Priyanka Chopra Jonas reflects on her Hollywood ascent with a deep-seated confidence, asserting that she has never moved with a "sense of weakness."
Leaving behind her status as one of Bollywood’s highest-paid icons, Priyanka entered Hollywood over a decade ago as a total newcomer. She relied on an unwavering belief in her own value to navigate the early years of limited opportunities.
"Even if people didn't know me, it didn't matter. I know what I bring to the table, I know what my value is, so I was never less confident. I may have had fewer opportunities. I may have had less success, but I was always confident in my skill set and my ability to know my job," the 43-year-old said in an interview.
She has come a long way since.
Beginning with the series “Quantico”, where she played the lead as a FBI officer, and moving on to films such as "Baywatch", "Isn't It Romantic", "The Matrix Resurrections" and "Heads of States". In many of these, most of them actioners, she plays the lead.
She tried to break through the Hollywood circles first as a singer. That was not so successful and the star then moved into acting in films and shows.
Priyanka, who also played a central role in the show "Citadel", said the confidence was always there.
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"I still don't feel like I have arrived. I feel like I have a lot more to do before I feel that." Real success, she said, is having the privilege to both work in a job she loves and still have time for her family.
"Most people in life have to work every day, and some people don't even like the jobs that they have, but they have to do it to survive and to support their families. And I think, for me, that is the real win," said the actor, who is married to American singer Nick Jonas. The couple has a daughter, Malti Marie.
In 2016, she was asked about what she wanted to be 10 years later. Priyanka said she wanted to have a “legacy”. It’s 2026 now but the meaning of the word has changed. "Now 10 years later I don't know what the word legacy means anymore. What it meant to my 30-year-old self is completely different from what it means to me," she said.
"I want to be able to do work as an artist that pushes me where I surprise not just myself but an audience that has been so loyal to me for almost 25 years, where I can show different parts of me and give as an artist, and at the same time, be able to be present with my family. Now I feel like that would be my answer," she added.
Up next is “The Bluff”, a period actioner where she plays a pirate on the run. "I had to learn sword fighting with both," she said.
She plays Ercell “Bloody Mary” Bodden, a former pirate who is forced to confront her violent past when her old captain returns, pushing her into a deadly fight to protect her family and reclaim her strength. "The Bluff" will premiere on Prime Video on February 25.
Priyanka will also be seen in season two of “Citadel” and “Varanasi” with SS Rajamouli that marks her return to Indian cinema.
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