You may know her from 2000s comedies like Chup Chupke or Singh is Kinng, from her time as a model representing India in the Miss Universe pageant, or perhaps more recently, playing Vidya Balan’s boss in 2017 hit Tumhari Sulu or an unabashedly sexy librarian in Lust Stories. Add to that her much-loved stints as a gang leader on several seasons of Roadies and her podcast-cum-YouTube show No Filter Neha, it’s no stretch to call Neha Dhupia a beloved household name.
Visiting the city as the showstopper for Max Kids Festival, she reflected on this gradual shift in focus from model-actor to reality TV star and popular host, saying, “It’s not a transition; in 2025, any number of mediums that you can explore – whether it’s a podcast, television, fiction or non-fiction, whether it’s playing characters in films – you should. After being in the business for over two decades now, I have to put myself in a box and at the same time, be out of the box. I want to be someone who has a voice and exercises it when necessary.”
This confident and outspoken demeanour is evident than ever in Dhupia’s return to Roadies for its Roadies Double Cross season after three years. “My biggest victory has been coming back to the show and get ting the amount of love that I have.It makes me want to keep coming back,” she says, adding, “I’m always fighting for what I want to try and at no point do I want to hurt or harm anybody. The intention is always to encourage people.”
Longtime fans of the show have particularly enjoyed seeing the competitive yet fond rivalry between Dhupia and Prince Narula, often resulting in fights and jabs but also moments of heartfelt support. According to Dhupia, the relationship on screen is a reflection of their off screen comfort. “Our off-screen comfort is so much that when we end up fighting on screen, we know that we can get away with a lot more than people usually can. There are some days that it’s not easy to listen to the stuff that he says, and I’m sure he feels the same way about me. But then, I know he’s got my back and he knows, I’ve got his. All the fighting and not letting the other one win has gotten us this infamous tag of ‘Tom and Jerry’ to live up to,” she laughs.
Apart from her acting and reality show appearances, Dhupia has long been popular for her podcast No Filter Neha, where she brings on the who’s who of Bollywood for candid conversations. Having recently wrapped the sixth season of the show, Dhupia reflects on the recent boom in podcasts, saying, “The boom has happened because people have accessibility to cameras and everybody has a voice and wants to use it…it’s definitely a hit or miss.” She adds, “In my case, I was just really happy there was so much love and attention paid to the podcast. I have done six seasons and had more than 70 conversations. If I have the time, I’ll come back to it again because if anyone’s most excited about my podcast, it’s me!