Hoping her cinematic voice can help bring about lasting change in how society perceives acid attack survivors, actor Deepika Padukone says her latest film Chhapaak should ideally be so impactful that there won’t be need for another story on acid violence.

Deepika, 33, said it was a story that spoke to her and she felt pride in attaching herself to the project. Chhapaak, directed by Meghna Gulzar and also featuring Vikrant Massey, is the second mainstream film to focus on the subject after 2019 Malayalam movie Uyare starring Parvathy Thiruvothu.

The idea behind the social drama is to invoke empathy and understanding rather than paint women who have undergone the ordeal as victims, the actor, who has also produced the film, said in a telephonic interview from Mumbai.

“Beyond the gruesomeness, the violence and all of that, there is a story of the human spirit and hope. That’s why we’re telling the story,” she said.

“If we don’t, then we’ve done something wrong as a society. Cinema in itself is such a powerful medium that hopefully just through this one film we will hopefully be able to see that kind of change and impact.” The actor said there was not much planning behind the decision to back the film financially.

“Sometimes certain films need a little more hand holding, a little more love and support. I felt like I would be adding a little more value as a producer.

The actor said she used the time to creatively replenish herself. “It was about finding a film worthy of putting out there. It’s not that work at my end had stopped. I was constantly looking for scripts that challenged and excited me.