Deepika Padukone Gallery

Fate has been kind to Deepika Padukone. There’s nothing that she hasn’t had the best of. The tall, sexy daughter of badminton legend Prakash Padukone was born with a silver spoon in her mouth. And now she looks all set to turn it into a gold one. She made her debut with a bang, opposite none other than Shah Rukh Khan, the man most established actresses would give an eye-teeth to work with. Om Shanti Om proved to be the biggest grosser of 2007.
After Bachna Ae Haseenon with beau Ranbir Kapoor, she was seen with the super-successful Akshay Kumar in Chandni Chowk To China. Despite the film not garnering good reviews, Ms Padukone seems to have emerged out of it unscathed.
She’s fully aware of it and admits she’s God’s favourite child. “I am very happy with the way my professional life is going and I just hope that this year too is good for me,” she gushes. The lady has just turned 23. But instead of drinking herself silly at some nightclub on her birthday, Deepika, who is wise beyond her years, actually visited a temple. “Partying is not my thing. I prefer spending time with my family and yes I did visit a temple in the morning. That’s how I start my birthdays,” she said.
Though she’s just three films old, Deepika has played different roles in these films. In fact, she even slipped on her action shoes in Chandni Chowk To China. “It was tough, but I am glad that I went through the extensive training both physically and mentally,” adds the supermodel-turned-actress.
Interestingly, she played a double role in Om Shanti Om too. “It is just that double roles give me more confidence that my directors and the audience believe I can carry off different looks in different roles in the same film. As an actor, it’s a lot more challenging to do two roles in the same film,” she replies.
When she’s not busy enjoying her work, she’s very much the girl-next-door. “I enjoy doing simple things, spending time with my family and friends, eating simple home food.” But life can’t be that simple for her. Her personal life is dissected in tabloids every second day. How does that affect her and her family? “Not much. I know it’s part of my profession and people will keep speculating about my life. I know what’s happening in my life and I am very secure and happy in my relationship,” she says, without naming Ranbir Kapoor.
Deepika is not too bothered about the controversy over Imtiaz Ali’s next venture, Production No 1. Imtiaz’s last film Jab We Met won Kareena Kapoor several awards and she wanted to be cast in this film too because boyfriend Saif Ali Khan is in it. Rumours are that Saif and Imtiaz were at loggerheads because Pataudi Junior wanted Bebo to do Production No 1. “That’s really none of my business. If Imtiaz approached me, he obviously thinks I fit the role. It’s a great script and a great role and certain roles are written with certain people in mind. I wouldn’t want to comment on the rest,” Deepika ends the conversation diplomatically.