After names like Kajol, Ajay Devgn, Saif Ali Khan and Mani Ratnam, sharing their take on work-life balance in the film industry, Pankaj Tripathi seems to be joining the ranks in context of the debate the Deepika Padukone-Sandeep Reddy Vanga row over film Spirit seems to have fired up.
For starter, the Prabhas led film was set to star Deepika in the lead. However, the actor faced quite the voluntary but unceremonious exit from the project, within days of starting work Reports suggested that Deepika’s demands included a fat ₹20 crore fee, a refusal to mouth dialogues in Telugu and 8-hour work days. The last bit is where the bone of contention lies.
During a chat with The Hollywood Reporter India, Pankaj for one, affirmed how he is a firm believer in drawing one’s boundaries and relaying the ‘no’, albeit politely. Recalling his own early days when work would end up keeping him on set between 16 to 18 hours, he shared, “Kaam mein khiche jaa raha hai.16 ghanta-18 ghanta ho gaya main laga hua hu. Main bol bhi raha hu, actor jaa chuka hai. Labour ruka hua hai. (The work hours are getting stretched. I am working 16–18 hours straight. I’m even saying, the actor has left, there’s a labourer here now instead)”.
So what’s his route of resolution? Communicating the problem, and putting one’s foot down. He added, “Phir laga nahi, abhi toh aap vinamrata purvak bol dijiye ki ‘Nahi, itna hi hoga. Humne commit ye kiya tha, commitment humari poori ho gayi. Ab dhanyavaad. Jo bacha hai, kal karenge.’ ( At this point, you should just politely say, ‘No, this is all that can be done. This is what we committed to, and we’ve fulfilled that commitment. Thank you. Whatever is left, we’ll do tomorrow’)”.
Coming back to the Deepika-Vanga row, following rumours of Deepika’s exit, the move was made certain with Triptii Dimri being announced as the female lead overnight, leaving no scope for resolution. Not just this, a barely-veiled and almost direct attack at Deepika via Sandeep on his socials furthered soured the situation — whose side are you on?
