After dominating the Hindi film industry, Deepika Padukone stepped into Hollywood as she signed a mega franchise and made her Hollywood debut with xXx: Return of Xander Cage in 2017. In August 2021, the actress announced her second project. As per Deadline’s report, Deepika would be starring in a romantic comedy for STXfilms and Temple Hill that she will also be producing via her Ka Productions banner. The movie is touted to be “a sweeping cross-cultural story centered on Deepika.”
Now, in a recent conversation with Faye D’souza for Vogue India, Deepika was asked about what stories she is hoping to bring to the global screens that will highlight diversity. Reacting to the same, the Gehraiyaan actress pointed out that Hollywood’s diversity attempt currently is ‘surface-level’.
Elaborating on the same, Deepika said, “Right now, the conversation around diversity in Hollywood is surface-level. The minute you have a Black or Asian actor, it’s considered ‘diverse casting’. But we have a long way to go before we start seeing substantial change. I feel like 80 per cent of the people in charge are still looking at inclusive casting as a box to be ticked. No doubt, there are some who are genuinely interested in turning the tide, but they are getting it quite wrong. It’s a learning process and I hope it’s an earnest one.”
During the interview, Deepika also spoke about being an outsider in Bollywood. Click the link below to read what she had to say.
