MUMBAI: If you thought Deepika Padukone had ducked out of sight and was dodging the media following her split with Ranbir Kapoor, think again

The model-turned-actress herself revealed to BT that she was lying low because she didn’t want to reveal her new look for Kartik Calling Kartik.

In the film, which co-stars Farhan Akhtar, Deepika has got herself a short-short haircut. The actress, who had waist-length hair till recently, has now got it down to her shoulders. “I last chopped my hair when I was eight,” said Deepika. Apparently Audhuna, the celebrity hairstylist and Farhan’s wife, and director Vijay Lalwani had to convince Deepika to go in for the change.

“They thought with my height, I would be able to carry it off well,” said the actress. But she argued with the director that she would go in for the haircut only if he shaved his head bald. “He didn’t do that but he saw to it that he was present in the salon so that I don’t back off at the last moment,” laughed Deepika.

People who have seen her new look, have loved it. Her parents were amazed. “Everybody says it looks good on me and makes me look younger,” smiled Deepika. The actress plays an interior designer in the film. “The scriptwriter had a certain image in mind when he wrote my character Shonali. So I had to do justice to the role,” she said. What about her responsibility as brand ambassador for some hair-care products? Wasn’t her long hair the reason she got those lucrative deals? “It’s okay, I like it this way now,” said the beauty, “Change is good.”