National Award winner Apurva Asrani has extended his support to Priyanka Chopra Jonas after she disclosed that she had left Bollywood following a dispute with several powerful figures in the business. In an interview with Hindustan Times, Asrani discussed how some families in the industry have an advantage in the market since they have been around for decades and are familiar with the audience pulse.
“Obviously they have their favourites and have every right to work with the ones they like. The problem is when they gang up to oust an actor or a technician from not just their movie, but from the entire ecosystem”, Apurva Asrani told Hindustan Times.
Asrani recalled seeing many big egos getting hurt when an actor turned down their project or quit due to artistic disagreements. Talking about it, Asrani said, “Then these egos make phone calls to other egos to warn them not to collaborate with this individual. They then launch attempts to malign this person using the media and prominent journalists. Corrupt scribes who write articles often level false allegations.”
He further said, “There are fabricated rumours of improper behaviour on set. If this performer or technician perseveres and produces quality work, their work may receive low, or worse yet, no reviews at all. Even if the project is successful, the success is not publicly announced.”
The filmmaker further said that all this may be very harmful to a young talent, especially one who doesn’t have a parent or uncle in the film industry.
Asrani further described how Priyanka Chopra was targeted with a similar campaign against her in 2012 even though she had given two enormous successes in one year, Barfi and Agneepath. At the time, the front page of a Mumbai newspaper featured a headline declaring that no hero wanted to collaborate with Priyanka. Asrani said that Priyanka’s subsequent rise benefits everyone who is continuing to battle against a primarily corrupt system.
Asrani also said that anyone who is outspoken, who refuses to be humiliated, who doesn’t demean themselves by subscribing to their retrograde notions, is forced into a corner in Bollywood, and that several other performers had similar treatment.
He further said, “If you do your research, you will find that the ones labelled difficult and problematic are usually the outsiders. The star children are rarely messed with.”
Priyanka Chopra, who is now an established name in the United States, recently said in an interview that she had some beef with people in Bollywood that had made her feel uncomfortable in her skin. She also talked about how difficult it was for her to be a woman in the male-dominated industry and how she had to fight for her place in Bollywood.
“I was being pushed into a corner in the industry (Bollywood). I had people not casting me, I had beef with people, I am not good at playing that game so I kind of was tired of the politics and I said I needed a break,” Priyanka Chopra said in the interview.
Why did #PriyankaChopra decide to come to US for work? Actress says she had ‘beef with people’ in Bollywood. Read on!https://t.co/409EczTL0g
— Pinkvilla (@pinkvilla) March 28, 2023
The actress stated that she wanted to break free from the limitations that Bollywood had placed on her and explore new opportunities in the US. She shared that her move to the United States was not an easy decision, but she needed to grow as an artist and a person.
