India’s leading lady, who has spent 2015 defying convention, on breaking the Bollywood mould and why she spoke out on depression Deepika Padukone isn’t your traditional Bollywood heroine. In a film industry known for meek, decorative female leads, she is rounding out 2015 by starring in Bajirao Mastani, a violent 18th-century epic and one of the most expensive Indian productions ever made. Its ensemble cast features an array of other stars, but Padukone’s horse riding, bow-and-arrow- wielding warrior princess is effectively the lead, underlining her position not just as Bollywood’s most bankable female actor but also one increasingly willing to challenge conventions in a movie world dominated by men.

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