I didn’t know at that time that
I had typhoid. It was raining and
I didn’t have a room to go back
to. Only the hero had a van. I was
sitting with an umbrella. I was
freezing. I waited for six hours,
while they took the hero’s shot.
Then they took my close-up but
by then my face had turned blue.
Later, I went to my room
and called up my father. I said,
“I don’t want to act anymore.” He
asked, “Why?” I told him, “They
treat you like a step child. They
won’t even treat an animal like
this. It’s complete disregard for
a human being, forget a woman.”
He said, “Just walk off the set.”
I told him, “I’m not a hero.”
So many times, my father has
told me, “If they’re not taking
your close-up and it’s 8 pm, just
walk off the set.” He doesn’t
understand that a hero can do it
and get away. If a heroine does it,
then she’s throwing tantrums.
WHAT ABOUT PAY DISPARITY?
I’ve said no to three films in the
last four years because I wasn’t
getting paid what I deserve. Now,
I’m doing films where I’m getting
paid more than the hero. I’m not
expecting the same as Akshay
Kumar or Salman Khan. I’m
not delusional. But I do know
how much I deserve. All my
films have opened well, so why
shouldn’t I be paid more?
YOU MUST BE FACING A BACKLASH ON
TAKING A STAND ON SEVERAL ISSUES ON
SOCIAL MEDIA TOO...
Yes, getting trolled, not getting
films and what not...
DO YOU REGRET EXPRESSING YOUR
OPINION SOMETIMES?
My mom (Sunita Kapoor) told
me an amazing thing. She said
when you’ve been given a lot,
instead of building higher walls,
you should build a longer table.
My father also said that you
have the luxury of making hard
choices. I can make the hard
choices because I don’t have
to put food on the table.
I never question people, who are
working for a living. But once
you’re in a place of privilege, you
can make those hard choices and
you should make them. It’s your
responsibility.
When I look back at these last
10 years, I feel proud of myself. I
can sleep well at night, I’ve never
compromised on my principles
nor on my beliefs. I do regret
talking rubbish initially. I realise
making personal statements on
people publicly is not okay. I was
young and it was my sense of
humour that people did not get.DOES YOUR FATHER ALSO GET ATTACKED
BECAUSE OF YOU?
They do attack him. If I comment
on anything, they’re like you’ve
brought up the worst kind of
daughter. They tell me you don’t
deserve to be Anil Kapoor’s
daughter. Dad doesn’t say
anything, he just ignores them.
He’s like can you imagine the
amount of time they have to
spend on social media.IS ANAND ALSO SUPPORTIVE LIKE
YOUR FATHER?
Anand is extremely supportive.
But he believes that you should
speak through your work. That’s
why I’m channelling all my
thoughts through these projects.
He says your one tweet will be
forgotten but your work will go
down in history. So now, I’ve
decided to keep mum and just
do things that I believe in.IT’S BEEN A YEAR SINCE YOU GOT
MARRIED. WHAT HAS CHANGED AND
WHAT HAS REMAINED THE SAME
ABOUT YOU?
Marriage changes you in ways
that are amazing and in ways
which are shocking. I don’t
know how to explain it. You
feel secure if you’re in a correct
marriage. Anand and I can make
fun of each other easily now.
I’ve been private about my love
life. No one even knew I was
dating Anand for so long. It
now feels good to be like, ‘He’smy husband’. There’s a sense of
security and comfort. You don’t
want to lose that person at all.
The attachment becomes deeper.HOW DIFFICULT IS IT TO FIGHT THE
DISTANCE?
The more time I spend with
him, the less I want to be away.
He’s like, “You’re constantly
leaving me.” I tell him that you
wanted a working partner, right?
He says, “Yeah but I’m allowed
to complain.” I tell him, “Even
you’re constantly leaving me
for work.”WHAT ARE THE THINGS YOU DO
TO COMPENSATE FOR THE TIME
YOU TWO ARE AWAY?
We have one meal together on
FaceTime. It’s my lunch and
his breakfast or my dinner and
his lunch. It depends on where
we are. If we’re in Delhi and
Mumbai, then it’s breakfast
together. That’s like 30 - 45
minutes. At the maximum,
we spend two weeks without
seeing each other. We make
everything move around. Mostly,
it’s Anand doing the travelling
because he’s the boss and he can
do whatever he wants.MOVING TO LONDON, SETTING UP YOUR
HOUSE... HOW WAS THE EXPERIENCE?
I don’t think I’m housewifeI WAS EXTREMELY UNWELL
WHILE I WAS SHOOTING A
FILM. I WAS RUNNING
02-103-DEGREE FEVER...
I DIDN’T HAVE A ROOM TO GO
BACK TO. ONLY THE HERO HAD
A VAN... I CALLED UP MY FATHER
AND SAID, ‘I DON’T WANT TO
ACT ANYMORE... THEY TREAT
YOU LIKE A STEP CHILD. THEY
WON’T EVEN TREAT AN ANIMAL
LIKE THIS. IT’S COMPLETE
DISREGARD FOR A HUMAN
BEING, FORGET A WOMAN’