Priyanka Chopra, the winner of the Miss World 2000 pageant, is one of the most popular and successful Indian actresses.
Childhood and Education
Priyanka Chopra was born in Jamshedpur, Bihar, on July 18, 1982. Her parents are Madhu Jyotsna Akhouri, a former member of the Bihar Legislative Assembly, and Dr. Manohar Kishan Akhouri, a member of the Indian National Congress. They also have a son, Siddharth, who is seven years younger than Chopra. Her parents’ jobs took the family all over India, and Chopra lived in Delhi, Chandigarh, Ambala, Ladakh, Lucknow, Bareilly, and Pune.
She switched schools a lot, but spent most of her school years in two of them, La Martiniere Girls’ School in Lucknow and St. Maria Goretti College in Bareilly. Her fondest memories are from her time in Leh: “I think I was in Class 4 when I was in Leh. My brother was just born. My dad was in the army and was posted there. I stayed in Leh for a year and my memories of that place are tremendous … We were all army kids there. We weren’t living in houses, we were in bunkers in the valley and there was a stupa right on top of a hill which used to overlook our valley. We used to race up to the top of the stupa”
When she was 13, her parents sent her to live with her aunt in the United States. Her aunt’s family also moved a lot, so Chopra attended schools in Newton, Massachusetts, and Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She didn’t particularly enjoy her time in America: “I was a gawky kid, had low self-esteem, came from a modest middle-class background, had white marks on my legs … But I was damn hard working. Today, my legs sell 12 brands.”
Miss World
When she returned to India, her mother entered her in the Femina Miss India pageant. She came in second and qualify for the Miss World pageant in 2000. The contest was held at the Millennium Dome in London and Chopra won two titles, Miss World 2000 and Miss World Continental Queen of Beauty—Asia & Oceania. That success kick-started her career and she soon started getting offers for TV and movie roles.
Acting Career
Her acting career slowly grew until 2005, when she appeared in six movies. Not all of them were great, but titles like Waqt: The Race Against Time and Karam brought her accolades both from the critics and the audience. Some of her greatest hits include Dostana, Mary Kom, Baywatch, and Isn’t It Romantic.
Awards
Chopra received Padma Shri in 2016, the fourth highest civilian award in India. She has placed on Time list of 100 most influential people in the world. In both 2017 and 2018, Forbes named her one of the World’s 100 Most Powerful Women.
Priyanka Chopra Net Worth 2024
Most of Chopra’s wealth comes from her acting and music career, but there is also a significant part that comes from sponsorship deals and her own ventures. Priyanka Chopra’s net worth in 2024 is estimated at $16 million.
