‘I MADE FUN OF MYSELF’

Taapsee Pannu clears the air on her alleged mockery of filmmaker

Actor Taapsee Pannu has made her name in Bollywood with hardhitting roles in Pink and Naam Shabana, but it was quite different in her debut film, Jhummandi Naadam (2010), directed by K. Raghavendra Rao (right), a legend of Telugu cinema. The actor has been roundly bashed on social media for referring to Rao’s penchant for “showing [the heroine’s] midriff and throwing fruits and flowers at it”, in a chat with the comedy group East India Company. This was said as part of Taapsee’s anecdote about her first film, but this got angry fan reaction like “ungrateful”, a “hypocrite” and a “backstabber” for supposedly forgetting her roots and taking a dig at such a veteran filmmaker. Talking to us, Taapsee says, “Er, what did I take a dig at? He’s known [for] that. I have stated a fact, and if you’re taking it in a derogatory manner, that’s your problem.” She says, “Trust me, him or me, both of us are really unperturbed by whatever I have said, because I’ve seen the video and he has seen it, too, along with his family, and we are all laughing at it.” Maintaining that she wasn’t “disrespectful” about anyone, Taapsee quips that the only person she “made fun of ” in the entire chat video was herself. In it, she had said, “...When my turn came, maybe because my midriff wasn’t quite ready, they threw a coconut on me! I don’t know what is so sensuous about a coconut hitting my midriff !” She tells us, “Whatever I mentioned there was not to make fun of anyone expect me, and it was purely on the basis of facts. I didn’t say anything derogatory or disrespectful to anyone.” Taapsee, who is doing a Telugu film (titled Anando Brahma), adds that as soon as the negative reactions surfaced, she made it a point to clear the air with Rao. “The only person I was concerned about was my director and his family. They told me that they all sat together and saw the video, and laughed at it, and I guess that’s all that matters,” she says.

If people are just going to wait [for a chance] to get hurt, so they can start throwing sh** at other people, you can never stop them TAAPSEE PANNU, ACTOR

Those flying domestic economy with Air India will now have to make do with daal makhni and mix veg curry, while the folks in first class will continue to enjoy their lamb curry and chicken reshmi kebab. It’s elitist and reeks of class prejudice, say lovers of non-veg food. Twitter has been testy about the airline’s decision, aimed at cost-cutting and wastage reduction. One tweet even hinted at a conspiracy to turn everyone more ‘sanskari’ than they want to be. It said: “Only veg food on Air India. Next, flight attendants to speak only Hindi. After that, stand for national anthem before take-off.” The food bloggers we spoke to didn’t see such dark designs, but were nonetheless cheesed off. “If they were fair, they would’ve done away with non-vegetarian food completely for everyone, right from economy to business and first class. There shouldn’t be any discrimination when it comes to food,” says food blogger Shivesh Bhatia. Deeba Rajpal, food blogger and recipe developer, believes that the decision will spoil a passenger’s in-flight experience. “You can’t take away a person’s food choice just because you need to bring down costs. You can add a cost [for the passenger], but not giving a choice is not fair.” Food stylist Praerna Kartha says that it’ll ultimately affect the goodwill of Air India. “What has removing non-veg food got to do with improving other services? I fail to see the connect,” she says. “The airline will lose its goodwill, and passengers might move to different carriers if Air India continues imposing such measures.”

PHOTO: ISTOCK