Priyanka’s Mom Shares How A 17 YO PC Lost 10 Films Because She Said No To Sexual Harassment

Priyanka Chopra has me tongue-tied. From rocking the turf here at Bollywood to slaying at red-carpets in Hollywood, PC has successfully rendered me speechless and I can vouch, I’m not the only one. In other words, the Bollywood beauty-turned-global icon is taking the world by storm, as we speak, and stardom has found a new address!

View this post on Instagram

Thank you @variety for making me one of your #PowerOfWomen honorees…. Grateful and humbled to be honored alongside such talented women. Story link in bio!

A post shared by Priyanka Chopra Jonas (@priyankachopra) on Oct 10, 2017 at 3:40am PDT

But I’d be lying if I said that she didn’t lose anything on the way. And by that, I mean work and opportunities but for a reason that will only make you respect her more.

In an interview with Deccan Chronicle, Priyanka Chopra’s mother and confidante, Madhu Chopra opened up about the time when Priyanka said no to sexual harassment at work and it’s inspiring. Recalling, she said…

View this post on Instagram

On our way.. Pre premiere carfie! #producerlife @madhuchopra @fendi @niravmodijewels #pahuna @tiff_net

A post shared by Priyanka Chopra Jonas (@priyankachopra) on Sep 7, 2017 at 2:25pm PDT

“She was just 17 when she entered the industry, so I accompanied her every minute of the day till about three years ago.

So a gentleman meets her and says, ‘Will your mother sit outside while I narrate the story to you?’

Priyanka told him, ‘If it is a story that my mother can’t hear then it is a story that I cannot do.’

She walked out of that project — a prestigious one.”

Not only that. She also opened up about the rampant sexism that works in layers, in Bollywood.

But Madhu Chopra who is also a producer revealed that PC never took any nonsense lying down even when it meant losing out on good projects. Recounting another instance she said, 

“It was being helmed by a reputed director and he got upset. Priyanka lost 10 films because she walked out of that project. But she didn’t care.”

She even said that she conveys the same to every dreamer and aspirant she meets- “This is not the end of your life. Your life is more valuable.”

However, she admits, things were different when Priyanka moved to the West for bigger opportunities that came her way. 

The instances might have happened back in time, but the implications are clearer than ever now- sexual harassment is rampant in the showbiz.

But while Hollywood, at least now, is naming and shaming perverse patrons (read: Harvey Weinstein, Kevin Spacey) Bollywood is comparatively tight-lipped. And it’s high time we change that.