When it comes to rewriting the rule book, Priyanka Chopra Jonas is the editor in chief.
The actor admits she took a “huge risk” to leave her thriving career behind in India to work in the U.S. and it’s safe to say the leap paid off. Today, the former pageant queen is one of the most successful women in Hollywood but she’s put in nearly two decades of work and hustle to get there. “If you don’t take chances if you don’t push yourself to do things that make you uncomfortable, you never evolve,” she tells Create & Cultivate.
For the next chapter of her rule book, Chopra Jonas has added humanitarian, producer, and a tech investor to her title. She launched her own production company Purple Pebble Pictures in 2015, became a Goodwill Ambassador for UNICEF, and an investor in dating app, Bumble. Let’s not forget that she has starred in more than 50 films and is slated for several major projects this year and next, including a starring role in Amazon's Citadel with Richard Madden.
Ahead, Chopra Jonas shares the story behind her bold move to the U.S. (and why it was the hardest professional decision she’s ever made), her secret to confidence, and how nothing works like hard work.
CREATE & CULTIVATE: So, we read that you originally wanted to be an engineer before your mom secretly entered you in the Miss India contest (which you won) and later the 2000 Miss World contest. How did that experience shape you? What did you learn? And how did that steer you towards your career path today?
PRIYANKA CHOPRA JONAS: It is essentially the foundation of what I would eventually become. I learned to get out of my comfort zone and try new things; that taking risks can yield big returns; that if you want something bad enough and if you work hard, you will succeed. Miss India and Miss World introduced me to the world of entertainment and also to my creative side, which I hadn’t tapped into at that time. It opened my mind to the immense possibilities that the world has on offer.
“If you don’t take chances, if you don’t push yourself to do things that make you uncomfortable, you never evolve.”
Can you recall the hardest professional decision you’ve ever had to make and how you got through it? What did you learn in the process? Why it’s important to make decisions that aren’t easy?
Every few years I’ve found I am faced with a hard decision that is imperative to make and critical to my career. It comes in waves. The big one I can remember is the decision to work in Hollywood, while still having a thriving and very relevant career in India. In hindsight, I am glad I took the leap and that it paid off, but at the time it was a huge risk. What I learned in the process is that if you don’t take chances, if you don’t push yourself to do things that make you uncomfortable, you never evolve—and for me, evolution is important in my personal and professional life… ultimately it’s what allows you to define your own road.
You have achieved so much success but that didn’t come without hustle and hard work. What advice would you give to young actors who are hoping to break into Hollywood but are feeling overwhelmed by the competition? What traits do you need to succeed today the way you have? Why?
Understand what makes you unique and special. Work on your strengths. It will give you the courage to go after your dreams and aspirations. In anything you choose to do, there will be many others who have the same idea—the competition so to speak—understand what makes you unique and special and embrace that.
I understood early that nothing comes easy. Yes, luck and destiny do play a part, but nothing works like hard work. Have a vision for yourself and work as hard as you can to make it happen. Oh, and remember, life is rarely ever a straight road—with the good, there will also be the bad. It is what you do after the good and what you do after failure, how you choose to get up, that defines your life.
When you hit a bump or hurdle in your career, how do you #FindNewRoads + switch gears to find success?
I always find that acknowledging the failure and coming to terms with it, helps you move forward—then it doesn’t come back to haunt you or cause self-doubt later. Also, I have always believed in exploring all aspects of my creative self, which is why I am always pushing myself to explore new areas and try my hand at it. I never say I can’t do something until I’ve tried it. In the world, we live in today, and the immense amount of opportunities out there, it’s important to remember that it’s not a single lane of traffic but an eight-lane highway to an endless world of opportunities.
You always seem so bold and self-assured. Where do you think this confidence stems from? What do you wish you could go back and tell yourself when you were first starting out? Why?
Confidence is self-taught. You’re not born with confidence. It is something you pick up along the way, and it is up to you how much you want to pick up. I am a firm believer that everything you go through in life leads you to the exact spot you need to be, as long as you are involved in shaping it rather than being a bystander and letting things happen. So, there is very little I want to change. I would probably just tell my younger self as I was starting out to breathe. Not every crisis is the end of the world, this too shall pass.
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