Deepika Padukone reacts to being called 'Bollywood’s highest-paid actresses': 'I hope we can get to a day where we don’t have to talk about it'

Bollywood superstar Deepika Padukone recently opened up about pay parity, her journey into acting, and her approach to preparing for roles. During an interview with Forbes, she was introduced as “one of Bollywood’s highest-paid actresses” - a title she acknowledged but also hoped would one day become irrelevant. “I mean, I hope we can get to a day where we don’t have to talk about it,” she said. “The fact that we have to highlight or underline that I’m the highest paid… Hopefully, we’re getting there.”
Talking about her early years, Deepika revealed that she grew up in a family of athletes and wasn’t exposed to many films. “We didn’t watch very many movies, but the few movies that we watched in a year - every time we went into the cinema, I’d look at these amazing women and be inspired by them,” she said. Even as a child, she “sort of knew somewhere deep down inside” that acting was her calling, despite having “no idea how” she would get there. Her journey began with modeling before filmmaker Farah Khan discovered her. “One of the few Indian female directors,” Deepika noted, crediting her for launching her career with Om Shanti Om in 2007 (though she mistakenly mentioned 2017). “And there’s been no looking back.”

When asked about how she prepares for her roles, Deepika explained that she doesn’t like to over-rehearse. “With every character, you put a little bit of yourself in it,” she shared. “Of course, you have amazing writers, directors, and co-stars to go back and forth with, but I think there’s a little bit of yourself, your journey, and your experiences in every role.” Instead of over-preparing, she prefers to “leave a lot of it to just being spontaneous because you never know what you’re gonna get from the other side.”

The interviewer pointed out how women often tend to over-prepare while men “just wing it,” to which Deepika agreed. “Yes,” she said, reinforcing the idea that spontaneity can sometimes bring out the most natural performances.