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cosmo interview T he first thing Taapsee does as she opens the door of her hotel room, is unfurl her sinewy arms for a hug. Then, after being pulled into the room by her 24- karat smile and fresh-from-an-event hair, she immediately picks up the phone and describes—in tedious detail to room service on the other end—this cake that’s been haunting her dreams the last few days. “It’s this coffee-chocolate thing—the one that looks really good? Could you bring me that, please?” she explains, that exultant grin firmly harnessed onto her lips, and then silently mouths, “You have to share it with me!” All the signs point to the fact that won’t need our pre-prepared dossier of questions to prod her with, because this is going to be less an interview, and more an easy chat. We don’t have to launch an inquest into how she keeps fit or how her average day pans out, because she’s quite the volcano of self-volunteered info. “Cake is my Kryptonite,” she smiles, telling us, “I don’t even eat gluten—but cake gets by. I let myself eat a piece a week. Two, if I’ve been good,” she laughs, sheepishly. While she’s got a strong antipathy to the gym, exercise is pretty high on her priority list. “I’m a squash girl, baby! Why, this very morning I drove all the way out to Gurgaon to play,” she laughs, calling herself a bit of a squash evangelist because, “I’m always selling it to people. I play every single day at 2pm”. She breaks down her day pre and post squash—her mornings, always languid and filled with “tea, almonds, and walnuts,” and post it there’s her 2pm game, “lunch, meetings and work. I’d start work much earlier, but people think even 11am is too early to meet!” Just as we’re about to segue into work, the doorbell rings, and that almost apocryphally delicious cake is at the threshold. With uncontained glee, she signs for it, and slices it into impartial halves, benevolently holding one out. We let her savour a spoonful (and make a face à la Meg Ryan’s at the restaurant in When Harry Met Sally) before we dive in where we left off— her work. “It’s interesting,” she muses, “how I’m touted as this up-and-coming star because I’ve finally made a mark in Bollywood. It doesn’t count if you have a 70 COSMOPOLITAN jAnuARy 2017 Tiered midi- dress, Salvatore Ferragamo; embellished bralet, Varun Bahl; faux fur jacket, H&M; earrings, Outhouse FOR MORE GREAT STORIES, VISIT cOSMO.In