PriyankaChopraFC#12-Capturing hearts in USA&worldwide(next-P141) - Page 98

The difference in the outlook towards men and women in the industry is something Priyanka, who has seens the highs and the lows in this field in the last 15 years, cannot stand. "I have had a point of view on this since the time I joined movies. I came from a very academic background. So I didn't initially understand the disparity between men and women so much. In my first few films, once I was told by my producer that girls are interchangeable. Hero nahi change kar sakte, but agar aapki dates match nahi kar rahi ya aap ek certain remuneration maang rahe ho, toh aap jao. Hum nayi ladki launch kar denge."

Wishing for change, the actress says, "I am not asking for equality. I really want there to be relevance to girls in the movie business. I am not saying treat us equally, because it's a long way to go for India as a nation as well. But give some relevance to our minds, opinions as talents or actors. I am really happy to see all the actresses today coming together to support this cause. Whether it's Vidya, Deepika, me, Kangana, Anushka, we sort of come together on this relevance issue, contrary to what people believe about us actresses. I think if we stand by each other, change will definitely happen."

Bollywoodlife also documented some of the things other actresses have said on this issue:

Parineeti Chopra said, "It's the unfortunate truth that men are paid more than women. Of course, the bigger stars who have been here for 20-30 years deserve the salary they receive. But I'm talking about male and female actors who are at the same level. Whether they are new or old"even at my sister's level or my level, there's a huge disparity between what the boys get paid and what the girls are getting paid. It's just sad and I hope it goes away soon."

Bajrangi Bhaijaan actress Kareena Kapoor said, "I don't think there's too much of a disparity. Actresses are paid what they should be. At least, I am happy the way I get paid. And honestly, an actor or actress' pay depends on the budget of the film. That's why it's always nice to do a film with Salman, Aamir, Shah Rukh, Akshay, Ajay because the budget is always high. (Laughs)"

Aashiqui 2 girl Shraddha Kapoor said, "I do a film for the film's sake. I earn my money from my brands. At this stage, I only want the best films. That's my mindset. But as far as I know, it's a male dominated fraternity. For example, when a film does well, the heroes get the maximum benefit. But when it doesn't, they only get the maximum flak. It will be really nice if there could be a little more balanced outlook towards the difference in remuneration."

During the course of an interview in Los Angeles last Thursday, Priyanka Chopra was stunned when she was asked about her feelings on being nominated by VH1 for the 2015 Europe Music Awards. The actress was unaware of her nomination for the Best Act category in the Worldwide Act section. She has collaborated with DMX-Nasa on her latest single, "Meltdown," and has been nominated alongside Taylor Swift, James Reid, Ed Sheeran and Ruby Rose.

"The nomination is a pleasant surprise. I've been such a bad mother to my music," she admitted to Mirror from Montreal. "I've ignored it for so long, juggling it between my films and Quantico. Once all this settles down, I'll be able to focus on it more."

ABC's Quantico, which began airing in the US on September 27, premiered in India last Sunday to a whopping 7.1 million views. The 33-year-old actress admits to feeling like a new kid on the block enjoying the new big adventure.

PeeCee, who plays the half-American, half-Indian FBI recruit Alex Parrish, is currently living in her sprawling Canada-bungalow with mom Madhu, brother Siddharth and her cousins. She says she owes her 'big American dream' to her London-born managerturned confidante, Anjula Acharia-Bath, who convinced ABC President Paul Lee, to meet the actress in India. "I was clear that I wanted a part that matched my Bollywood status. And I didn't want to see anyone on TV who looked like me," she explains.

"Quantico is quintessential TV. I'm the female Jason Bourne or Jack Bauer. But I'm not the torchbearer or messiah for Indian actors in the West. If something that I do helps other Indian actors to be taken seriously, that would be great."

But her own channel mistook her for another Miss World, Yukta Mookhey. PeeCeee laughs off the mistake saying it's no big deal. "Everybody makes mistakes and they publicly apologised for it too. It's behind me, darling," she laughs.

Is she aware that Blade superstar, Wesley Snipes has an eye on her for his upcoming Hollywood thriller? "They're calling me the next big thing, but I don't know what that means for me. I don't know if I am ready for the big, bad world of Hollywood," Priyanka states matter-of-factly, acing her American accent.

Compliment her on it, and she is quick to respond, "Hey, I worked really hard to roll my 'R'... rrr. It took me three days to say 'Counter Terrorism Task Force' right. I don't know what I sound like anymore, I usually don't sound so sexy," she says in a seductive, husky laugh. The actress is filming the 10th episode of season one and will fly down to Mumbai on Thursday to film the climax of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Bajirao Mastani. She will return to Montreal for a monthlong schedule which will result in a two-hour long season finale shoot.

"I will be signing two new Bollywood projects when I am in Mumbai," she reveals. Will one of them be Don 3? "I don't know, too early to tell," she quips, adding, "Quantico is quintessential TV, and it's not like I'm saying, "Hey, we're art, please take us seriously," so are my films. Like Parineeti (Chopra, cousin) puts it, I've set a standard for myself and am working really hard to maintain it. At the same time, my projects will never take your intelligence for granted," Priyanka signs off.