Priyanka Chopra Jonas is one of the most prominent female celebrities of our day. She cleared the way for her entry into Hollywood as well as leaving her mark in Bollywood. The Desi girl recently admitted that she felt trapped in Bollywood, which motivated her to pursue a career in the West.
Her recent admissions that she experienced hostility in the Hindi film industry as people stopped casting her in movies and ultimately felt pressured to relocate to the West have sparked discussions on how the film industry functions, including its politics, nepotism, the attitude of gatekeeping, and cliques.
In an interview with a news portal, Priyanka Chopra discussed how to make Bollywood a safe place for outsiders who lack the support of a film family. Priyanka said, “I think having conversations around opportunity and merit is important. Now that we are living in the world of streaming, there is so much more. The Hindi film industry has changed so much in the last five to ten years. You have so many talents – writers, directors, and actors that come from outside the industry. When I first started, that was not the case at all. So I think having conversations around the fact that the workplace should be merit-based, that the workplace should be a positive environment, that casting should be a casting director’s job instead of politics and drama.”
She further continued, “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 audiences want 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 into mainstream Hindi language entertainment. It gives me such joy to be able to see that in my own career. And that happened because my generation of actors fought for it.”
The big Prima Video series 'Citadel' that Priyanka Chopra is working on will soon be released.