Triptii Dimri: ‘I focus on box office as little as I can’

Shahid Kapoor, Triptii Dimri and Vishal Bhardwaj

When we get on a call with Triptii Dimri, she is finishing her look test for her next, a film on Hussain Ustara. A collaboration with director Vishal Bhardwaj seems like the perfect way to round off the successful year she has had. Following Animal's (2023) wild success, the actor sealed her place in mainstream cinema in 2024 with Bad Newz, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 and Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video. It's a change of pace for an actor who shone in Bulbbul (2020), but she asserts that one cannot undermine the love that mainstream films bring to an artiste.

"I've never planned a day in my career. If I go into a narration and connect with the story and character, I say yes. I never think twice if it is a big or small film. I never think, ‘I have done enough commercial films. Now, let me do a Qala [2022] or a Bulbbul.' For instance, while shooting Bad Newz, we were enjoying ourselves so much that we never thought about whether it would make money," Dimri says of the comedy that will première on Star Gold this week.

The one thing she cherishes about her success is that it allows her the freedom to fail. That's something she doesn't ever want to lose. She elaborates, "I want to do characters that freak me out. No one can predict what will work because the audience's taste is changing. The biggest example is Laila Majnu [2018]. Six years after no one saw it in theatres, it re-released to packed halls this year. So, all I have is my instinct, and I go into a film with that. I consciously don't attach a lot of worth to failure or success. I focus on box office as little as I can. Years later, what will stay with me is the experience. I want to be surrounded by passionate people."

This search for passionate collaborators has landed the actor straight on the sets of a Bhardwaj film. "He was a director on my bucket list. I am fortunate I've always had directors who want to know what I am thinking, how I want to approach a character. Vishal sir is clear that he has written the story, but he wants to hear how I will bring it to life. I am a director's actor," she states, equally excited about teaming up with Shahid Kapoor for the first time. "I've been a big admirer of his work. He has such a great command over his material. I'm so grateful for the film, this year and for all the good that has come!"