Actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas's mother Madhu Chopra recently revealed that the actor signed her film contract with tears in her eyes as she didn't want to enter films after winning Miss World. However, it was a path well chosen as the actor has a successful career in Bollywood and the West today. The actor has wowed her audience in India with her films but also transitioned to Hollywood and American television, without ever kowtowing to the West's stereotypes of what a South Asian looks like. She has been a changemaker along the way, as she brought the spotlight on representation of South Asians in the industry. Priyanka won the Miss World pageant in 2000 and entered films in 2002 with Tamil film Thamizhan. She made her Bollywood debut with 2003 film Hero: Love Story of a Spy. Five films later when she was expected to continue playing the 'female lead', she shocked the audience as she played the negative character of a woman boss sexually harassing her colleague in the 2004 film Aitraaz. By then, everyone should have assessed and understood the actor's penchant for taking risks. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Priyanka (@priyankachopra) Film critic Taran Adarsh tells indianexpress.com, "Priyanka has been very lucky with the kind of films and assignments she has got from the beginning of her career. Her first film was Hero but she actually got recognition with Andaaz where she co-starred with another leading lady, Lara Dutta. But with Aitraaz, she stole the show and I distinctly remember, there was no turning back. She only evolved as an actress and also with the right choices of what to do and what not to do. Of course, there have been mistakes, but the fact remains that there was always the effort to do something different." One cannot ignore that Priyanka comes from a non-film background and had made it on her own. In an earlier interview with indianexpress, she had spoken about how there are more outsiders working in the industry because her generation fought for it. “I think having those conversations is really, really important so that there are no camps that actually rule casting and it is done because of merit and because of audiences wanting to watch people. I am so excited to be able to see so many new faces from outside (of the film industry) and different parts of the country who have come in to mainstream Hindi language entertainment. It gives me such a joy, to be able to see that in my own career. And that happened because my generation of actors fought for it,” she said. Priyanka was honoured with a National Award for the film Fashion, where she played the role of Meghna Mathur, a naïve but ambitious model-in-the-making. Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar, who directed Priyanka in the film, says that her hard work has fueled her journey. Madhur tells the indianexpress.com, "As a filmmaker, directors tend to live with the story for months and years. So sometimes the actor has to show more confidence than the director because we live with the subject. One thing I have to say is that she is very hardworking. When I used to narrate the scenes of Fashion, she used to make notes. What I liked about her is that she is a director's actor. She literally surrenders herself to the vision of a filmmaker. She was very dedicated to the role and how it would be. Wherever she is today, it's because of the hard work." Priyanka faced a few setbacks after Fashion, her performances in Barfi! Bajirao Mastani and 7 Khoon Maaf brought her success. The actor then surprised everyone with her announcement of English songs, targeting the American audience. In 2012, Priyanka released her first track "In My City", followed by "Exotic", in collaboration with Pitbull. Generally, when an Indian actor "goes to Hollywood", everyone has their eyes on screen time they get in a film or how 'meaty' the character is. Priyanka silenced all these concerns when she starred in the American television series Quantico as the lead Alex Parrish. That was a feat none of her contemporaries had achieved yet. Talking about her leap to the West, Taran says, "I am surprised! I have known her from the beginning of her career and I have known her parents also. I feel so happy that someone who comes from a non-film background, Priyanka doesn't have any connection in the film industry and yet to create such waves. I would really like to add that she is a very brave girl, who has taken brave steps. More power to women who conquer the world." What Priyanka has so far done in Hollywood is not just a blink-and-miss role. Be it Victoria Leeds in Baywatch with Dwayne Johnson, or Sati in The Matrix Resurrections with Keanu Reeves, she has managed to be seen and recognised. "When she went to Hollywood, the question was whether she will be seen in one of that minuscule roles where many actresses were seen in the recent past. But Priyanka proved that theory wrong as she went on to be the face of those films and shows," he says and adds, "So somewhere down the line, she had adapted to those situations very nicely. It's not that she is trying to do a balancing act between the Hindi film industry and Hollywood. If she is focused there, she will be focused there and if she has signed a film here, she will work here. Her priority at the moment seems to be the West." Although Priyanka's recent show Citadel didn't move the needle for Amazon as expected, her choice of films in Bollywood and Hollywood continue to intrigue her fans. In India, she will next be seen in Jee Le Zaraa, directed by Farhan Akhtar and also stars Alia Bhatt and Katrina Kaif.
