TAAPSEE PANNU

I am moving towards that zone where I don't want to be a replaceable name. This is my goal. I want to hear from the industry that, 'You are the only one who can do this. We will not go ahead with the project if you don't do this.' And I want to hear from the audience that it is worth watching a film that I have done.

I haven't faced harassment in terms of work, but I think every girl in India has gone through some or the other awkward moment in public where she was eve-teased or touched inappropriately.

I don't believe in poking nose in other people's matters, but when it comes to matters related to me or something that affects me, I will not shy away for saying something I believe.

As a child, I wanted to be an astronaut, then a fighter pilot, and then later, as I grew up, I was focused on scoring high marks so that I could do an MBA in marketing.

I am not much of a trained actor. I have to get my brain and heart to go deep inside the situation, and then, probably, I can start acting. It takes me a little while to get out of it.

I always find a reason to be happy before I sleep. For me, happiness is a choice that is in your hands.

I knew that the only way to get noticed would be by doing something that was not expected of me. I was sure I wouldn't get noticed if I continued to play the heroine in films like 'Chashme Baddoor.'

While I do my work with a sense of honesty, I tell myself, 'What is the worst that can happen? I fail, right?' So, will I stop living after that? No. I will try again.

I played a biker in one of my earliest films in Telugu, 'Mr Perfect.'

I never thought I was gullible, but I know that I trust people easily and take people on face value.

It is not a shocker to me that a film went out of my hands, not because I was not credible, but because I was not so-and-so's daughter or sister or dating so-and-so.

Having done both commercial and hard-hitting cinema, I can say none of them are easy.

I'm not a confused person in real life. I'm very clear.

I make sure I don't repeat my genre, don't repeat a role for sure.

I didn't even plan Bollywood! I did my first film just to experience something new, and not start a career!

I want to be a star. It doesn't mean that I'll act any less. My performance will be at par, but I want to be a star. I want the audience to spend their hard-earned money on my tickets without doubting. And when that day comes, I'll believe I'm a star.

I never thought I could be an actor, as I was always a studious geek and was always interested in mathematics.

With 'Judwaa 2,' I captured the kind of market that I could have never penetrated into on another occasion.

Who said that looking good is not a task? There are so many girls with a well maintained body, but will they be able to walk the beachside in front of the camera wearing a swimsuit? Carrying your body in a certain manner to look sexy is also an art.

I'm very good at manipulation.

With every movie, I am trying in my own little way to do whatever I can to change the way female characters have been presented and how an actress that comes from a family outside the industry is making an impact.

Post 'Pink,' I don't have any film which I can pick out from my filmography and say 'It would have been better if I hadn't done this film.'

I have been following badminton for quite some time, and I know most of the Indian players personally.

Cinema is a form of art, and like every other art form, cinema also needs freedom of expression.

I judge my film choices based on the director, and then I see how much the story has affected me when I read it or when I hear it in the narration. Then comes how important my role is in it, but primarily director, script, and then role.