Bollywood actress Deepika Padukone accepted the title role in Piku after hearing the narration of just one scene. Common sense may dictate that it’s not the smartest way to make a career choice for an actress, but she’s willing to go out on a limb here.
“I will only know if it’s a smart move after the film releases. Right from scene one, I knew what to expect from this film and that’s a good thing because I have always gone by my gut instincts in my career,” said Padukone in an interview with tabloid! on Monday.
Directed by Shoojit Sircar of Vicky Donor fame, Piku is the drama of a cranky father, Bhashkor Banerjee (Amitabh Bachchan), and his daughter, Piku (Padukone), who’s trying to juggle her career and take care of him. In the mix is actor Irrfan Khan who plays Rana Chaudhry, who’s trying his best to understand the dynamics between the father-daughter duo.
“Piku is a girl who was born in Calcutta [Kolkata] but raised in Delhi. We are Bengalis. What I love about Piku is that it’s an extremely relatable character because it’s a slice-of-life comedy and drama. This film is entertaining, but it will make you reflect on your lives, too. There’s a Piku in all of us — a person who tries to juggle all the aspects of her life such as career and family,” said Padukone, who’s becoming one of Bollywood’s most bankable actresses.
She’s riding an unprecedented wave of popularity in Bollywood where all her films turn into money-spinners and anything she does outside of it is also debated, lauded and scrutinised (remember gender-equality and women-empowerment video My Choice?) with great fervour.
Her decision to speak openly about her personal battle with depression in an effort to obliterate the stigma attached to mental disorders in India was also a move that was celebrated nationally and also gained international attention.
“Especially the story on depression, I really didn’t expect that kind of love and support. It was heartening to see how people have opened up to it. The reactions we have got from it made me extremely emotional. It was overwhelming,” said Padukone on her decision to come clean about anxiety and depression.
However, her glossy My Choice video for a fashion magazine that advocated empowerment of women wasn’t embraced wholeheartedly. A few lines from the video that seemed to tacitly endorse infidelity did not go down well with a large section of Indians.
“I am always someone who looks at the brighter side of life. There are lots of people who appreciated the video and understood what were trying to do. I will happily settle with that,” said Padukone, who clarified earlier that day that she had the highest regard for marriage and did not condone infidelity.
Keen to steer the topic back to Piku, Padukone says her groundwork for her role involved lengthy readings with the director and presenting Piku as a modern-yet-traditional Indian woman — whose core family values such as looking after her elderly father instead of shunting him off to an old-age home were still intact. The trailers portray Bachchan as a difficult person to live with. His bowel movements are fodder for dinner-table conversation. But would a daughter put up with such a dysfunctional dad in real life or does Piku gloss over some harsh realities?
“When it comes to other people’s dads, you may not put up with their crankiness. But when it comes to your own parents, you will not think he’s that cranky. You will love him for the way they are … plus there’s this in-built mechanism to forgive their quirkiness in the same way that a parent will forgive us for what we do in our lives as their daughters,” said Padukone, adding that father-daughter bonds are sacrosanct.
“However flawed, our parents love us for the way that we are. You fight one minute with your parents, but the next minute you forget about it. That’s how most families are. That love and bond is just unconditional,” said Padukone, who comes from a sturdy home. Her father is the famous Indian badminton player Prakash Padukone, while her mother, Ujjala, has always seemed to support her daughter’s career and personal choices.
Piku frequently touches upon the tricky subject of an ageing man’s bowel movements and his digestive distress — the film’s tagline is Motions Se Hi Emotion (with motion comes emotion). So did the crew experience the fear of Piku being reduced to a crass film? Toilet humour is tricky terrain.
“I have no such fears. Remember Piku is coming from the same director who made Vicky Donor. Shoojit dealt with sperm donation so beautifully. It wasn’t crass, slapstick or in your face humour. Shoojit has done exactly the same thing with Piku. Constipation is just one of the aspects of the film and it’s largely about a father and daughter, their relationship. Here’s your chance to learn a lot about life — even your own health. And I can promise you that Piku has immense repeat value.”
