scattered around, it was like 'ki hum iske saath hai hi nahi'. And I realised that okay I reacted way too much. It just organically came out because I was in that aggressive zone at that time. Sometimes people just shove their phones into our faces and come way too close for proximity to click pictures, which almost makes us feel like we don't really have a say on what we want or what we feel or what we wanna do. I mean I love the fact that you are the ones who make us a star or buy our tickets, I totally respect that but having said that I'm also as normal a human being as anyone else. 

Taapsee when she was house hunting

All these details are given to you when you're trying to find a house, apartment in Bombay to stay. So if you have to go and find a house in Juhu somewhere, they say 'ki Hrithik Roshan  ka ghar baaju mein hai, woh balcony mein yaha pe dikte hai kabhi kabhi and then the current apartment or the society I live in has Ayushmann. So the moment I entered, they're like Ayushmann stays here. I was like that's not gonna be my reason to buy the apartment. In fact I was thinking of buying an apartment which is gonna be away from all movie folks so that I feel like I'm at home and not at work. But they just kept selling me stuff basis 'baju mein yeh rehte hai, iss building mein yeh rehte hai, iske upar wale ghar mein yeh rehte hai'. I'm like that's how they sell apartment in Bombay which is quite weird for someone coming from Delhi. That apartment I stay in I keep making fun of the fact that 'agar mein top floor se neeche tak aau na puri picture set ho sakti hai, it has producer, director, music director, singers, writers, everyone in that building. 

Taapsee on her neighbours

Woh aise ghar k ander wale aate hai. They ring the bell at an odd hour also. At 11 pm or something, they just ring the bell and they expect me to entertain them at that hour. So yeah that happens and they don't get it, they don't understand. 

Taapsee’s fake drama at home when she first cut her hair short

I never thought I could pull off a real life drama before that. You know this procedure of handling long curly hair is intense. So the whole thing used to take my entire Sunday. Every week and I started hating my hair. So much so that, I was so paranoid with this taking care regime that I ended up going and getting it cut and I came back howling into the house and everybody is surprised, what has happened to her suddenly. I ran inside my room, dived into my bed crying that I had to cut my hair because there was a chewing gum that was stuck in my hair and I had to get it cut, there was no other way out! And the drama I created, they just felt bad for me.

The one thing Taapsee hates: Rampwalk!

I hate it. I don’t hate it but I detest it because I know I will trip, I will fall, some big calamity will happen when I’m walking on the ramp.

The most embarrassing moment of Taapsee’s life

That was by far the most embarrassing moment of my life. And trust me, the hotel must be having the footage of that and if that get released, I don’t know where I’ll hide. So there was a big water body kind of a thing, not a running fountain but a water body in the middle of that hotel in Hyderabad and there was a shortcut to the toilet and there was a long cut or around that water body. So I was like who will walk all the way around, I will take the shortcut. The shortcut required me to put one step on to the corner of that water body and jump on to the other side. I stepped on it thinking that ya I’m sporty enough to just quickly jump. And I slipped and I landed inside that water body! Facing the ceiling, I was lying down there in my pyjamas in that water body drenched from head to toe, dripping! Funniest thing is not just that I am lying there in the middle of fountain thing but there’s a table right next to me, there are two people sitting there at the table, they are just so flabbergasted looking at me they don’t even blink, they don’t even get up to help me! They’re just shocked seeing me there inside!

Taapsee on pay difference in the industry

Of course it does! When I’m paid only 5% to 10% of my heroes, of course it bothers me. The success at the box office will make sure the next film I get paid a lot which is slowly moving towards equalizing that difference.

Taapsee says Badla will be called an Amitabh Bachchan film

Even when I do films like Badla, I had more working days or scenes so to say than Mr. Bachchan. He was the hero of the film, I was the antagonist. But the antagonist has more presence in the film than the protagonist. But eventually the film releases, they call it an Amitabh Bachchan film. Yes, when I raise my voice and say I’ve done almost equal if not more, that’s when people recognised and started taking my name because it’s such a male dominated industry, they don’t even realise that I might have done more work actually. It was called Sir’s film, it won’t be called a female film regardless of the fact that I have more scenes, it will be called an Amitabh Bachchan film and the credit will go there. That’s why my pay will not increase as much as it will increase after Saand Ki Aankh. It hurts me to see this disparity but I’m not going to be unreasonable and ask for an equal amount of money right away, I would rather wait and do things to equalize the box office and then expect them to pay me and honestly, they will. They are happily paying me because I am sensibly raising it, not just wanting to equalise it right away but balancing it with my box office success.

Ms or Mr - Admit who are together already according to Taapsee?

I think they just did, Arjun & Malaika

Ms or Mr - Delete your social media  according to Taapsee?

I think your husband should do that (Angad Bedi). I think he should immediately do that. His posts are really like, it's more like a models profile. He's less of an actor, more of a model profile that he puts up. Only purely Diljith Dosanjh songs on his insta stories is what I can see

Ms or Mr - Worst co-star according to Taapsee?

I'll say two of them - Jacqueline because she is so freaking hot and hot body, which I was struggling to match up to it in Judwaa 2 and I was like I just hope I don’t put myself to shame. And the other one which I had a difficult time, which I told also is Vicky because I was always so conscious that I should not lose out to him in the scene because he is just so good 

Ms or Mr - If they didn't have famous parents, they'd be nowhere according to Taapsee?

I think Harsh, because whatever I have seen of him till now, I think it would have been pretty difficult to get a second film after a not so appreciated debut

Mr or Ms - Get a new stylist according to Taapsee?

Urvashi Rautela. She has got a great body. I would love to see better clothes and not just the kind that show only the body

According to Taapsee, Ms or Mr - 2020 will be the year of?

It will be mine

A game of Re-casting

Sonakshi Sinha in Mission Mangal

I think I would have loved to have Radhika Apte

Kirti Kulhari in Pink

Richa Chaddha

Tapsee in Judwaa 2

That could have been anyone. Maybe, Disha?

Abhishek Bachchan in Mannmarziyan

Dulquer

Vicky Kaushal in Mannmarziyan

Ranveer

Tapsee in Mannmarziyan

Nobody could have done it better 

Diljith Dosanjh in Soorma

I think Bedi (Angad) could have done that also

Bhumi Pednekar in Saand Ki Aankh 

Anushka Sharma would have done a good job 

Akshay Kumar in Baby

Irrfan Khan

Diljith Dosanjh or Angad Bedi - Better Co-star?

Bedi

Shoojit Sircar or Anurag Kashyap - Better director?

Shoojit Sircar hasn't directed me, yet. So, Anurag Kashyap

Kirti Kulhari or Angad Bedi - Better Co-star?

Bedi

Akshay Kumar or Vidya Balan - Better Actor?

Vidya

Vidya Balan or Sonakshi Sinha - Better Actor?  

Vidya

Vicky Kaushal or Abhishek Bachchan?

Vicky, he's a better friend also and he's a better actor

Kangana Ranaut or Rangoli Ranaut - According to you?

I think Rangoli. I really love their love for me