Ananya Panday makes her web series debut in Call Me Bae, playing an heiress who loses her home and wealth overnight and has to use her smarts to become a middle-class hustler. Produced by Dharmatic Entertainment and comprising an ensemble cast of Vir Das, Gurfateh Pirzada, Varun Sood, Vihaan Samat, Muskkaan Jaferi, Niharika Lyra Dutt, Lisa Mishra and Mini Mathur, the series premieres on Prime Video on September 6. Before that, t2 caught up with Ananya for a chat on Bae, her character, and more.

Call Me Bae is funny and self-aware and your character Bae is exaggerated yet relatable. What piqued your interest enough to make this series your web debut?

The primary reason was the script. When Karan (Johar, producer) had told me about it a couple of years ago, it sounded like the most fascinating idea ever. The story of this heiress who gets thrown out of her house and then has to navigate the world around her. I was like: ‘Oh my God, I want to know more!’ I wanted to get into this world and explore all these characters.

My favourite thing about the show is that even though Bae is the central character, all the other characters are also quirky and interesting. They all had a lasting impression on me when I read the script.

We also had a diverse writing room. We had women in the writing room and Collin (Da’Cunha) as director. There were different worlds and opinions that came in. For me, there is so much to chew on. When you start watching the show, you will think that Bae is a certain way. But when you go on this journey with her, you discover so much more to her. Bringing that out was interesting. Also, to find the humanity in a person who is so exaggerated was a fun challenge.

What were the traits in Bae that appealed to you?

I like how non-judgmental she is. She has grown up with so much judgment and with people thinking she is a certain way, but she never judges anyone, even though people don’t treat her too well. She still sees the good in people and she treats everyone equally. In the second episode, Bae says that kindness never goes out of fashion. She is very kind and I love that about her.

Even though she is exaggeratedly written and portrayed, did you identify with her in any way?

I find her attitude towards life — which is fun, happy and about taking nothing too seriously — relatable. She is very confident. I tried to imbibe some of Bae’s confidence in my personality. She is not afraid to be herself. Her core, what she is as a person, never changes. To not change even when the world keeps telling you that you need to be something else speaks of a lot of strength.

What about her felt completely alien to you?

Her journey in general... shifting from an uber-rich life in Delhi to a middle-class working life in Bombay. Bae finds her purpose very late because all her life she has been told what to do by others. In contrast, I have always known and wanted to be an actor. So I have always worked towards that from very early on in my life. She is also very experimental whereas I like to play it safe.

Bae’s mantra is: ‘Wake up and slay. Seize the day.’ Does that apply to Ananya too?

No! I don’t wake up like that. On most days, I have to drag myself to the gym. I do get going at some point but that happens pretty late in the day. By then, I am already exhausted!

How do you psyche yourself on days when you can’t get going?

I just do it. I don’t have a choice! I have to drag myself out of bed and I complain a lot and then at some point in the day, my mood gets better.

What did having women writing a show directed by a man bring to Call Me Bae?

They (Ishita Moitra and Samina Motlekar) brought out the humanity in Bae. Everyone on this show starts off in a certain way, but then the more you live with these characters, you realise the layers they have. I don’t mean that male writers can’t do that. In general, the writers’ room has done a very good job and Collin is a very sensitive director. He understood where every actor was coming from and how they needed to be directed, which doesn’t happen that often, especially with such a large ensemble cast.

Gender sensitivity was an important part of this project. As actors, we put ourselves in a vulnerable position and I think being sensitive is very important.

Call Me Bae is not message-y but it does deliver some lessons within its quirky and humourous framework. Was that also a reason that made you want to do it?

That was one of the main reasons. Even though it is fun, light and happy, it leaves you with something to chew on and it aligns with my morality as well. It is something I believe in very deeply. If what you stand for reflects in your work, then that is a great win for me. The show deals with tough topics, but none of it is shoved in the face of the viewer.

In the first episode, Bae complains about the pressure to be perfect. Being in the business that you are and constantly in the spotlight, do you also feel the pressure to be perfect all the time?

Yes, I do feel it. I felt it more when I started out. I was also very young then. I put pressure on myself and then I realised that it is not something that one can keep up with. Realising that was the most liberating thing. Actual happiness for me comes from being myself. Even if that means I make mistakes, nothing makes me happier than being myself and knowing that people like me because of who I am and not something I am pretending to be.

Most people think that playing an exaggerated character requires very little acting skills, but in reality, it is very tough to pull off. Would you agree?

Absolutely! There is a myth that over-the-top performances are not tough to do. It is quite tough because you constantly have to keep the energy up... you can’t let it dip even for a second. You also have to find humanity in the character, you can’t play it in one tone... there has to constantly be a subtext for why the person is the way he or she is.

Doing comedy is tough. When you are shooting, you lose perspective of whether people are going to find what you are doing funny because you have done it so many times. But after this project, I feel a lot more comfortable in my skin because I have had to do so many strange things that I would never do in life! (Laughs) Like ‘talking’ to a handbag or ‘crying’ to a fridge! To do such things and believe in them was a big challenge. I had to play her with full honesty and do every crazy thing that she was doing.

Is that the approach you have towards most characters you play?

I do. In fact, that is how it should be. There are so many iconic villains in the movies because the actors playing them never judged them. They played them with belief and honesty. If you judge the characters you play, you put up a wall between you and them and everything then becomes a facade in the most literal sense.

Bae loves her handbags and has a name for each of them. If asked to name your favourite handbag, what would you call it?

Possibly something like ‘Lifesaver’ or ‘Lifeboat’ because I literally carry a suitcase around! I have everything in my bag... I think I will call it ‘Pandora’s Box!’

What was it like working in the long-form format for the first time?

Building a character from scratch and not just catching Bae at one point in her life... being with her throughout her journey... was very satisfying. Working on her backstory and being able to show the audience a range of emotions is something I really enjoyed.

I am a huge fan of the series format. It gives an actor so much time to live with a character. Even as a viewer, I stay loyal to a lot of characters because I have seen them through many episodes and seasons and even I grow with them. That is my hope for Bae too... I hope the viewer wants to stay with her and keep coming back to her.

What recent web shows have been your favourites?

It is a really busy time so I am keeping things light and watching the new season of Emily in Paris. In general, I watch more intense things like Presumed Innocent. Recently, I loved The Boys and the new seasons of House of Dragon and Mirzapur. I watch everything... I am not a picky viewer.

Bae enrolls in a string of crazy courses, one of which is called ‘David Beckham Studies’. If you had to pick a quirky course for yourself, what would it be?

Something to do with water... maybe scuba-diving. Or a cooking course. I can bake cookies... that is the extent of my culinary skills at the moment.