In Quantico, Bollywood's Priyanka Chopra Seeks an American Foothold

September 20, 2015

Montreal, Sep 20: The golden hour on this late September afternoon was anything but. The air was hot and hazy, the sky the colour of the industrial concrete buildings doubling as the set of the FBI Academy.

QuanticoThen Priyanka Chopra sauntered out of her trailer, a vision in mirrored shades and towering gold stilettos. And suddenly, as if by divine intervention, setting sunbeams pierced through the clouds.

"The sun opened up, right?" she said with a squeal and a kick. "I said" - she crooked a finger toward the sky - "'Come to me.'"

That the sun should oblige this Bollywood actress might not seem unreasonable to her fans in India, where she is one of that nation's highest-profile celebrities. But in North America, she remains a virtual unknown outside South Asian communities. Now Priyanka, 33, is banking on television to help her crack Hollywood.

"After being in movies for 13 years in India, I'm suddenly a debutante all over again," she said. "I'm scared and nervous - petrified, actually."

In ABC's new drama Quantico," which debuts September 27, Priyanka plays Alex Parrish, a half-Indian, half-white FBI trainee suspected of masterminding the biggest attack on New York since September 11. The series, which has been described as Homeland meets Grey's Anatomy (with a bit of How to Get Away With Murder," because of its many flashbacks), places Priyanka front and centre in an ethnically varied cast.

It's part of ABC's continued drive to promote diversity on screen through casting and outreach efforts. In 2012 Priyanka and her manager, Anjula Acharia-Bath, met Keli Lee, executive vice president for talent and casting for ABC Entertainment Group, at a dinner party. As Lee named some of the actors she'd helped place through the company's diversity efforts - Sofia Vergara in Modern Family, Sandra Oh in Grey's Anatomy and Kerry Washington in Scandal - Acharia-Bath remarked, "Well, you haven't done a South Asian yet, and we're one-fifth of the population." Afterward, she sent Lee some of her's movies, and the next thing she knew, a deal was in the making.

"I flew to India to convince Priyanka to work at ABC," Lee wrote in an email. "I wasn't going to let distance be a barrier to making a deal." The one-year commitment required ABC either to develop a project for Chopra or cast her in an existing project. She ultimately read 26 scripts; Quantico was her favourite. (Also Read: Priyanka Chopra Tweets Eight-Minute Preview of Quantico)

Her audition for the role was her first - ever - and Joshua Safran, the show's creator, wasn't sure what character Priyanka intended to read for when she arrived wearing a designer dress and carrying a designer handbag. "She walked in the room, and it was like the molecules shifted in that way that superstars have," he recalled. "I was very confused because I didn't know who she was, but we all sat up straighter."

"Ah, I love that, when it happens at hello," she said, giggling at the anecdote. "I make sure my walk is a good entrance. My heels and my hair."

Mr Safran had imagined a protagonist hardened by tragedy and aloof. He hadn't quite envisioned Alex as a bombshell.

"One of the things we talked about was, 'Is she so glamorous that she can't play this regular person?'" said Mark Gordon, one of the show's executive producers. "What we quickly came to realize is that she's a huge star internationally, but she's actually quite regular. She's very accessible both to women and to men, and that's especially important at ABC, where a large percentage of the audience is women."

Off screen Priyanka is somehow unthreatening despite an entourage of assistants and stylists. There are 22 people on "Team PC": 11 in Mumbai, India, where she owns a home and is a ubiquitous presence on the city's billboards, and 11 in North America, where a recent pool party at her rental house here gave rise to a spontaneous Bollywoodesque water ballet to Major Lazer's Lean On.

The child of an Indian army doctor and a gynaecologist, Priyanka moved with her parents every two years until 12, when she decided to live with an aunt in the United States, bouncing among Cedar Rapids, Iowa, New York and Newton, Massachusetts.

A dutiful daughter, she planned to become an engineer. Returning to Bareilly, India, the end of her junior year, she was studying for her university boards when her mother, pleased by her swanlike transformation, sent photos to the Miss India pageant. She won that title and six months later, at 17, was crowned Miss World 2000 - after which her mother wailed, "Who's going to study now?"

In 2002, Chopra entered the realm of Bollywood, a term she dislikes for its dismissiveness. "Hindi movies are an amalgamation of culture, of emotions, of drama, of music, of dance - which is why Hindi movies are an experience," she said. "We make about a thousand movies a year and are expanding into markets in Japan and Germany and Russia. We premiere our movies at the Berlinale and Cannes. It's an amazing time."

Priyanka has made nearly 50 movies, winning a National Film Award (the Indian equivalent of an Oscar) for her portrayal of a small-town girl turned supermodel in Fashion and lesser prizes for her turn as a 19-year-old autistic woman in Barfi!

That role, for which she had to prove to the director that she could believably subvert her innate allure, is among those of which she's proudest. "The most challenging thing in India is for her to come out of her glamour zone," said Irrfan Khan, an occasional co-star and the Indian actor with perhaps the most familiarity in America, with films like The Amazing Spider-Man and Jurassic World.

"Hindi commercial cinema tries to incorporate a beautiful girl in the same roles over and over, but if you're smart enough you learn to expose your personality. She understands her persona and keeps experimenting in different genres."

When asked where home is these days, Priyanka replied, "On a plane," noting she'd spent Labour Day weekend filming in India and would briefly return in October. "I just want to go where my work takes me."

But for the moment, she's hoping it's in the United States. "I simply want the opportunity to show people what I bring with me. They might like it, they might hate it. I don't know. I just hope that people are inquisitive."

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Agencies
January 26,2020

Mumbai, Jan 26: Filmmakers Karan Johar, Ekta Kapoor and actor Kangana Ranaut are among the six cinema personalities to be awarded the Padma Shri, officials said on Saturday.

Singers Suresh Wadkar and Adnan Sami as well as veteran TV actor Sarita Joshi have also been conferred with the fourth highest civilian honour of the country.

Karan and Ekta said they were humbled to receive the honour.

"Overwhelmed by so many emotions right now. Humbled, elated and also thankful for the opportunity to live my dream everyday, to create and to entertain. I know my father would be proud and I wish he was here to share this moment with me," he said in a statement posted on Twitter.

Son of veteran Bollywood producer late Yash Johar, Karan Johar started his career as a director in Hindi cinema with the 1998 hit Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.

The 47-year-old, who runs Dharma Productions, went on to direct several commercial blockbusters in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001), My Name Is Khan (2010), Student of the Year (2012) and Ae Dil Hai Mushkil among others.

Karan has also produced several critically-acclaimed films -- Wake Up Sid, Agneepath, Hasee Toh Phasee, Kapoors & Sons and Raazi.

Ekta, who started her showbiz journey with soap operas, most notably Kyunki Saas Bhi Bahu Thi, is the daughter of veteran actor Jeetendra.

She launched her banner Balaji Telefilms in 1994 and backed many popular TV shows, eventually branching out into movie production.

Ekta, 44, has produced films such as Love Sex Aur Dhoka, Once Upon a Time in Mumbai, The Dirty Picture, Udta Punjab and Veere Di Wedding.

"My foray into the industry started when I was just 17. I constantly heard I was 'too young', 'too raw' and it was 'too soon' to make things happen. Through the years I've realised it's never 'too soon' to live out your dreams and being 'too young' is probably the best thing," she said.

"Today, as l'm conferred with the 4th highest civilian honour- Padma Shri', I'm humbled. I hope to continue breaking boundaries, to continue giving young talent a chance and to strive to give back to the country for all the love that's come my way.

The timing couldn't have been more perfect, as this news arrives 2 days before my son's first birthday. Grateful & Thankful!" she added.

Kangana, a three-time National Award Winner, is the only Bollywood actor to receive the Padma Shri this year.

The 32-year-old, who made her debut in movies in 2006 with Gangster, is regarded as one of the most successful female artistes of this generation.

After a series of films with Mahesh Bhatt's banner, she found success with Madhur Bhandarkar's Fashion, for which she won her first National Film Award in 2009.

She went on to win two back-to-back National Film Awards for her performances in Queen (2014) and Tanu Weds Manu Returns (2015). Kangana's latest release is Panga.

Wadkar, 64, a veteran in the music industry, started his career as a playback singer in 1978 with song Seene mein jalan for Gaman. He has lent his voice to memorable tracks like Aye zindagi gale lagaa le, Aur is dil mein, Pardesi pardesi, Sapne mein, Raat ke dhai baje and Jag Ja.

In his over four-decade-long career, Wadkar has collaborated with celebrated composers RD Burman, Shiv-Hari, Ilayaraja, Khayyam, AR Rahman, Bappi Lahiri, Vishal Bhardwaj and Hridayanath Mangeshkar.

Sami, 48, now an Indian-citizen, made a mark for himself in country's indie-pop scene with single Kabhi toh nazar milao, for which he collaborated with veteran playback singer Asha Bhosle.

"The greatest moment for any Artiste is to be appreciated & recognised by his/her government. I am overwhelmed with infinite gratitude for being honoured with the 'Padma Shri' by the Government of India. It has been a 34 years musical journey.. 'Bohot Shukriya'!!" Sami tweeted.

He released various albums in the early 2000s and also served as music composer for films Lucky: No Time for Love (2005), Dhamaal (2007) and Shaurya (2008).

Sami, born in London to a Pakistani Air force veteran, applied for Indian citizenship in 2015 and became a citizen of the country in January 2016.

Joshi, a household name and a popular theatre personality, started her acting career as a child artiste and made her TV debut in 1980s with Titliyan.

Some of her most iconic shows are Hasratein , Ek Mahal Ho Sapno Ka , Baa Bahoo Aur Baby and Bh Se Bhade.

Joshi, 78, has also featured in movies such as Nazar , Darna Zaroori Hai , Dasvidaniya , Singham Returns and Simmba.

She was bestowed with the Sangeet Natak Akademi award for acting in Gujarati in 1988.

"I am very happy and humbled with this honour. I am working from an early age, I have never worked for awards, for me work is worship. I have always worked from heart and given my best in whatever I have done. I will be known as Padma Shri Sarita Joshi, this is such a big honour. I am happy as my children are happy," Joshi told PTI.

The Padma Shri for this year has been awarded to a total of 118 eminent personalities across fields of art, literature and education, medicine, trade and industry, sports, public affairs, social work and science and engineering.

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Agencies
August 4,2020

New York, Aug 4: National Award-winning documentary "Son Rise" and Geetu Mohandas-directed "Moothon" were among the films that took home the big honours at the 20th New York Indian Film Festival (NYIFF), which switched to a virtual edition this year amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.

Over 45 feature-length narratives, shorts and documentaries from the Indian subcontinent were showcased at the festival’s virtual edition that ran for 10 days beginning July 24.

The films programmed were in various languages including Assamese, Bengali, Haryanvi, Hindi, English, Ladakhi, Maithili, Malayalam, Marathi, Nepali and Tamil.

The award ceremony for the festival was held virtually Sunday, with the filmmakers, cast, award winners and festival officials joining from across India and the US.

The award for the Best Documentary (Short) went to Saurav Vishnu-directed "Tailing Pond", which highlights the "horrifying effects of uranium extraction on the health of the indigenous population" of Jadugoda, Jharkhand.

"Son Rise" by Vibha Bakshi won the award for Best Documentary (Feature).

The documentary had won the National Award for the Best non-feature film in 2019 and was among the two centrepieces hosted by the festival this year. NYIFF called "Son Rise" “a powerful documentary about patriarchy in Haryana and efforts by a few good men to bring meaningful change in the society.”

The award for Best Short (Narrative) went to Sanat Ganu's "Arabian Nights". The narrative focuses on a child, his imaginary friend and a family that attends a conference where the attendees believe the earth is flat.

Director and scriptwriter Sudhanshu Saria accepted the award for Best Screenplay for "Knock Knock Knock". Saria’s screenplay “explores the lonely life of a man, an unlikely friendship that may or may not be real.”

Sanjana Dipu won the award for Best Child Actor for "Moothon" for her performance of a teenager in search of a brother.

Garggi Ananthan won the Best Actress award for her role as Kalyani in the film "Run Kalyani" and the Best Actor award went to Malayalam star Nivin Pauly for "Moothon". The award for the Best Director went to 23-year old Achal Mishra for "Gamak Ghar".

"Moothon" won the award for Best Film and its director Mohandas accepted the award for the film, which is "about love and loss that travels from the quiet, lush beaches of Lakshadweep to the mad hustle-bustle of the streets of Mumbai."

Produced by award-winning Indian film director and writer Anurag Kashyap, "Moothon" had premiered at last year’s Toronto International Film Festival.

NYIFF festival director Aseem Chhabra said that the process of searching for films for the festival began last fall and they were ready to showcase them to audiences in New York in April but had to change plans for the festival due to the pandemic.

"I know the best way to enjoy films is in a theatre with the audience and have live interactions, conversations. But the virtual festival is the next best option and in the process, we have been able to reach out to a much larger audience in the US, North America as well in several other countries.”

NYIFF said that a virtual edition expanded the reach of the festival and audiences from 95 countries were able to access and view the films.

Dr Nirmal Mattoo, Chairman of the Indo-American Arts Council, co-founder and owner of Atlantic Dialysis Management services, the largest private dialysis provider in New York State, said NYIFF works with an independent jury - filmmakers, film professors, writers and critics.

Indo-American Arts Council (IAAC), the leading cultural organisation, presents the festival.

"The Covid-19 pandemic has forced the closure of theatres but we believe that in such trying times arts, including films are even more important for the community’s well-being. So, this year we have decided to bring the films directly into your living rooms.” IAAC Vice-Chairman Rakesh Kaul had said.

The New York Indian Film Festival is the oldest Indian film event in North America. Over the years, the festival has held New York premieres of a wide range of films, many of them critically acclaimed, including "Monsoon Wedding", "The Namesake", "Slumdog Millionaire", "Shahid", "Dum Laga Ke Haisha" and "Gangs of Wasseypur". 

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News Network
April 4,2020

New Delhi, April 4: Extending a helping hand to curb the spread of coronavirus, superstar Shah Rukh Khan and wife Gauri Khan have offered their personal office space in Mumbai for quarantine purpose for children, elderly and women.

The information was tweeted by the official Twitter handle of BMC (Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation) on Saturday that thanked the couple for the gesture.

"Stronger together. We thank Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri Khan for offering their 4-storey personal office space to help expand our quarantine capacity equipped with essentials for quarantined children, women and elderly, Indeed a thoughtful and timely gesture!" the tweet read.

Earlier the 54-year-old superstar and his group companies had pledged to donate to a number of relief funds, including the Prime Minister's Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations (PM-CARES) fund and the Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund to combat the coronavirus.

The 'Devdas' actor had taken to Twitter on Thursday and shared that his companies -- Kolkata Knight Riders, Red Chillies Entertainment, Meer Foundation, and Red Chillies VFX -- are taking several initiatives to support the relief efforts.

The Padma Shri awardee also announced that his initial efforts will be focused on three cities -- Mumbai, Kolkata and New Delhi, "with the realisation that this is a start and we stand ready to contribute in whichever way possible going forward".

Meanwhile, India's tally of coronavirus positive cases rose to 2,902, said the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare on Saturday.

Out of 2,902 cases, 2,650 are active cases and 184 have been cured or discharged or have migrated. The total number of deaths reported due to the disease rose to 68 on Saturday.

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