In a span of two-and-a-half years, model-turned-actor Taapsee Pannu has made her presence felt in Telugu, Tamil and Malayalam films. She recently forayed into Hindi films. A lesser-known fact is that she was a software professional before becoming an actor. Taapsee acquired a BTech in computer science engineering from Guru Tegh Bahadur Institute of Technology, Indraprastha University, New Delhi, in 2009. This 25-year-old marked her film debut with the 2010-Telugu film Jhummandi Naadam. Her Tamil film Aadukalam met with critical acclaim and won six National Film Awards.
What did college teach you?
In college, you have the freedom to do what you want. College helped me realise that there is a life beyond academics and that you shouldn’t limit yourself to one thing.
What was your proudest moment in college?
In engineering colleges, extracurricular activities are not given much importance. Dance was my passion. I gathered a few girls, trained them for five-six months and formed my own dance team, Natya, which was basically a western music dance group with a Bollywood twist. We went to different colleges and won at least 30 competitions in two years. We were the first team from our college to participate in intercollegiate dance events and I am very proud of this.
Have you had any embarrassing moments in college?
I was never regular to class. Many a time, professors insulted me during classes or in corridors. They used to make fun of my interests in extracurricular activities. One professor even said he would make sure I would not pass that academic year.
How did you score points with the opposite gender?
I didn’t have to try. The ratio of girls:guys in engineering colleges is 1:6. So every girl was surrounded by guys without putting in much effort. Also, I am an extrovert. People from different departments knew me. In my third year, I participated in Miss India. So, I was quite popular.
Was bunking a part of your college routine?
As I was into debates and dance, I had to bunk all the time. Since I was good with managing time, I used to score well in exams.
Did you have any rifts with professors? Why?
I was one of the first students from my college to get placed in Infosys. It was very frustrating for my professors when I scored well, though I never attended classes.
Where did you hang out in college with friends?
We were all foodies and loved our street-food joints. Also, there is a big mall behind our campus. All of us used to meet there and figure out whether to go for a movie or eat out somewhere. There were many other places like old forts and lakes where we used to go regularly.
What extracurricular activities were you involved in?
I was mostly involved in dance and public speaking. I used to participate in all competitions.
— rahul.v@newindianexpress.com