Kalki Koechlin recalls producer telling her to get fillers: ‘Wanted to stab him with fork’

Kalki said the conversation then took an uncomfortable turn when the producer commented on her appearance.

“And then he casually said, ‘All you need is a little filler for your laughter lines.’ And I wanted to stab him with my fork. And I just, instead, I just swallowed a piece of my food and I looked at him and I said, ‘Well, I better stop laughing so much then.'”

Although she laughed it off in the moment, Kalki admitted she was furious.

“So I remember seething from inside, but trying to make a joke out of it. But also looking at him sternly. And he stopped after that and didn’t talk about it. But it’s just those ways that people have. It’s just these subtle ways of people just slipping in comments like this.”

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‘You have to pick and choose your battles’

When Lilly Singh asked whether she beat herself up for not reacting more strongly to the producer, Kalki said she didn’t. Instead, she channelled the experience into her stage performance I’m Okay, which explores motherhood and postpartum struggles.

“I included that story in the performance and it resonates a lot with women. They know exactly what I’m talking about,” she said.

Explaining why she chose not to confront the producer immediately, Kalki said not every situation allows for a direct response.

“Forget about work. We have people in our family that we disagree with politically. We have to have dinner with them. We have to hear them say something that maybe we don’t agree with. And we swallow our food and we go on because you have to pick and choose the battles.”

She added that there are situations where it is possible to address an issue later in private, but not always in the moment.

“There are places where you can let that out. And there are places where now is not the time. Maybe in a private situation, you could speak to that uncle and be like, ‘Hey, I was a bit disturbed when you said this about women or about politics or whatever.’ But there are also situations where you can’t.”

Kalki on unequal pay and women supporting each other

Kalki also spoke about the gender pay gap in the entertainment industry, saying it can be frustrating to discover that male colleagues with similar experience are paid significantly more.

“Of course, with the pay, you find out you’ve been in the industry as long as your colleague, a male colleague, but they’re getting paid so much more and you’ve been paid the same amount for the last how many ever years.”

She said women in the industry have increasingly relied on one another by openly discussing salaries, productions and workplace experiences.

“I have a very strong girl community and we’re a strong group. We speak about everything there and we share what productions are doing, how much they’re charging, what they’re doing.”

According to Kalki, those conversations also help women identify unsafe workplaces and people.

“‘Be careful of this one. He’s a sleaze.’ So that also is another way that women have always had. I think, you know, we call it gossip, but it’s actually a kind of solidarity. It’s community. It’s having each other’s back and being aware.

She said such support allows women to make informed choices before accepting projects.

“And even if you make a decision that you are working with something that you’re not fully okay with, but you know what’s going to come because people have been telling you what it is, you’re prepared for it. It makes a big difference.”

Kalki made her acting debut with Dev D in 2009 and has since carved a niche with acclaimed performances in films such as Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Margarita with a Straw, Waiting, Gully Boy and more.