Taapsee Pannu opens up about Pink’s climax, working with Amitabh Bachchan and more in this exclusive interview!
NO means NO! A powerful message packed with an equally strong performance by Amitabh Bachchan, Taapsee Pannu, Kirti Kulhari and Andrea Tariang in their latest movie, Pink. The movie focused on a more important issue of the consent of a woman and will clearly go down in history as one of the strongest women-centric films made. The movie was produced by Shoojit Sircar and directed by Bengali director Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury. Taapsee Pannu played the role of Minal, a model from Delhi who was the victim along with her friends Falak and Andrea played by Kirti Kulhari and Andrea Tariang respectively.
Taapsee’s performance as Minal won her accolades from a lot of critics and stars in the industry. Some even claimed that she overshadowed Big B’s performance in the film. The film did considerably good in the box office and has even motivated women and men to be strong. The film even brought to light the concept of Zero FIR that a lot of women in the country don’t know about. After doing a couple of Hindi movies and a lot of South Indian films and a romantic music video with T-Series, Taapsee hit jackpot with Pink. Taapsee gets candid with BollywoodLife about her role in Pink, the message she wants to convey through the movie and opens up about the myriad controversies around the movie. Here are excerpts from the interview!
What effect, do you think, the movie has had on people?
I think Pink is a movie that is going to stay with people for a long time if not forever. People will definitely take some thing back after watching the movie.
Pink has not just received rave reviews but also a good box office collection and word of mouth really helped the film. Does this give hope to many promising small films?
This is an entertainment business and the movie should be genuinely good to work well. It needs to be presented in a thrilling way. Songs, action or dark lighting are not necessary to make it look like a dark or thrilling movie. We hardly have any songs or action in the film and people loved the movie because it’s genuine.
What’s more satisfying – box office collections or critics and your fans’ reactions?
Both. I’m the person who says that I only want love from my fans and only care about that. While I do care about what my fans think of my work, box office collections are equally important. Actors can’t keep up with their good work if a movie doesn’t do well at the box office because they won’t get any further work.
How do you feel being compared to Amitabh Bachchan for your performance in Pink?
I think it’s a huge compliment being compared to Amitabh Bachchan. The movie is about the three girls so Minal becomes that central character of the film but Minal couldn’t pull it off without Mr Bachchan’s performance.
Critics said that Amitabh Bachchan’s open letter to his granddaughter was just a publicity gimmick to promote Pink. What’s you take on it?
It was not a publicity gimmick. The letter was the crux of Pink and was a subtle way of conveying what we’re going to deal with in the movie. Also, everything that he said in the letter was what he honestly felt after shooting for Pink. He is one of the humblest man I’ve ever known. Despite people calling it a publicity move for the film, he stayed calm and all he said was, “If you think what I did was a publicity gimmick, why don’t you write such a letter to your granddaughter?” People always see the glass half empty than full.
Salman Khan says that people come to theatres to watch an entertaining film and not for gyaan. What do you have to say to that?
I agree with him. And Pink is an entertaining film. An entertaining film doesn’t necessarily have to be one that makes you laugh. It must be engaging and Pink is engaging. People wouldn’t have spend the two hours watching our film if it wasn’t entertaining.
You had said in an interview that your father often blamed you for wearing the ‘wrong type of clothes’. What does think about it now after watching the film?
I think it’s too late to change their opinion since we are grown ups now. Had the movie been made when I was 16 something, it might have changed a few things. Though he loved the movie. He is man of few words and it’s a big deal when he says ‘Good job’.
A lot of filmmakers have made films with a strong social message to bring about a change in the mindset of the society. How does Pink make sure that people make an effort to change?
Pink had only one agenda and stuck to it. We used harsh possible words and were to the point. There were no distractions in the movie like songs or unnecessary drama that deviates from the main agenda of the film. The message was loud and clear and it will make an impact on people’s way of thinking.
Any regrets from your past experience of eve-teasing and inappropriate touching?
I do regret not taking any action. I wish I had raised my voice or made a move to stop it right then. In fact, the plot of Pink demanded that the girls lose. But we turned it into a victorious ending for people. So people can muster the courage to fight against these situations and not give up.
Which filmmakers are on your wishlist now?
Mani Ratnam among the others I’m working with.
Actresses you look up to?
If I had to choose, it would be Deepika Padukone, Kangana Ranaut and Alia Bhatt.
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