Neha Dhupia has built a career that has consistently defied conventional expectations. Over more than two decades in the Hindi film industry, the actor has moved across genres and mediums rather than following the traditional trajectory often associated with actresses starting out. In an interview recently, Dhupia reflected on her unconventional career path, the opportunities she received, the changing culture of film sets and her views on actors travelling with large entourages.
Neha Dhupia on carving her own path in Bollywood
Reflecting on this journey in a conversation with Bollywood Hungama, Neha said, “It was not really unique. Maybe back then it was aspirational, but I didn’t have those many opportunities. If you look at it in reverse, it was like carving your own path. My mum always says, ‘Jo hota hai, acche ke liye hota hai’. There’s always a reason for it. What that reason is, where you’re going with it, what’s going to happen, no one knows. Maybe, 20 years later, now I feel I did the right thing because you are paying that compliment to me. Back then, I was not so calculative in my 20s.”Speaking about her long journey in the industry, Neha expressed deep gratitude for everything it has given her over the years. She said, “I feel like my entire life has been about playing the waiting game. I am doing the same with this one as well. You are always hoping that something interesting happens. The only thing I wish for now, in the real world, is that every job I do leads me to another interesting job and an interesting set of people – sometimes the same ones and sometimes different ones. But there’s no other place I want to be. I have no regrets and no anger. I never say, ‘Yeh industry ne mujhe yeh nahin diya ya woh nahin diya.’ Industry ne mujhe sab diya hai. It gave me a face, it gave me a voice, it gave me a name, it made me a brand. It made me public, it domesticated me – all of it. And I just love it. There’s no business like show business!”
Neha Dhupia calls big entourages ‘very stifling’
When Neha Dhupia started out 23 years ago, vanity vans had only just become commonplace, while the term “entourage” was virtually unheard of. Asked for her views on the ongoing debate around actors travelling with large entourages, Neha shared a firm stance rooted in her own experience. She said, “We did have vanity vans even then, but we didn’t have big entourages. I find big entourages very stifling. And my views stay the same. I have always managed with a small entourage. I don’t think an actor’s ability or talent is defined by the number of people he or she travels with or arrives on a set with. In fact, the more you declutter yourself, the better your ability to perform.”
More about Neha Dhupia starrer ’52 Blue’
Directed by acclaimed Egyptian filmmaker Ali El Arabi, 52 Blue is an international coming-of-age drama that follows Ashish (Yadav Shashidhar), a lonely young man from Kerala who leaves home in pursuit of his dream of meeting his idol, Lionel Messi, during the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The film marks Neha Dhupia’s international debut, with Adil Hussain also starring as Ashish’s devoted parent. Combining real footage from the Qatar World Cup with a heartfelt fictional narrative, the film explores themes of migrant labour, parental love and self-discovery.
