NO STOPPING HER NOW

UNDAUNTED AND UNFAZED, TAAPSEE PANNU IS RISING TO THE TOP ON HER OWN TERMS

- Suhani Singh

Four and a quarter films shot. Two sports learnt. One award won and one viral video (“Biggini Shoot”) shared on Instagram. Also, three vacations abroad, including one in Bollywood’s favourite destination, the Maldives. Taapsee Pannu’s calendar has been full since May 2020, when the nationwide lockdown was lifted, until March this year. No actor has been busier during the pandemic. But Pannu hadn’t intended any of this. She alternated between two dramas, Rashmi Rocket and Looop Lapeta—both of which required training in running—and then immediately shot for Anurag Kashyap’s Dobaaraa. “I couldn’t delay the films any further,” she says. “I wanted to complete my 2020 commitments before something worse happened, which it did [the second wave].” The 16-hour workdays for four months, preparing for one film and shooting for another, took its toll on the actress who felt “spent physically and emotionally” even as she felt proud of doing so many “female-driven films”.