A still from Call Me Bae

The Prime Video offering is also a Mumbai story in a way. Through the Delhi-based protagonist who begins her life anew in Mumbai, the story shows us the city’s hustle culture.

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Panday agrees that hustle is “not a far-away life” for her. “A lot of people I know aren’t from the film industry. For me, as an actor who has friends here, I know the landlord stories, the deposit issues and [I have] the awareness that to make it [big here] is difficult and aspirational for many.” 

In the past, the actor has attempted comedies. But on this one, she has teamed up with International Emmy-winning comic-actor Vir Das, an experience that she says sharpened her comic skills. “We didn’t meet till we were on set. We started shooting together, and I was reacting naturally to everything. There is one upmanship between the two characters, and I, as Ananya, was getting thrown off. On screen, Vir is playing a deliciously villainous character, but he is so warm off camera.”

Her heiress-turned-hustler act in Call Me Bae, however, furthers the idea that Panday chooses urban narratives and isn’t exactly a natural fit for massy stories. This, even though her filmography includes Pati Patni Aur Woh (2019) and Dream Girl 2 (2023). Does she avoid heartland stories? The actor has a different take on the matter. “There is no one way to be relatable. Even if you don’t look like them, a story can make you relate to them. For instance, Korean films work for us because human emotions are universal. I don’t want to limit myself to doing certain characters from a certain location. You don’t need a certain kind of story to be remembered. I want people to revisit my work. Sometimes shows like Sex and The City are watched again and again, because they don’t take themselves seriously. People watch comedies and think it’s easy to do them, but it’s not. After Kho Gaye Hum Kahan [2023] and Bae, I am challenging myself and I am not getting attached to labels.”