Focused on choosing only that which is meaningful, Deepika Padukone’s exceptional approach and attitude spark inspiration.
By Nichola Marie

“Strong, someone who makes up her own mind, has motivation within herself…” The qualities that journalist Vir Sanghvi noted in Deepika Padukone in 2013, continue to mark her core personality and approach, ensuring her immense popularity and increased influence over several years. Padukone ceaselessly strives to improve her skills, professionalism, and discipline, even as she chooses roles that challenge conventional mores. And the payoff is there to see…

Soaring
As India’s highest-paid actress (2023), her top position not only highlights her star status but is also a reflection of the evolving dynamics of pay equity in the Hindi film industry. Her success and high earnings (a reported ₹15 cr – ₹30 cr per film) testify to the powerful strides actresses are making in a traditionally male-dominated industry. Her eye-watering appointments as global brand ambassador for the world’s richest fashion label Louis Vuitton, Qatar Airways and Cartier Jewellery, tell their own story of global recognition.
Equally, if not more importantly, Padukone continues to choose only that which is meaningful. “I’m not fascinated by fame in isolation,” she said in a recent interview to ‘Vogue’. “With fame, you can do so much. Our choices have power.”

Shining Off-Screen
Perhaps Padukone’s most powerful work off-screen is her contribution as a mental health advocate. Diagnosed with depression in 2014, she believes her struggle and recovery helped her find her “true calling.” Helping normalise and encourage conversations about mental health on a global level, her mental health foundation Live Laugh Love aimed towards challenging stigma and providing credible resources, also working in India’s villages. The World Economic Forum awarded her for her efforts in the field in 2020.
Another less-known aspect is her keen business sense. Her investment entity KA Enterprises invests in consumer-focused startups across sectors such as FMCG (Epigamia), edtech (FrontRow), pet products (Super Tails), and more. Her KA Productions has produced films such as ‘Chhapaak’ based on the life of an acid attack survivor, and ‘83’.
Outspoken on issues such as feminism, she believes, “New feminism isn’t about being aggressive; it’s about reaching the top yet being soft. It’s about being you – feminine, strong and full of willpower.”