Mehr Tarar/Daily O, India
To be an unapologetic careerist with a global agenda and an achiever with no stopwatch and preconceived rules does not make Chopra a “global scam artist.”
There is something bizarre about most of the pre- and post-wedding commentary on Priyanka Chopra. For a lifelong film buff and a film stuff reader like me, there is something very problematic about the way Chopra, beyond the expected and the accepted, is viewed in terms of her personal and professional choices. From the time she entered Hollywood to when she said ‘yes’ to Nick Jonas to her 70-foot long wedding veil to her ‘I do’ to the line of sindoor (vermillion), the line between commentary, criticism and attacks has been so gleefully blurred one is almost tempted to say: what’s eating all these naysayers?
There is something in my DNA that makes me wary of labels and tags, and despite being this, that and who-knows-what, I practise the art of not creating a box in which I could uncomfortably fit, with my nerdy spectacles, solitude, love for writing, films and animals, Chanel bags and Gucci pumps. And I do the same for people: not label them in binaries. One size box is created for almost everyone who is a public figure, for one reason or the other, and interestingly, most of these labels not come from the individuals who are given the labels but those who comment on them.In Chopra’s case, before the labels, before the judgements, there is one thing that is as clear as the smog in Delhi: Priyanka Chopra is a huge and a hot topic because she is a woman. Yes.
If Priyanka Chopra were Priyank Chopra, there wouldn’t have been much to write. And while the state of being noticed and discussed is more alluring than that of being unnoticed, there is something to be said about the way Priyanka Chopra is described and labelled…
Amal Alamuddin became a global icon for her work, beauty and style after marrying George Clooney. Her stellar work as an international lawyer and rights activist was known and respected for years, but the kind of fame she acquired after becoming Amal Clooney is irrefutable. And in my opinion, it is nothing to be defensive about. Marrying a man more famous than her became just another thing that she did, and she taking her husband’s name neither makes her less magnificent nor is it a repudiation of her identity as a woman who needs no one to define her.
None of what Amal is anything I have an issue with at all. I love Amal with and without George, and I love them both individually and as a couple. What is noticeable: Not much was said about Amal’s age difference with her husband (17 years older than her), her new image of a style icon, and her changed name. All of that happened and more happened to India’s Priyanka Chopra.
Priyanka Chopra: A former Miss India, Miss World at the age of 18, an Indian actress, a big star and a talented artist, instead of becoming a has-been — the awful and sad reality of the longevity of female stars in the subcontinent — went to the US in her 30s and created history of her own kind. The list is long, and very, very cool: Headlined the ABC show Quantico, starred in Dwayne Johnson’s Baywatch, recorded songs, presented an award at the 2016 Academy Awards, presented an award at the 2017 Primetime Emmy Awards, appeared on covers of many top US fashion and entertainment magazine covers, was a guest in almost all major entertainment talk shows, and was on best-dressed lists of A-list magazines like Vogue. Priyanka Chopra so quickly and so splendidly became a brand name that it seemed like a too-good-to-be-true screenplay of a Hollywood movie.That is just one part of being Priyanka Chopra. She also writes. She has bylines in the New York Times, The Times of India and The Guardian on substantial topics like “child marriage, the health and safety of women and young girls, and the importance of education.” Presently, she is in the process of writing her memoir, succinctly and sassily titled, Unfinished. Chopra is also a social worker, activist, philanthropist and a UNICEF Global Ambassador. Her work for people to make a difference, create awareness and inspire reaction and action for change is low-key, without gloss and show, yet utterly powerful.Shinning in Time magazine’s 2016 100 Most Influential People, and one of the few to be on the cover, and a recipient of India’s fourth highest civilian award Padma Shri in 2016, the global A-list events attendee, Chopra has bagged several awards for her films and various professional achievements.One of the most endearing things about the very famous and the very accomplished Chopra is her love for and closeness with her family. Her father’s words tattooed on her wrist, her extremely close bond with her mother, and her love for her brother makes her very real, very human. Not to forget her lovely Diana, the Chihuahua she adores and thinks of as a family member. Being someone who loves dogs, I love that about Chopra!