Exclusive: Parineeti Chopra – On 'Kill Dil' And More

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Parineeti Chopra with Ranveer Singh in Kill Dil

From the bratty yet lovable Dimple Chaddha in Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl, to the foxy babe in Shaad Ali's upcoming comic thriller/romance Kill Dil, Parineeti Chopra has come a long way in an incredibly short space of time.

Having charmed audiences with her unique effervescence, the actress has always brought that special something to each of her performances, and invariably always made a mark in the few films she's been a part of irrespective of the length of her role.

In Kill Dil, she re-uintes with her first co-star Ranveer Singh, in a film which also features Ali Zafar and veteran Govinda.

Find out what the actress had to say to BollyBrit® about how her equation with Ranveer has changed and what fans can expect from the film and then some. Excerpts:

Your role in Kill Dil looks radically different to something you’ve done before. It looks a bit out there, and oozes sex appeal. Was that a conscious decision?

You’ve kinda hit the nail on the head actually… I've not done anything like Kill Dil before. At least appearance wise, whether it’s my styling or my body language or the outfits I’ve worn in the film, it’s completely different, mainly because I really needed to do something different at this stage in my career – I’d say the film came to me at the right time, because I wanted to experiment and working in it gave me the chance to do that.

The film looks like it centres around a bromance between Ranveer Singh and Ali Zafar and Govinda’s negative character… Do you think you’ll be able to shine in the film despite it being so male dominated?

Well, I’ve been known to do films and do roles that have really made a difference to the story, so I hope that that’s the case this time round too. It’s a strong film and yes the film revolves around the boys and the chapters in their lives, but the girl too is equally important. She’s the one that brings in the conflict so I’d say my part is integral to the plot, and I just hope that people enjoy it!

Is the film a love triangle?

No no not at all! I know a lot of people think that after viewing the promos, but the love story is only between Ranveer and me. Al Zafar plays Tutu, who is Dev’s (played by Ranveer) best friend in the film.

You worked with Ranveer Singh in Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl, which was your first film. How has he changed and how different is your equation given you were a rank newcomer then?

I always say this… You know how parents are really proud of their children when they achieve something because they’re completely protective about them and they love them? That’s how I feel about Ranveer. I really love Ranveer and am protective about him, because I knew him even before he was an actor and vice versa. I feel so proud when I see him today – he’s become a huge star, he’s grown so much as an actor, he’s grown so much as a person and I’m so glad that I’ve known him since then because it feels great when I see all the attention he gets and all the great work he’s doing. Our equation hasn’t changed in the slightest which is the best part of it all. We are as comfortable as we were before and the friendship between us has remained the same, which is just lovely.

Most of your films have been love stories. When can we see you in something unconventional? There is a market for female dominated films… For example Priyanka (Chopra) did Mary Kom which did well. When will we see you in something out of the box?

Well I know where you’re coming from but I’ve just started and I would like to continue doing what I'm doing and to continue focusing on love stories. I started off doing unconventional films like Ishaqzaade and I followed that up with Shuddh Desi Romance and then Hasee Toh Phasee which was effectively a romcom but you know what my role was like in the film – quite quirky and different. So in answer to your question, I don’t think I’ve done any conventional films as such, yes they have all been love stories, but they’ve been so unconventional in their own right and have featured me playing very different characters, so right now I don’t feel greedy to look for a different kind of film as such, because even my conventional films were treated and approached in unconventional ways. In fact right now I feel the need to do conventional films which you could say I haven’t really done until now.

Coming back to Kill Dil, the film has a very Tarantino-esque/Western feel to it. Do you think it will have universal appeal? Do you think Indian audiences would be able to digest it?

No I have to disagree, we’re all fans of Tarantino and his way of storytelling but let me clarify that Kill Dil has in fact nothing to do with Kill Bill or Pulp Fiction or any other Tarantino film. It is in fact a very commercial Indian film and Indian audiences should have no trouble accepting or digesting it.

Shaad Ali’s previous film Jhoom Barabar Jhoom didn’t do well both critically and commercially. Do you feel apprehensive or hesitant about his skills as a director?

Oh my god… Not at all… a) that would be really shallow of me and b) that’s just not the way it works, because we all work in an industry where there’s a fifty-fifty probability of a film being either be a hit or a flop there is no third option, no inbetween. Just because one of his films didn’t do well it doesn’t mean I can ignore a Bunty Aur Babli or a Saathiya that were successful. So no it doesn’t bother me in the slightest that Jhoom Barabar Jhoom didn’t live up to expectations.

What’s after Kill Dil, what can your fans expect to see you in?

Right now I actually haven’t signed anything, I’m going to wait and see how Kill Dil fares and then I’ll see what to sign on next but at the moment I’m undecided.

Any parting shots or messages for your fans in the UK?

I love the UK, I’ve spent a lot of time there and thank you to everybody who watches my films and I would like to thank my fans – they are really the fuel we run on and I also want to thank everyone that appreciates my work and hope they that continue in the same vein!

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Kill Dil: Official Synopsis

Once upon a time in North India, two killers – Dev (Ranveer Singh) and Tutu (Ali Zafar), roamed free. Abandoned when young and vulnerable, Bhaiyaji (Govinda) gave them shelter and… nurtured them to kill. All is normal in their lives until destiny throws free spirited Disha (Parineeti Chopra) into the mix. What follows is a game of defiance, deception and love.

Kill Dil has music by Shankar Ehsaan and Loy and hits theatres 14 November 2014.