Single Papa actor Neha Dhupia on playing supporting roles: 'As long as people like what you're doing and it gets you your next best job, it's a win' | Exclusive

Neha Dhupia portrays the straightforward adoption officer, Romila Nehru, in the new Netflix series Single Papa. The actor, recently in an exclusive interview with OTTplay, gave an explanation for the show's creators' decision to approach the crucial yet frequently discussed topic of a single male parent adopting a child from a humorous perspective. The series, which co-stars Kunal Kemmu, Manoj Pahwa, Ayesha Raza, and Prajakta Koli, is now streaming on Netflix.

Neha Dhupia on explaining a humorous approach to a serious topic

Dhupia explained that presenting a heavy subject in a lighter format helps with audience acceptance. The actor told us, "I think if you make a heavy subject heavier, there's a chance that people will be like, 'You know, this looks difficult.' If, you know, making him a single papa, and then uske saath kitne issues aa sakte hain, and not dealing with it in a comical way but just to add drama to it... it can get very, very loaded, and if the audience is not ready for something like that, it will be less accepting. But to show that it's a lot of fun but it comes with slight issues, but there's an entire family that will deal with it... is a much nicer way of putting it across, I felt."

The actor, who has moved between commercial and indie films throughout her career, also reflected on taking on supporting or relatively minor characters and finding her "final solo shine moment" within the ensemble.

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Character arc

Dhupia went on to say, "I think that's what we all work for, right? That's what an arc is of a character. Like, you could be a fly on the wall noticing everything that's going on, but if the perspective is of that fly, it's a very important part to play. So, I'm okay with that as well. I always feel that it's not defined by the length. I come from a background where when I started out, I'd done mainstream commercial films to doing films that were more, back then they were called, the more art-school films with Rajat Kapoor and Saurabh Shukla, and then I moved on to doing stuff with Ek Chalis Ki Last Local... So, I've kind of—the one thing that I'm okay with is the fact that there's—I don't put too much thought into the choices I'm making after a point because I'm okay with taking that risk. I'm not looking for the payoff, the payback, or any of that. Because it's me, right? I'm not answerable to anyone."

The actor further stressed her belief in choosing work based on instinct rather than potential outcome or payoff. She added, "I'm not looking for the payoff, the payback, or any of that. Because it's me, right? I'm not answerable to anyone. Single Papa came to me, and when I got the call, I was like, 'Okay, this is great, we're on Netflix. Netflix makes hardly any mistakes. They've already read the script; they know what they're doing.' I didn't know who was playing which part. And I was like, 'I want to dive into this to see where this takes me.' I'm genuinely like, I don't know how else to say it, but – and I don't mean this badly – I don't overthink the process. Theek hai. Mauka mila hai, opportunity hai. Today I'm here sitting in front of you. If I would have given this to someone else, someone else would have grabbed this part because this is not a part that you can let go of.”

Neha Dhupia on embracing opportunities

Finally, Dhupia stated that the true measure of success for a supporting role is the recognition it garners. She said, “And now it's on you how much more and how much better you can do with it. And that's the toughest part about playing supporting roles, right? Either they come and go, or someone notices you, and as long as people like what you're doing and it gets you your next best job, it's a win. I mean, you can't expect more than that.”

Single Papa is now streaming on Netflix.