Meena Iyer (DNA; July 30, 2018)

Priyanka Chopra’s exit from Salman Khan’s Bharat has been discussed and dissed. And director Ali Abbas Zafar’s tweet suggesting that she did it at the ‘nick of time’, was perceived as the actress citing her ‘engagement’ for leaving the film. However, gossip mills offer several versions for this out-of-the-ordinary behaviour of the otherwise professional star.

PC SHOT FOR A FILM A FEW DAYS AFTER HER FATHER PASSED AWAY
A producer points out that an engagement, or for that matter even a marriage, can’t be the reason for Priyanka to exit a film at the last minute. He says, “PC is extraordinarily professional. I remember she shot for a film, just a few days after her father (Dr Ashok Chopra) passed away in 2013. She was devastated by his death, yet she didn’t cancel the shoot. So, to say that she is opting out of a film at the nth hour, stating her engagement as a reason, seems a bit out of place.”

SHE WAS NOT HAPPY WITH THE PRICE SHE WAS BEING PAID
After Hrs had told you on many occasions that the actress has been reportedly asking for anything between a whopping Rs 13-14 cr as her remuneration. However, in the case of Bharat, she was allegedly being paid Rs 6.5 cr. Yet, she seemed unhappy with this arrangement. An insider says that PC brought up this subject with her close friend within the Khan family. However, the price she was to be paid was deliberated and decided on after checking the viability factor. After all, even her last outing Jai Gangaajal (2016) wasn’t anything to write home about. And paying her the double-digit figure, which she was reportedly asking for, would not be prudent.

LAST-MINUTE ADDITIONS TO THE CAST
One theory being widely floated is that Priyanka was unhappy with the sudden additions to the cast. When she was signed on, there were no mentions of youngsters like Disha Patani and Nora Fatehi being a part of the ensemble. Of course, she was aware that other actresses were yet to be cast. But that it would be someone as young as Disha, who also got her fair share of publicity for bagging a role in Bharat, was something she hadn’t anticipated. PC, according to our source, needed to condition her mind to accept these additions.

SALMAN AND PC ARE STAR-CROSSED
Salman and Priyanka haven’t worked together after God Tussi Great Ho (2008). Also, on a personal level, a midnight meeting between the two in 2012 had become a topic of hot discussion. And Salman, at that point, was slightly irritated because he ‘wondered’ how the news got out in the first place! Any guesses?

Even this time, Salman is reportedly not amused. One cannot blame him. After all, he had several leading ladies who were ready to be a part of this prestigious project. But he chose PC over them. Naturally, her opting out left him slightly red-faced. One hears he wished her well for her engagement and marriage but...

ALI ABBAS ZAFAR FELT LET DOWN, TOO
Never mind what he said on social media, apparently Ali, who shares a warm friendship with PC since their Gunday days, was most certainly taken aback with her behaviour. On Wednesday (July 25) when PC spoke to him and Salman, the superhit filmmaker reportedly told her that he had ‘put his neck on the line’ for her in this particular scenario and now he was certainly disappointed.

RARING TO GET HITCHED
Piggy Chops is definitely looking to get hitched. The fact that 25-year-old composer, singer, actor Nick Jonas loves her to distraction is helping. She is said to have told certain people close to her that she is 36 now and was looking to get married.

Coming back to the engagement being the reason for her exit, there are those in Bollywood who feel it’s a rather lame excuse. Girls like Kareena Kapoor Khan, Anushka Sharma and Sonam K Ahuja are doing super well after their shaadi. “It’s silly to even suggest that marriage should be a reason for exiting a film so abruptly. This coming from Priyanka, who has made headlines for her emancipated thought process, is quite lame,” says a source.

We got in touch with Priyanka’s spokesperson, who didn’t have a comment at this point of time.

Shaheen Parkar (MID-DAY; May 13, 2017)

To mark the first death anniversary of her father, Ashok Chopra, on June 13, 2014, Priyanka Chopra had a road in Versova named after him. The Lt Col Ashok Chopra Marg leads to Raj Classic, where she owns several flats. The road had been inaugurated by Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray.

But we have observed that the plaque has been tampered with — Thackeray’s name is hidden under a neatly cut tape. So is the name of senior Sena leader Yashwant Jadhav.

Ahead of the inauguration, the road had been cleared and redone overnight. In fact, many had questioned a road being named after the star dad, an Army doctor who died of cancer, at the age of 64. Priyanka's family and her residential society members had approached local civic authorities to have the road named after Chopra Sr. PeeCee had invited Thackeray to do the honours.

But clearly, someone wants to conceal his name.

Renuka Vyavahare (BOMBAY TIMES; April 10, 2017)

Priyanka on a roll as first-time Marathi producer, bags three gongs
Shilpi Sampad (MID-DAY; April 8, 2017)

When the National Awards were announced last afternoon, Priyanka Chopra was fast asleep. Naturally; it was 2.30 am in the US. Her mother, Madhu Chopra, who is currently with her, couldn’t resist waking her up. And in Chopra Sr’s words, Priyanka “jumped out of the bed and hugged me” on hearing the news.

“I always end up being woken up with news of National Awards in the middle of the night. And invariably, I am in America. I was here shooting for Anjaana Anjaani when I received a call about Fashion (2008, her first National Award). I don’t know how many actor-producers have won one before, but I am excited to be part of the privileged league. I am really excited about Ventilator bagging three honours because it is a movie I wanted to make for my father (late Ashok Chopra),” says Priyanka, speaking to us from the US.

The actor-producer recalls how director Rajesh Mapuskar was finding the filmmaking process difficult with 75 actors in the cast. “But the story resonated with me, and reminded me of the time my dad was in the hospital and all that my family went through. When I spoke to Rajesh sir yesterday after the awards were announced, he told me my father would have been very proud. This wouldn’t have been possible without my mom; everyone at Purple Pebble Pictures (her banner) put in their heart and soul into the film.”

PeeCee is planning a grand bash to celebrate the triple win — in Mumbai. “I am coming back in 10 days to Mumbai to have a party with my cast, crew and friends who have always been supportive. It has been difficult being a hands-on producer while I am in America working on my career as an actor. My mom is my backbone; she has been doing all the hard work there while I take the creative decisions here. We make a great team,” she says.

Ask her if she feels like being in a beautiful dream with awards landing in her lap every other day and she says, “No, I work very hard. I don’t sleep or stay with my family. I work round the clock. My dream was to be an achiever, but I have known from a very young age that nothing can replace hard work. I am grateful that everything has worked out well for me. And I can tell you it was sheer hard work.”

While Ventilator hogged the limelight apart from another Marathi film Kaasav (Best Feature Film), a surprise miss from the winners’ list was Nagraj Manjule’s Sairat, which was not only critically acclaimed but also proved to be a huge commercial success. We tried reaching Manjule for a comment, but he remained unavailable for comment.

MUMBAI MIRROR (January 4, 2017)

Priyanka Chopra says one of the main reasons for her producing the forthcoming Punjabi film, Sarvann, was to include her late father’s rendition of a ‘shabad. “My father Dr Ashok Chopra’s rendition of the famous shabad by Guru Gobind Singhji. ‘Sarvann’,” Priyanka tweeted on Tuesday with a link to the track, adding, “One of my original reasons for making ‘Sarvann’. Can’t wait to share it with you all. Miss you dad (sic).” PeeCee’s father, who was a retired doctor from the Indian Army, passed away in 2013 after a prolonged battle with cancer.

Garima Sharma (BOMBAY TIMES; June 12, 2014)

Actress and a multi-faceted achiever to the world at large, Priyanka Chopra was every bit her daddy's little girl when she attended the inauguration of the Lt Col Ashok Chopra Marg in Andheri, named in her father's honour. Dr Chopra lost his battle with cancer a year ago and despite the immensity of her loss, she resumed work with a vengeance soon after. PC still refuses to grieve, but is proud of how her father, his philanthropic work and his achievements are being celebrated by those whose lives he touched.

“At his chautha, they came for him, not me. We just couldn't stop meeting people," she says. Her mother, Dr Madhu Chopra adds, “The decision to name the road was taken unanimously by the society and he got a great recommendation from the Army because of his work and the funds he raised for the war widows. Even from the film industry, technicians, lightmen and junior artistes from various associations supported the decision."

Priyanka decided to take a two-day break from the shoot of Dil Dhadakne Do when it was decided that the inauguration would coincide with Dr Chopra's first death anniversary (June 10). “People sometimes ask me whether this happened because of Priyanka Chopra. I tell them I'm here because I'm his daughter. My father was a sensitive man, who helped everyone out of the goodness of his heart not because he considered it philanthropy," she says.

In fact, her earliest memories are of him raising funds for the Army Wives Welfare Association (AWWA). “He'd do fundraisers for AWWA, singing Rafi and Kishore Kumar songs on stage and playing Punjabi Tambola. In Bareilly, every week we'd go in an ambulance to nearby villages and offer medical help. I was the compounder, in charge of handing out the medicine. I took my job very seriously," PC reminisces.

The pinch of her father's absence is obvious in her words, but the actress insists firmly , “I don't want to come to terms with the loss. Perhaps I've not dealt with it... I have a divine relationship with my father. You'll never see me grieving. I was told this by someone who'd lost a parent, `Your parents only leave you when you are ready to take the baton from them'. My dad went through a lot for my brother and me and left us at a place where we could look after each other."

While PC's put up a brave front, her mother has noticed a change in her daughter. As a parent, she feels that talking about her father would be cathartic for Priyanka, who has become the support system for the entire family . Says Madhu, “She's not given me a minute to think about my loss and has spoilt me silly in this one year. I had a textbook perfect marriage, so I had to take measures to get over the loss. But, Priyanka, she goes about caring for everybody like she always has. She has created a wall around her but her bindaas hasee is missing. I'm proud of her.“

Gaurav Dubey (MID-DAY; June 11, 2014)

The naming of a road in Andheri after Priyanka Chopra’s late father, Dr Ashok Chopra, apparently inconvenienced the local residents of the area. According to some locals, the entire event created ‘a lot of nuisance’ for people staying in the vicinity. The road was being revamped and a pandal was being erected till late in the night, much beyond the deadline of 10pm. This is said to have created problems for the locals.

Says social worker Prakash Gidwani, who stays in the same area, “Yes, it’s true. There were many complaints from the neighbouring societies. There are a lot of senior people who stay in and around this area and they faced problems due to the work being done till late at night.”

Gidwani adds, “I don’t have any personal agenda against anyone but there are many other people after whom our roads should be named. I would have appreciated it more if the road was named after a freedom fighter or for that matter, one of the soldiers who died for the country. In fact, there were reports that Priyanka built this road but it’s not true. The BMC took charge and built it. I have also sent a text message to the local corporator suggesting that the road be named after a senior freedom fighter.”

Another resident, who stays close to Priyanka’s building, says, “We had to face a lot of problems due to the road being revamped. Our cars were towed in the morning and also many roads were shut during the naming ceremony. Things should have been executed in a smoother fashion.” Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray inaugurated the road on Monday along with PeeCee’s mother, Madhu Chopra, and the actress’ brother Siddharth Chopra.

Priyanka remained unavailable for comment.

Vickey Lalwani (MUMBAI MIRROR; June 9, 2014)

Priyanka Chopra who was shooting Zoya Akhtar's Dil Dhadakne Do aboard a cruise liner sailing through Europe, has left the star-studded ship to return to Mumbai. The actress quietly landed in Mumbai around 5.30 am on Sunday. The reason for her arrival is a road in Andheri which will be named after her late father Dr. Ashok Chopra, on June 10, to mark his first death anniversary.

The inauguration of the road which will be called road which will be called Lieutenant Colonel Ashok Chopra Marg will be followed by a memorial which will be attended by friends and relatives.

When Priyanka expressed her desire to be there for her father's first death anniversary, her director Zoya and the film's producer Ritesh Siddhwani quickly agreed to a short leave. The actress will join the film's unit in the next four-five days.

When contacted, Priyanka said, “It's a surprise and a huge honour. My family and I are overwhelmed.
There was no way I would miss this for anything in the world. My father was always very grateful for what he had and spent a lot of time and energy in helping those less fortunate. We are so proud that he is being recognised for his efforts. My dad loved Mumbai and now there will always be a part of him here." Dr Chopra served in the Indian Army for 27 years and also served as Head of Surgery at an Army hospital in Leh.

The actress was distraught when her father was first diagnosed with cancer in 2005. Priyanka has often paid him tributes in interviews and proudly flaunts a Daddy's Li'l Girl tattoo on her arm, a description which is also part of her.
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MID-DAY (June 9, 2014)

On June 10, Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackeray will inaugurate a street in Yari Road, Andheri, that will be named after Priyanka Chopra’s father, the late Dr Ashok Chopra.

The politician will take time out from his busy schedule to attend the inaugural function, which will honour the late doctor and the work he has been credited with over the years.

Says Priyanka Chopra’s spokesperson, “Uddhav Thackeray will inaugurate a road named after the late Dr Ashok Chopra. He will be doing so in the presence of Mrs Madhu Chopra, Priyanka Chopra and her brother Siddharth Chopra. It is a big moment for the family.” A source points out that PeeCee, who was in Barcelona shooting for Zoya Akhtar’s upcoming film, Dil Dhadakne Do, reached Mumbai on Sunday morning. “Other than the inauguration, the actress will also attend a few other events here. She also has an ad shoot lined up,” says the source.