Shraddha Kapoor: Here's all you need to know

Living The Dream

For someone who's only ever wanted to face the camera, the success of the past couple of years has been a dream come true. Shraddha Kapoor is riding the wave and soaking in all the love.

Photographs Dabboo Ratnani
Art Direction Sadhana Moolchandani
The Source, crop top, studded skirt and cuff

I take in the view as I wait for Shraddha on this sunny Sunday afternoon, watching the waves hit Silver Beach from the Kapoors' seventh floor apartment in Juhu, Mumbai. She breezes in soon - wearing a smile, a comfy deep blue tee, Aztec-print beige jammies and thick-rimmed black glasses - and settles into a sofa placed under a portrait of her father. It may be an obvious question to the daughter of a famous actor, but I ask it anyway. And she says yes, to be in the movies was always, always the plan. Even as a little girl, she'd act, dance and dress up for functions at school.

Shraddha Kapoor

"In fact," she breaks off animatedly mid-sentence, "you must see this." On her phone, she shows me what is obviously an early '90s picture of a school play-kids all dressed in pseudo-adult outfits, bright lipstick and rouge-and there she is, signing an autograph! "I was playing Madhuri Dixit. A friend shared this photograph with me yesterday, and I was like 'Oh My God!'" Yet, she spent two years at Boston University, majoring in psychology.

"When you hear so much of 'tu badi hokar hi heroine banegi' ('you are only going to be an actress when you grow up'), you want to rebel and swim against the tide. But deep in my heart I always knew this was the only thing I wanted to do." Moving for the movies back on a summer break, she started getting film offers. "I thought: I can either start acting after three years or I can just do it now."

Parents Shakti Kapoor and Shivangi Kolhapure were very supportive, though they still try to coax her into finishing her course, she says, calling herself a "dropout" (an endearing and misplaced concern for a star, methinks). It was her third film, the 2013 blockbuster Aashiqui 2 that catapulted her into stardom, the first of her hat-trick. Seeing "love in people's eyes" is the "biggest high", and has changed her whole life.

"Fans don't want anything from you…It's even beyond art, it's about catering to that unconditional love." Social media allows them to give her direct feedback. Though her personal style is "jhalli" and "bohemian" with Goa pyjamas, track pants and maxi skirts (similar to her Ek Villain character and as she's dressed as we speak), "I've been told that I should not be like this." She now feels she needs to make an effort, and lately, since Tanya Ghavri's become her stylist, has started to enjoy and embrace fashion much more. Her fans have also loved her subtle presence in the spectacular Haider. She had no reservations, despite it being an ensemble cast, the lack of a traditional hero-heroine equation, her small role and Tabu's huge presence in the film. Vishal Bharadwaj is a "ball of love who makes you feel like you have something special, makes you feel alive," she says.

Given that, in India, an actor's screen and public image is what people actually think of them as a person, I wonder whether this need to please will prevent Shraddha from playing darker characters. "I will keep that at the back of my mind - are people going to be happy seeing me like this? Upset? Interested? Surprised?"

A chance to dance
She's now doing Remo D'Souza's ABCD2 and having an absolute blast. "I've been waiting to do a film in which I can dance. None of my films until now have had any big dances and suddenly I get a movie where I only dance!" Everyone on the cast but Varun Dhawan and her is a professional dancer. When she first saw the steps, she was sure she wouldn't be able to do them until the dancers told her that she had to stop thinking - just feel it. For this film, she's been on a meal plan designed by celebrity trainer Marika Johansson, who delivers meals for the day each morning. She tries, but loves food, especially fried food: "jalebis with hot milk is deadly!" Despite her apparent love for sinful food she's not overweight but is hoping to gain muscle mass (she's inherited her mother's high metabolism and all the dancing for ABCD2 has helped). Her trainer, Praveen Nair who coached Sushant Singh Rajput for Kai Po Che and is training Aditya Roy Kapoor for Fitoor, "is a life-changer," she says. He's introduced her to weights along with functional training and TRX. He works on her legs (how good they look on our cover!) and makes her do CrossFit training (tons of burpees). She works out either at a local gym down the road or at the one at Yash Raj Studios.

"I love going to the gym, I like working out but it's a constant friction. You're dying, you can't do anymore… but when you reach your goal, you love your trainer for making you do it." She believes it's a test of willpower: "It's all in the mind." On his part, Nair testifies to her amazing energy levels.

Her workout playlist: "EDM is happy music that inspires and energises me. I also listen to some danceable Hindi songs. There's more than one expert looking out for Shraddha. Her dermatologist too tells her to eat healthy and not to pick her pimples ("I get tempted"). She's going through a "really bad skin phase" (I count three measly pimples) and is working on improving her skin. She isn't too fussed about a skin regime: just drinks water and green tea, uses a face wash and moisturises.

A freak new year
It's been two incredible, hectic years for Shraddha, and "2014 has gone too fast!" She spent last New Year's eve asleep in bed. Through Christmas, she's expecting to be in Las Vegas shooting a schedule for ABCD2. They wrap on the 30th and the whole crew may stay back - "Sounds like fun to me!" The revived trend of all-round performers in the film industry, a la stage, is exciting to this girl who asserts, "I love dancing as much as I love acting as much as I love singing." This New Year, the lights will only get brighter, the stage bigger for this girl with a dream in her heart and the stars in her eyes.

Working it out
Trainer Praveen Nair gives us her workout programme for a week.
Duration 45 mins
Days of workout in a week: 4-5
Target To improve rotational force and power to improve performance for ABCD 2, Gain lean muscle mass.
Day 1 Legs, Balance, Agility
Day 2 Back, Arms, Multi-Joint Movements
Day 3 OFF
Day 4 Chest, Shoulders, Core & Conditioning
Day 5 TRX Rip Trainer, Vipr
Day 6 OFF
Day 7 OFF

Shraddha Loves...
Gardening "I have a little green patch. I tried to grow vegetables, but only one tomato was successfully grown! I love flowering plants."
Travelling "I love to travel and like adventurous things. I'm an advanced scuba diver but I haven't been able to go diving for two years. How time flies!"
Buddies "I've had the same set of best friends since I was in school. I'm very territorial about them."
Animals "I love dogs, I love animals in general."
Clubbing "I just love going out dancing with my friends but when you're shooting you can't have many late nights. I go out when I'm off work for the next few days."

The Source crop top and bandage skirt
Aquamarine chain
Styling Shweta Shetty
Hair & Make-Up Shraddha Naik Alkunte