Imtiaz Ali says ‘good girl facade’ remark on Deepika Padukone was ‘wannabe fun’

“To be mean to you iss janam mein toh possible nahi hai (is not possible at all in this lifetime)… I never thought I would write such a disclaimer to you, but it’s been a while and I didn’t want to take a chance. Wish you the best and love always,” added Imtiaz, superimposing the text on a video clip from the interview where he made the remark about Deepika.

What did Imtiaz say about Deepika?

In an interview with News18 last week, Imtiaz recalled during the casting of Cocktail, producer Dinesh Vijan of Maddock Films and director Homi Adajania had approached Deepika to play the role of Meera, the girl-next-door eventually essayed by Diana Penty. But when Deepika called up Imtiaz, with whom she’d worked on in their 2009 hit rom-com Love Aaj Kal, Imtiaz suggested her to pick the character of the more irreverent, rebellious party girl Veronica instead.

Deepika Padukone as Veronica and Diana Penty as Mira in Cocktail.

“Veronica is so different from what Deepika’s image was at that point of time. But since I had been in the room and attended parties with her, I know how crazy and wild she can be, even though she was otherwise projecting a very ‘good girl’ image at that time. Now, people have seen through the facade. So, I thought it would be quite a new thing for Deepika to do. I knew that emotional ground exists, so that was exciting,” he argued.

Deepika made her debut as the demure yesteryear actor Shantipriya in Farah Khan’s 2007 blockbuster reincarnation saga Om Shanti Om opposite Shah Rukh Khan. While that image stuck with the audience and most of the roles she picked subsequently, Deepika completely pierced through that perception with her performance in Cocktail.

What Imtiaz has said about Deepika in the past

Two years ago, in an interview with Connect FM Canada, when Imtiaz was asked to pick between the performances of Deepika in Cocktail and Kareena Kapoor’s iconic turn in his 2007 directorial Jab We Met, he admitted it’s a tough choice, but ended up picking the latter “because I was the director”. Imtiaz later directed Deepika again in the 2015 coming-of-age drama Tamasha.

Later that year, in a video shared by Every Friday Movie, Imtiaz hailed Deepika as a “wonderful actor”. “I feel so comfortable when she is on set. She is the easiest to work with, she gets ready the fastest, much before any co-actor,” he added. He also said that the “amazing” actor takes “no time to get going” even for simple shots.

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In 2022, as Deepika completed 15 years in the Hindi film industry, Imtiaz also penned a note exclusively for SCREEN. “As an actress, people didn’t think she was good. I remember very well that my choice of her, even as late as Love Aaj Kal, was doubted. She was supposed to be beautiful, pretty but not a good actor. She has changed that over the years,” he said.