Parineeti Chopra says her upcoming film Code Name: Tiranga is in line with her last few releases Sandeep Aur Pinky Farar, The Girl on the Train and Saina, which saw the actress break the stereotype of a “bubbly” girl that was associated with her initially in her career.
She describes the current phase of her professional life as “Parineeti 2.0”, a new and improved version.
The 33-year-old actress said she is grateful to the audience for showering their love on her recent films, a move which was propelled by the need to be honest about her career choices.
“This is a new phase in my life, Parineeti 2.0. This film (Code Name: Tiranga) is part of that phase for me, where I have grown,” she said.
"If the last three films hadn't worked, if they (people) would have rejected those films, then I would have understood that they don't want to see me do this, but they want to,” added Parineeti, who made her debut as a leading lady with 2012's Ishaqzaade.
Citing the example of the Amol Gupte-directed biopic Saina, based on badminton champion Saina Nehwal, the actress said she doesn't measure the success of a movie by box office collections or its OTT viewership.
“What matters is the way a film touches the hearts of people,” she added.
During the making of Saina, Chopra recalled the team would often say the movie will resonate more with children.
“I never understood that but now I get it. That film is more for kids than adults because it is a very simple film. That is the impact for me. Even if a box office or OTT number is not there, for me, every one of those films has a huge fan base, and that is interesting,” she said.
According to the Ambala-born actress, recent success has reaffirmed her faith that a good film will always find its audience.
“I never used to believe in this before but now I believe that a good film always finds success. They were all OTT films. We have no number to calculate the success of the films but the reviews and feedback that I get till today is good,” she added.
As someone who got noticed for her spunk in romcoms such as Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, Shuddh Desi Romance and Hasee Toh Phasee, Parineeti credited her directors for trusting her with new, challenging roles.
The actress, who has Sooraj Barjatya's Uunchai and a biopic on the slain Punjabi singing legend Amar Singh Chamkila directed by Imtiaz Ali in the pipeline, said she always wanted to collaborate with these directors.
“When a Sooraj Barjatya calls you, you have to check whether he dialled the wrong number. Sometimes, you (think) will it ever happen? And then it happens and you feel you are on the right seat. They are baby steps towards something... This phase is made by these directors. The phase for me is also to shock audiences, to give them stuff that they never expect me in,” she said.
Code Name: Tiranga, which reunites Chopra with The Girl On The Train director Ribhu Dasgupta, will see the actress play an undercover RAW agent called Durga.
Doing an action film was always on her to-do list, she said.
“I have had this dream (of doing action) for five years. I have done so many romcom, dramas, I feel I will be able to do action, I just need an opportunity... I am going to do another action film and many more. I want to be known as an action heroine," she added.
In order to perform heavy-duty action sequences in the espionage thriller, Parineeti said she underwent rigorous training for nearly four months in Mumbai and Turkey.
By the end of a day's shoot, she would return home with bruises along with a feeling of satisfaction, she said.
“Ask me about the days when there were no injuries, they were barely one or two. They are battle scars for me..."
Also starring Harrdy Sandhu, Sharad Kelkar, Dibyendu Bhattacharya and Sabyasachi Chakrabarty, Code Name: Tiranga will hit the screens on Friday. The film is produced by T-Series.
