How Taapsee Pannu became the opposite of herself in Naam Shabana
After making her mark in films like Pink, Runningshaadi.com The Ghazi Attack, to think like a spy, and every movement and shot had to be transformed to bring out the spy.
Q. So, is it a revenge story? A.
It’s not a revenge story. If you ask the whole story, it’s about the making of a spy in all possible ways. It’s about a girl and why she chooses to do it and how she will do it and how she becomes a part of it. So, there are different layers to the story and that you will see in the film, and I do not want to give a spoiler by telling you that layer.
Q. What were the major challenges while playing this character? A.
Yes, the physical training was among the major challenges. I am not a person for whom things like martial arts and hitting a person and violence comes easy. I can’t even stand violence in real life. And, I haven’t even slapped a person in real. To learn this kind of martial arts which can be pretty deadly to use was very challenging. It was very difficult in beginning but I had started this training with Baby itself, so I was continuing after that. But it gradually intensified about 3-4 months before the shooting started. And I was being trained in three types of martial arts. So, that part of it was extremely grilling. I loved the sport side of it but when it came to hitting people, I used to ask people to wear protection gears. I had that psychological block in my head that if the person is bare, he can get hurt. And in this film, all fights are handto-hand combats. It’s a very real, believable fight. I got intimidated and I was really scared. I had a huge mental block and it was tough for me to get over that. I hope people love this character and film.
Q. What was it like to work with your co-actors: Anupam Kher and Manoj Bajpayyee? A.
One wonderful thing about this entire stretch with Baby and now the Naam Shabana team is that they have a great sense of humour. It is very sarcastic, but an amazing sense of humour. It was a laugh riot whenever we were together. Someone or the other would be saying something which would be very hilarious and it would not be like a typical joke. One thing I liked a lot was talking to Anupam Sir and Manoj Sir, and I hope this franchise becomes really big and we keep meeting each other because we have an amazing time when we get together.