Actor Priyanka Chopra Jonas revealed on a podcast that after years of working in Bollywood, she was no longer getting cast for roles which ultimately inspired her transition to Hollywood.
In the episode of “Armchair Expert With Dax Shepard,” which aired Monday, she said her move was a result of Bollywood politics, a shrinking pool of opportunities in India, and a fresh start elsewhere.
“I was being pushed into a corner in the industry,” she said on the podcast. “I had beef with people, and again, I’m not good at playing the game. I was kind of just tired of the politics.”
Chopra Jonas rose to fame in India after winning the Miss World beauty pageant in 2000 and taking on roles in several Bollywood films, making a name for herself through most of the 2000s and 2010s. She said a slew of unsuccessful films made her rethink and diversify her career.
“I was panicked, and my mom was panicked. She said, ‘You’re going to be 30 soon. You know that’s old in this industry. They want to work with 20-year-olds, so you need to think about a new revenue stream if you’re going to sustain yourself,’” she told Shepard.
It led to her experimenting with film production — and later a music career.
“I’m not a nepo baby. I didn’t have the kind of support that exists in a big way in Bollywood movies. There are multigenerational actors that get in and get multiple opportunities versus the ones that come from outside,” she said during the episode. “You don’t have your uncle making a new movie for you just because the last one tanked. You have to hustle for it.”
Chopra Jonas credited her short-lived music career as her transition to Hollywood after being signed to Interscope Records. “I need a break, and this music thing gave me an opportunity to go to another part of the world,” she explained.
After spending most of her time in the U.S., Chopra Jonas said she was told to consider finding representation there.
“I was having trouble back home being cast in the movies I wanted to be cast in, so I did it and then it started,” she said.