It's a beautiful life

It was her first solo holiday that changed 16-year-old Deepika Padukone’s mind forever. Till then she was trained to follow her father, ace badminton player Prakash Padukone’s profession. She thought badminton would be her life. It was while spending ‘me’ time in Europe that Deepika first heard the musings of her heart. It was showbiz, which was her dream, her destination. After that it was a matter of time before she changed tracks. Modelling and then acting followed. But it was the discipline, which was inculcated in her as a budding sportswoman that helped her cope with the challenges of the glamour world. Sporting spirit, never-say-die attitude and unswerving stamina… have done her loads of good. No wonder today the Queenbee holds court with her talent and beauty. Here Deepika talks about her growing up years...

Practise and play
My growing up years were all about discipline and routine. My memories of school and college are all about badminton. I was a serious athlete. My life was about waking up at 4.30 am, getting into the bus at 5.15 am and going for my training. I’d finish by 7.45 am and come home. I had 20 minutes to have a bath, get ready and leave for school. The only exemption my school gave me was that I could miss the assembly but I could not miss class. I’d be in school till 3.30 pm. Then I’d come home, have snacks, go to the court again and play till 7 pm. After that, I’d attend tuitions. Finally, I’d come home and go to sleep. This was my schedule right till I was 16 - from Monday to Friday, including during exams. On Saturdays too I woke up at the same time. I had longer training hours on that day because I didn’t have school. The only leeway I had on Saturday was that I could have tea and biscuits outside the stadium because I didn’t have to rush to school. I’d return home and sleep for some time. And that too uneasily because sleeping in the afternoon was just not accepted at home. We could take a nap for just 30 minutes.

My dad was an athlete and my mother (Ujjala Padukone) has been a working woman. Sunday was family time. We would wake up and have breakfast together. We would go to the club for a meal. But we had to retire early because Monday morning the same regime would start. I’d hardly see my friends. Sleepovers barely existed. Maybe once or twice a year I could go out with my friends. That also I had to start planning months in advance. How do I approach them? Which parent should I ask? It was a task asking them. Even when I got the permission to go out at night, my parents insisted on dropping and picking me up. And they would pick me up at 10.30 pm when the party hadn’t even started. I would negotiate with them and request them to stretch the time limit till midnight. Their response was always in the negative. I was allowed few sleepovers on Saturdays though. But I had to come back home on Sunday morning. I had to reach before breakfast, which was family time.

Showtime
Initially, movies were never in the scheme of things. When I reached high school, the passion started taking shape. I was immersed in sports and my parents thought I’d become an athlete but they were aware of my inclination towards films. I would take part in school concerts. But I could never take part in drama because I couldn’t give time to it. I’d play a tree in the background or some dancer in the back row. Owing to the strict regimen, I have few movie memories. Which is why when I’m asked about my favourite films and actors, I can’t talk much. I don’t have any reference points. I’m not in the movies because I grew up on them. Like Ranveer (Singh) is obsessed with movies. He didn’t know life beyond it. He always knew he wanted to become an actor.

But undoubtedly, I was interested in showbiz. If there was a fashion show in school and college, I’d take part in it. Our group had put up two charity shows wherein we performed and gave the money to a charity  foundation. I’d be glued to the television when Miss India would air. That was one of the few shows I’d be allowed to watch apart from Filmfare Awards. We would actually mark the date for Filmfare Awards on the calendar. That was the only show where we were allowed to eat food on the couch rather than on the dining table.

The turnaround
The shift to movies happened when I was 16. I played badminton till December because I had my board exams in March the following year. I only had two months to study. I stopped playing completely. I was just an average student. So I had to study hard. That’s the time I realised that I couldn’t sit in one place and give exams. That’s when the thought of doing movies came into my mind. Badminton was my first love but somewhere I realised I wasn’t enjoying it as much as I was enjoying being on stage and performing.

I finished my board exams and went for a two-month holiday to Europe. This was the first time I went alone on a holiday. I lived with family friends but I travelled all by myself. In those two months I spent time thinking about my career and by the time I returned, I had made up my mind. I spoke to my parents and told them I wanted to model and act. I knew movies would happen eventually because while I was in school, model co-coordinators had shown interest in me. Prasad Bidapa (fashion guru) would often visit our school; Anila Anand (famous model coordinator) was a family friend. When in school I attended a Wendell Rodricks fashion show where he came up to me and said I should become a model. That was a huge thing. That’s how the idea started brewing in my head.

A ‘model’ move
Coming back to my parents, they were okay with me venturing into modelling. Of course, mum looked at me and said I had put on a lot of weight eating all the cheese, chocolates and cakes in Europe. I went to Anila and told her my aspiration. Anila was one person who had planted the showbiz dream in my head. Then I worked out, lost weight and Anila told me I was ready. My mother lent me ` 10,000 for a photo shoot. Till date, I keep telling her to take back that money because I am what I am because of that amount. She refuses to take it. That was a lot of money back then. And it didn’t even include the cost of hair and make-up. I wore my own clothes and asked a friend to do the make-up. This is how my first photo-shoot happened. I thought I looked damn good in the pictures. I felt I was ready to conquer the world. Now when I look at them, I go yuck.

My mom and I put the pictures in the envelopes, wrote the names of the photographers (with whom I work today) and couriered them, hoping something would work out. One thing led to another and one day I got selected for a beverage ad. It was a limited special summer edition and was made only for Chennai. R Balki at that time was in Chennai. They were looking for a fresh face for a big soap brand. Balki saw my beverage ad and contacted the agency behind it. I got a call to audition for this soap ad. I took an early morning flight to Mumbai, gave the audition, and when I was heading back to my hotel, I got a call from them saying I had got selected and I’d have to fly to Jaipur tomorrow itself for the shoot. I called up mom and she flew down to Mumbai that night. Next morning we flew to Jaipur, shot the ad and returned. In the meanwhile, one toothpaste brand also signed me up. These ads happened back to back. People were interested in knowing who this girl was. Also, one of my aunts is a good friend of Atul Kasbekar (photographer). She introduced us to Atul. He told me if I had to make it big, I’d have to move to Mumbai. And that’s how it all started… and there has been no looking back…