After making big it in the international arena, Priyanka Chopra is back in town. From celebrating the National Award win of Ventilator, her first Marathi production venture, to promoting her Hollywood debut, Baywatch, she did it all. Her almost two hours late entry to the press conference of Baywatch was because she said she had lost a sense of travelling on the Mumbai road. “I was at Bandra-Kurla and didn’t realise it would take me an hour and a half to reach Juhu,” she said as she apologised for making the media wait.
Excerpts from her interaction with the media at Juhu, Mumbai.
'After Quantico I wanted America to be introduced to me in a completely different role'
It was a conscious decision to do a big tent-pole movie. It was my first Hollywood movie. People didn’t know me very well. You can’t just arrive there and say, ‘Mujhe picture chahiye!’ People have to come to you. After Quantico, I got a lot of films out of which one was Baywatch. I liked it the most because firstly it was a global, fun movie and I have been a Baywatch fan and secondly the character is totally different from Alex Parrish. So, after Quantico I wanted America to be introduced to me like this, in a completely different role.
The first time I had to say (curse), I was very embarrassed. I am not someone, who by nature, curses. Even at home or with friends. I have never done it. Vishal sir (Bharadwaj) also tried so many times to get me to do it (during Kaminey). I can’t. I get shy. But I knew this is a rated R movie and it’s my responsibility as an actor to fit myself into this world.
'There is a stereotyped notion in the West about the Hindi film industry'
You can’t be so entitled and say that if you are a star in India, you should be a star everywhere else. I am okay walking into a room full of people and saying: “Hey, I am Priyanka Chopra and I am an Indian actor.” I introduce myself and I don’t think there’s anything wrong in it. Slowly, things happen. Nobody had seen my work at that time. Quantico had just come out. I don’t think they were mean, except for a few people. The American press has been wonderfully accepting of me than a lot of Indian actors. I can’t say about brown skin. I can’t generalise. But that’s my endeavour. We have to make sure that we are good enough and we put ourselves out there and work hard on the character.
There is a stereotyped notion in the West about the Hindi film industry and Indians in general. They wonder if we have elephants walking on the road or if we always break into a song and dance in our films. There is a lack of understanding. So, when I walk onto a set there, I am conscious enough to look like I know my job. If I do good work and people continue to work with me, then the representation of whatever I have learnt from my directors here is correct. So, I try to play different characters there like I do in Hindi films.
'We are still waiting to see if there will be a Quantico season 3 or not'
What happens is that after every season, the channel goes back and they do a consensus to see which shows should come back for another season and which they are cancelling and what their budgets are. Right now, we are in that phase. Even after season one, we didn't know if season two was coming till May last year. So now, we are still waiting to see if there will be a season three or not.
'My production company’s mandate is to give opportunities to new artists'
We made a very difficult film (Ventilator). There were 118 actors in it. It’s a special film. I made it for my dad. When I formed the production company (Purple Pebble Pictures), I had a reason. When I had come to the film industry, there was no one to help me even if I was a Miss World. I didn’t know anybody. People were not my uncles or aunts; I had to introduce myself. My company’s mandate is to give opportunities to new artists. I try and do that. We want to make small, but effective films.
We have six films on floor this year including one more Marathi, a Bengali and a Sikkimese film. There’s no film industry in Sikkim. This would be the first film on Sikkim which will come out of the state. I have tied up with the government to launch a film industry there. So, we have taken only HODs from Bombay, the rest of the cast and crew are being picked up from there so that they can learn to make films on their own and can do so even after I leave. Also, there’s a Konkani-Hindi children’s film. And we are developing some really fun stuff and most of it are with new directors, and we are launching new actors.
I never want to be restricted by time or space. I fly down people to the US with the edits of my films. Creatives are all mine, business is all my mother’s. The only way to do it is if you really want to do it. And I really want to do it. I want to be someone who can do everything.
'I want to work till the time people want to watch me'
I am in a contract with ABC that says I cannot just leave Quantico midway, especially if they want another season. So I think I'll have to choose that. However, I cannot announce any Hindi film project yet as a lot depends on whether the show will have a season three or not.
I am listening to many scripts, but once I know what my schedule is, then only I can figure out when I can do a film. I can tell you for sure I have locked three films. But I can't announce till I know my dates. And I don't know when I will do it, this year or next year. Actually after June, I really don't know what I am going to do.
I still want to do Hindi films. Here or there, it doesn’t matter. I just want to work till the time people want to watch me.
