04 August,2026 04:58 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Deepika Padukone (Pic/Still from movie)
Veteran actress and acting coach Jayati Bhatia recently recalled an interesting incident from Deepika Padukone's Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela preparation. She revealed how the actress surprised everyone during an acting workshop by fearlessly hurling abuses as part of an exercise. She also revealed how Deepika had become a fearless actress after Cocktail.
In an interview with Siddharth Kannan, the Heeramandi actress recalled how Deepika remembered their first meeting at Anupam Kher's acting institute. She said, "I met her at Mr. Sanjay Leela Bhansali's office for Ram-Leela, to help her open up for the character of Leela. She remembered that one day we had spent together at Mr. Anupam Kher's acting institute. She said, 'Ma'am, we have met.' I replied, 'Of course, I remember.'"
She added, "When I started working with her, she gave her full commitment and full energy. She did a wonderful job. We were supposed to do a seven-day workshop together. I would come straight from my shoot and spend four hours with her every day. After the fourth day, I personally told Sanjay sir, 'Sir, she has become a fearless actress after Cocktail. If we continued working with her for three more days, I would only be wasting your time and hers.' I told Sanjay sir, 'Go for it, sir. She will do whatever you ask of her. She is mouldable, she is fearless, and she wants to do something that challenges her.'"
That was also a phase when Deepika was going through depression. However, her unwavering commitment didn't make Jayati realise that she was going through a difficult phase.
The Sasural Simar Ka actress further shared how she did an exercise with Deepika in which she had to hurl abuses. She said, "I had asked her to go outside and hurl abuses as an acting exercise. But I myself couldn't cuss, as it was forbidden at my place. Then I told her to go outside. There was a balcony in front of Sanjay sir's office overlooking a famous bhel stall. I told her, 'Stand there. Don't look at anyone, but abuse the man below as loudly as you can.'"
She added, "The exercise was to imagine that you were extremely angry and needed to vent everything out. We created that entire emotional situation. When I went first and started shouting, a few people looked up, wondering where all those abuses were coming from. They probably never expected such language to be coming from Sanjay Leela Bhansali's office, and that too from a woman. I remember feeling very proud of myself after I managed to do it. Then I turned to Deepika and said, 'Now it's your turn, beta. Go.'"
Jayati continued, "She stepped out, opened the door, and started abusing. And where I had stopped, she continued with another 50 abuses that I had never even heard before. I said, 'Wow.' Not for a second did she worry that someone might look up or recognize her. By then, she was already Deepika Padukone. People knew her face, but she had absolutely no fear."
She concluded, "After four days, I told Mr. Bhansali, 'Sir, you don't need to open her up anymore.' She really wanted to do the film."
