Taapsee Pannu calls out Bollywood's casting choices as Assi underperforms. 'Nobody wants to really think out of the box... it's unfair.'

Taapsee Pannu’s latest courtroom drama, Assi, arrived in the theatres on February 20. The film, which revolves around the story of a lawyer who takes on a powerful case involving assault and the fight for justice, however, couldn’t make a strong impact at the box office. Amid this, Taapsee is hogging the limelight once again. No, it is not because of her powerful performance in Assi, but for her strong stance on the casting choices by directors in the Hindi film industry.

Taapsee Pannu’s bold take on casting preferences

Taapsee Pannu recently appeared for an interview with Galatta Plus, where she shared her two cents on how roping in the same stars for films was actually killing creativity. The 38-year-old said that certain people prefer staying within their comfort zones, categorising actors into stereotypical roles based on what they believe will suit them. Disagreeing with the process, Taapsee explained that directors hesitate to ‘think out of the box’, making it difficult for unconventional casting choices to be imagined or accepted.

Taapsee Pannu narrated a few challenges she faced during some of her past discussions with directors. The actress is forced to assure them that she doesn’t have a problem being part of a film where she isn’t playing a lead. ‘It is not my story. Then I have to tell them that I would want to do something lighter,’ Taapsee told the outlet. She further opened up about the ordeal of explaining to directors that just because she is in a film, it doesn’t automatically mean that the project must have a social issue attached to it.


Questioning the casting choices, Taapsee Pannu criticised the idea of signing the ‘same faces for the same roles’, calling it ‘unfair’, not just for the cast but also for someone like like who is willing to take up experimental roles. In conclusion, she pointed out that casting the same actors or actresses would result in predictable performances, because they are likely to bring only what they have already offered in previous films. ‘But when I will probably do something like that, I will bring something new to the table,’ she said.

More about Taapsee Pannu’s Assi

Assi marks Taapsee Pannu and director Anubhav Sinha’s third collaboration. The duo have previously worked together in films like Mulk (2018) and Thappad (2020). The film, produced by Benaras Media Works, also stars Kani Kusruti, Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa and Revathy in key roles. According to a report by Times Now, Assi is expected to arrive on Zee5 on April 17.