Padmaavat: A Conversation With Deepika Padukone
This interview with Deepika Padukone took place prior to the film’s January 25th release. In an effort to remain true to Padukone’s quotes and the context of that day’s conversation, little about the discussion has been altered here. Therefore, there is no mention of the film’s staggering box-office collections, or the Karni Sena’s subsequent about-face regarding its threats and accusations.
On January 25th, Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s historical epic Padmaavat will hit theaters after a turbulent production journey mired by on-set vandalism, assaults, and in an alarming crescendo of dissention, death threats to both the film’s director and leading actress Deepika Padukone.
But for Padukone, being afraid was not an option.
“Never, ever. That’s never happened,” she said in an emphatic show of defiance when asked whether the attacks succeeded in their aim to intimidate. Choosing to forge ahead with promotions for the film, she added that since its very inception, Padmaavat had been an exercise in conviction—one that included overturning her own expectations.
When Padukone made her Bollywood debut in November 2007’s “Om Shanti Om” on the same day Bhansali’s “Saawariya” hit theaters, the idea of someday starring in one of the auteur’s famously lavish films seemed lofty, even as a pipe dream, for the fresh-faced novice with zero acting background.
“I had created an idea in my mind back then about the kind of person he might want to work with,” she recalls. “I just assumed it wasn’t me.”
Ten years later, the fact that Padmaavat marks her third film with the director catches Padukone herself by surprise at times. “It’s amazing to me that we’ve been working together for five years now,” she said, crediting their collaborations to a combination of creativity and trust. “Between the confidence to take risks together, the ability to stand by each other irrespective of challenges we might face, and the desire to create something beautiful, our energies just come together the way they should for a film.”
Their solidarity has proven particularly valuable in the context of their recent release. As the medieval Chittor royal who, as legend has it, chose self-immolation over capture when the Rajput army fell to its invaders, playing the titular queen is a gratifying way for Padukone to cap off her first decade in Bollywood. But she admits that not everyone was immediately thrilled about the project.
“Many people were apprehensive when I said I was doing another Sanjay Leela Bhansali film. They thought it would get repetitive,” she said. Concerns also swirled around the film’s female-driven premise, particularly when it came to casting the roles of Ratan Singh, Padmavati’s husband, and Alauddin Khilji, the Delhi ruler who invaded Singh’s domain in pursuit of his queen.
“No matter how much we’ve evolved in the last several years, it is still very difficult, even today, to get people on board when you have a film called ‘Padmavati,’” Padukone said, referring to the film’s original title, in a thinly-veiled critique of the male-dominated industry’s lingering qualms about movies headlined by female characters. “I don’t know why people couldn’t think about the bigger picture.”
While the hubbub over source material led to the film’s rechristening as Padmaavat per “suggestions” from India’s Central Board of Film Certification, the team’s initial refusal to change its female-oriented title or premise during casting had its triumphs; Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor eventually came on board as Khilji and Singh, respectively, making for a formidable, star-studded ensemble. Moreover, Padmaavat is said to be the most expensive Hindi feature to date—a distinction reserved exclusively for male-led, testosterone-fueled films to date—while Padukone makes deeper cracks in the glass ceiling with a paycheck reportedly surpassing that of her male costars.
As for the skeptics questioning Padukone’s choice to make a second period drama with Bhansali, the actress simply refers to the film’s trailer, which garnered a record-shattering 20 million views within 24 hours of hitting YouTube on October 9th. “It changed everyone’s opinion,” she said. “They couldn’t believe it could get bigger and better than ‘Bajirao,’ but we’ve done it.”
Still, greater obstacles loomed, from Rajput Karni Sena members claiming the film would misrepresent Padmavati’s relationship with Khilji and glorify the antagonist, to historians questioning whether Rani Padmini existed at all.
Bhansali and Padukone are no strangers to controversy; both Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela and Bajirao Mastani came under similar accusations of distorting history or hurting religious sentiments. But Padukone called the extent of the rage against Padmaavat especially appalling, adding that the upheaval over fact versus fiction missed the film’s ultimate objective to honor the queen’s spirit.
“It’s not about whether she’s real or not. It’s about what she stands for. She was said to be the most beautiful woman in the world, but when I read up on her, I found that there is so much more than what meets the eye. Her beauty lay in her innocence and vulnerability, but also in her intelligence and her power,” she said. Far from dishonoring the character, Padukone pointed out, the film aims to depict her as a testament to female resilience. “Padmavati is a reminder and a reflection of the multilayered, unique strength that’s found in every woman. It’s an inspiring story that needs to be told.”
Indeed, that resilience shone through the actress even brighter through the roadblocks. As opposing groups called for violence in theaters and protestors placed bounties on her head, Padukone refused to cower, channeling Padmavati’s unflinching resolve. “Whatever their agenda is, I don’t live in fear of it,” she said. “Nothing, and no one, can stop this film.”