Actress talks about what went into preparing for the role in Mary Kom
Priyanka Chopra in Mary Kom
From playing a supermodel in Madhur Bhandarkar’s Fashion to an autistic teenager in Anurag Basu’s Barfi and now essaying the role of a boxer in Mary Kom’s biopic, Priyanka’s transformation has been dramatic — an essential journey for an actor’s growth, she believes.
“As an actor, one has to try hard to get into the groove of any character. Playing Mary Kom is an experience I will always cherish. It was physically, emotionally and mentally a very rewarding one for me,” says Priyanka.
Playing a mother of three was especially very touching for Pee Cee. “I’ve always felt that a child gives birth to the mother and not the other way round. I don’t have children yet, and emoting for those scenes required extra sensitivity.”
But on another level, Priyanka could very well relate to the character she was playing. For instance, she is a rebel too, much like Mary Kom. She admits to have defied rules in personal and professional life. “I am known for being a rebel! I have only done things my way. But I can’t talk about it in public because I am really scared of my mother,” she says.
Sports biopics have done very well at the box office in the past. The success of Bhaag Milkha Bhaag shows that there is an audience and market for such films. Priyanka, however, does not like the fact that people look at it as a trend as opposed to the lives of the heroes in isolation.
“I wish the stories of true heroism is what people take home. Mary Kom symbolises strength, integrity and determination of a woman. Yes, it is a film about a sports star, but I’d like to believe that the film has an identity of its own. It’s much, much more than being a biopic of a person from the sports fraternity. Her story deserves to be told and heard,” she adds.
What was common between Priyanka’s film and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, was the kind of physical effort that went into getting the muscle-toned body. “Both Farhan and I had to work on our bodies for two years to achieve the body of the respective sports people. There was no way I could have done it without looking like her or having worked on my muscles. It was quite a task for someone like me who had not set foot in a gym for years,” she says.
Priyanka is currently in the process of losing weight for her role in Zoya Akhtar’s Dil Dhadakne Do. “Zoya was clear that she didn’t want either Farhan, Ranveer or me to flaunt our biceps in DDD. So, currently I’m working at getting back to my curvy self.”
( Source : dc )
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