MUMBAI: Affable, passionate, and sometimes fiery – a super confident girl who flaunts her attitude – that’s Veronica of upcoming rom-com ‘Cocktail’ starring Deepike Padukone, Diana Penty and Saif Ali Khan.

Veronica lives life the way she wants to, and not the way society expects her to. Talking about her character to a daily, Deepika said “Veronica has difficulty in expressing her deepest feelings. She’ll never show herself as vulnerable or weak. Emotionally I’m very similar to the screen character in ‘Cocktail’. I’m a sensitive and emotional person, but I’ll never show it. I put on this tough exterior.”

Speaking about her red hot bikini scene, Deepika shared, "I had to be in top shape. I started Pilates and changed my diet. Even while we were filming in London and Cape Town, I got myself a local Pilates trainer and worked out every night after shoot, no matter what. There were days when we’d all go out for dinner and while everyone else was digging into their dessert, I’d sit and watch them."

She had the choice of playing either Veronica or Meera, and while both roles were exciting, Veronica was a lot more challenging. She explains, “I was also nervous about whether I’d be able to pull it off. It was Imtiaz Ali (writer) who suggested that I play Veronica and not Meera as that character is very similar to the Meera I played in ‘Love Aaj Kal’.” Imtiaz had identified the Veronica in Deepika during the making of ‘Love Aaj Kal’, and Homi (director) identifies Veronica as the female version of himself.