“Priyanka Chopra is not your average Bollywood star.”
Late last month, the 12th floor of the Time Warner building near Central Park in New York was buzzing at 8 am on a Saturday morning. The bi-annual gathering of SAMMA (South Asian Media and Marketing Association) had personalities of South Asian origin who have made a mark in this industry.
About 45 minutes into the hour, in true Bollywood standard time, Priyanka Chopra sashayed in, elegantly dressed in a sleeveless black number. She had just landed 12 hours ago from Mumbai but there were no signs of jetlag. “Are you going to be an interesting audience or a serious audience?” she asked at the beginning of her speech, breaking the ice with a smile.
She didn’t have to. By the time she had finished with her speech and an interview, the audience was enthralled as she narrated her journey from her high school days in the USA to superstardom in India, underlining her determination and willpower to succeed in trying times.
That a Bollywood actress would actually be called to speak on such a platform was an eye opener. But Priyanka Chopra is not your average Bollywood star. A little over a decade in the male-dominated industry, PC, as she is known, is rewriting the rules with her unconventional roles. Whether it’s playing a seductress in Aitraaz, a serial killer in Saat Khoon Maaf, 12 characters in What’s Your Rashee, or the autistic girl in Barfi, she has stood out with jaw-dropping performances.
And if that were not enough, she has launched her singing career in the USA, cutting tracks with the likes of Pitbull and will.i.am. She has also worked for UNICEF, spoken often on women’s issues, and walked to raise funds for cancer victims.
“More power to PC!”
Controversies have dogged her life ever since she won Miss World in 2000 and made her foray into movies. But PC stood her ground. While Krish 3 would remind her critics that she is in the thick of the action, Mary Kom, a biopic for which she underwent four months of boxing training, may be her ticket to the top.
In her speech at SAMMA she confessed that she once punched a boy in school and was suspended. It’s the same fearlessness that she takes on the world with: determined to be India’s first global artist in two different disciplines, take on roles her contemporaries fear, and continue to push the envelope.
— Kevin Rego