Priyanka Chopra’s mother Madhu Chopra revealed the actress wasn’t keen on pursuing a career in acting after winning Miss World pageant in 2000.
Priyanka Chopra has established herself as a global icon with her long list of achievements in her career spanning more than two decades. Be it her stellar acting chops on screen or her stunning red carpet appearances, the actress has been winning hearts everywhere.
But do you folks know that PeeCee wasn’t keen on joining the film industry after winning the Miss World crown in 2000, and wanted to get back to her studies? The actress’ mother Madhu Chopra made this revelation in an interview with The Habit Coach.
She shared that the Fashion actress had taken a gap year to contest for the beauty pageant, but becoming an actress was never a part of her plan. Priyanka signed her first film upon the suggestion of her parents.
Madhu recalled, “When we came back to Mumbai, film offers started coming in. She was against it and said that she doesn’t wish to do all this and just study. So we said such opportunities don’t come by every day. ‘You have taken a gap here, give it a shot for two months, do one film, if you don’t like it, if it’s not for you, you can always go back and study. They are not going to take you away.’ So that’s what she did.”
She continued, “You won’t believe it, the first contract she signed had big blotches of teardrops on it. She said, ‘I am only doing it because you are telling me to do it’. But then she went in front of the camera, it shifted. She loved it and then she decided that she wants to continue.”
Priyanka’s mother Madhu shared that her husband Ashok Chopra had immense faith in their daughter’s talent and skill, and they felt that she wasn’t made for a traditional path after they saw her at one of her first public appearances after winning Miss World crown.
Walking down the memory lane, she continued, “The first event she did was this huge press conference in Delhi, the world media was there and Mr Dilip, the Editor-In-Chief, he was chairing the press conference and it was amazing how she stood her ground and answered such difficult questions. Nothing was prepped, she was not given a list of questions but what she couldn’t answer, she would gracefully ask the institute to please help her out. Her conduct was amazing so her dad and I were watching from the back and we said, ‘We cannot stop this girl. She is meant for bigger things, better things. She does not have to go through the regular graduation course or become a doctor or engineer’.”
Priyanka Chopra stepped into the world of films with Vijay starrer Thamizhan in 2002. The following year, she made her Bollywood debut with Sunny Deol-Preity Zinta’s Hero: The Love Story Of A Story.
With an impressive repertoire consisting of films like Aitraaz, Fashion, Barfi!, Mary Kom, Bajirao Mastani and others, the actress soon established herself as one of the most-sought after actresses in Hindi cinema. Further, the popular ABC thriller series Quantico put her on the world map.
