Esha Deol: Why Being Called ‘Snobbish’ Worked in Her Favour

Esha Deol has spent the better part of two decades hearing one word follow her around. In a new interview with SCREEN ahead of Pratap, she said the “snobbish” label from her early magazine profiles wasn’t something she rushed to correct — because it quietly gave her breathing room.

A label that kept the crowd at arm’s length

Deol, daughter of Hema Malini and Dharmendra, entered Hindi cinema in the early 2000s, when “nepotism” had not yet become an industry flashpoint. Even so, being a star kid carried its own assumptions. She recalled reading, again and again, that she seemed “very snobbish.”

Her response was more practical than defensive. “People who knew me knew me,” she said. And if looking snobbish meant fewer strangers approached her, she added, “it worked in my favour.”

That is a quietly useful stance for any public figure: not every misperception needs a PR campaign. Sometimes an image can act as a filter, preserving energy for the people who are actually in the room.

Amit Sadh reads the other Esha

Co-star Amit Sadh offered a different diagnosis. He described Deol’s directness as warm rather than intimidating, praising what he called “a very feisty adorable honesty.” On set, he said, she was attentive and fully present as Poonam, her character in the film.

He also noted that Deol doesn’t reach for the safest line in interviews. “It’s not like she’s trying to be politically correct,” Sadh said. His conclusion: if someone gets intimidated by that honesty, the flaw is in them.

Deol kept her reply simple: “This is who I am.”

The exchange matters because it shows the gap between a decades-old media shorthand and how a contemporary co-star experiences her on set. It’s a useful reminder that an actor’s public tag and their actual working reputation can be very different things.

Why the old tag still matters

Deol’s story is also a small window into how star daughters were framed before the nepotism debate exploded. A reserved young woman could be called “snobbish” while a reserved young man might be called “intense.” Recognising that pattern helps audiences read older profiles with a little more scepticism.

But Deol isn’t asking for a rewrite. She is pointing out that the label, however lazy, did a job for her. That’s an unusually candid concession from a star: not all press is good press, but some labels are at least useful.

What to expect from Pratap

The interview arrives as Deol and Sadh promote Pratap, a theatrical release set for November 20. Sadh plays Pratap Ranade, an encounter specialist whose life changes sharply when he lands in jail. Deol plays Poonam Ranade, whose journey centres on resilience and self-discovery.

The supporting cast includes Seema Biswas, Tigmanshu Dhulia and Milind Gunaji, with Sachin Saraf writing and directing and Pradeep Rangwani producing under UV Films.

• Film: Pratap
• Leads: Amit Sadh and Esha Deol
• Supporting cast: Seema Biswas, Tigmanshu Dhulia, Milind Gunaji
• Release: November 20 in theatres

On paper, Pratap gives Deol a role that mirrors the resilience her co-star describes in conversation. For Hindi film fans, it is a chance to catch an actor who has spent years moving past the neat little labels magazines once handed her.

Source: The Times of India