Chhapaak: Deepika Padukone Reveals She Had A Panic Attack On The Second Day Of Shoot And Told Herself ‘I Can’t Do This’

Meghna Gulzar’s directorial Chhapaak is undoubtedly one of the biggest and most awaited films of the year. Based on the life of acid attack survivor Laxmi Agarwal, the film features Deepika Padukone and Vikrant Massey in lead roles. It is slated to hit theatres this Friday, that is, 10^th of January and Deepika has been extremely busy on a promotional spree. Interestingly, Chhapaak marks her first production venture and is also her first film after marriage.

In a recent chat with Bombay Times, the actress opened up about the film as well as life after marriage. She spoke about the emotions that she experienced during the shoot of Chhapaak and called it her most challenging film emotionally. The actress confessed that shooting for the film was not very easy for her and she had her moments of highs and lows, which took a toll on her mental health as well.

Deepika also revealed how she coped with the emotional roller-coaster and said, “I remember on the second day of shoot, I had a panic attack. We were doing the prosthetics when I had the attack because I’m claustrophobic. I broke into a sweat and could feel the blood rushing through my feet, and I remember saying to myself, ‘I can’t do this’. Throughout the film, I was breathing through one nostril because of the prosthetics. I couldn’t eat properly because I couldn’t open my mouth completely. And then, there was the emotional journey. Having said that, I was willing to go through it all because this was a story we had to tell. That was more important than what I had to live with for a few hours every day. Whenever I felt low or vulnerable, I would think about Laxmi and the other survivors, who have been through so much, and that would help me pull through the day.”

Talking about how things have changed after she got married to Bollywood superstar Ranveer Singh and his statement about being a good boy now, Deepika shared, “He’s not there yet, but he does try! We have both rubbed off on each other in different ways. I’d like to believe that I have brought in a little more professionalism and discipline into his life. I think he would like to believe that he has brought out the quirky side of me, though I think I have always been like that, it’s just that people saw it in spurts. There is an extremely goofy and funny side to me, which only close friends got to see earlier. Now, when I sometimes show that side of my personality to others, people feel that he has rubbed off on me, which is also a great thing."

Having said that the actress emphasized the importance of maintaining their individuality. "For us, it’s been important from the beginning that we retain our own identities. People around us often forget that we are married, which I think is a good thing. Ranveer and I are together and at the same time, we are our own people.”

Deepika and Ranveer are not only the audiences’ favorite pair, but also Hindi film industry’s top power couple. We can’t wait to see them together on the big screen again!