EXCLUSIVE! Chhapaak: Meghna Gulzar Talks About The Efforts Behind Getting Deepika Padukone’s Prosthetic Right For The Film

Meghna Gulzar’s Chhapaak starring Deepika Padukone and Vikrant Massey is one of the important releases of this year. It is also one of the first releases of 2020. The film deals with the crucial subject of acid attack and is based on the story of real-life acid attack survivor, Laxmi Agarwal.

When the first glimpse of Chhapaak was out, everyone was impressed and blown away with DP’s look. People praised the prosthetic and how the makers were careful about getting it right. In an interview with Koimoi, we asked Meghna Gulzar what went behind getting Deepika’s prosthetics right.

The Raazi director answered, “It’s extremely hard work, detail-oriented work. Our prosthetic artist Clover Woodton is a perfectionist. There is no shortcut with her.  When we first started, broadly, it was okay for before attack look and after attack look. But when you start breaking down the look and you understand how (long) this can be because we met Laxmi’s plastic surgeon and realised that the after attack look also has nine stages. It varies from just after the attack to the final surgery and how she looks today. So each stage had to be researched.”

When asked if any look was rejected because it didn’t fit well, Gulzar said, ” I don’t think we rejected any prosthetic. There would always be a minor tweak that would happen. But yes, every stage had to be tried and tested and then executed in the film.”

Meghna Gulzar was also asked if she had expected this kind of appreciation for the trailer and songs for Chhapaak. The director said that she was nervous as one can’t predict how people will perceive their art.

She stated, “I don’t think as a filmmaker when you are putting something any of your creative piece of content out there, there is no way to predict how it will be accepted or what the response to it will be. So yes, you are always nervous. You are always anxious that something that so many people have worked so hard on, get accepted positively. For us, it was quite overwhelming to see how the trailer was embraced and how people are liking the songs and the story that we are trying to tell. It’s very encouraging as well.”

Chhapaak is slated to release on January 10, 2020.