Shraddha Kapoor, who is making her debut with Leena Yadav’s Teen Patti, calls her dad Shakti Kapoor ‘Baaps’ as she offers him coffee. Both get comfortable for a joint interview in the conference room of the production office of the film.Dressed in denims and a tee, Shraddha starts off with her childhood dream, “Since childhood, I have seen my father and my aunt Padmini Kolhapure at shoots. I had a natural inclination to follow in their footsteps.”
Doting dad Shakti, looking at his daughter with pride, says, “She is pretty and talented and nothing can stop her. She is very bindaas, and very few people make me laugh like she can.”
Her training started in school where she learnt Kathak and started doing theatre in 9th grade. She says, “That gave me a taste of the stage. Before Teen Patti, I trained with Mr Mohit Tugnait, who taught me acting and diction. For Teen Patti, we did many workshops with Barry John and Ashley Lobo.”
Did Shakti warn her about the wolves in the industry? He says, “I always believe that if you are strong, nothing in this world can hurt you. Wolves are everywhere, but in show business, we are more exposed to them.”
At this juncture, Shraddha quips, “I think there are bad people everywhere and I can also turn into a wolf!”
Shraddha had read several scripts before Teen Patti but no role offered her such scope and range. And, of course, Shakti thinks his daughter is lucky to debut in a film that features Amitabh Bachchan.
He says, “The audience will go to the theatres for Mr Bachchan and will recognise the young talent. In the movie, she plays a college girl, a pick-up, a socialite, a tapori, chaalu ladki eating paan, while all the monsters are ogling at her. She might not have the songs or the romantic angle, but she portrays a wide range of emotions.”
Shraddha gently chides him as she tells him not to give away too much information about the film. Shraddha is open to the idea of bold scenes, and Shakti is supportive of her stance. He only says, “She is an adult and knows what is right or wrong.
All I tell her is that we come from a respected family and that she should know her boundaries.” It’s actually her mother who gives Shraddha advice as she makes frequent visits to the sets. Shakti has the final word as he says, “Good people make good actors.” And, we presume, he’s referring to his daughter.