Worried about her father
Priyanka Chopra is said to be going through tremendous turmoil and stress because of her father's frail health. It was evident at a recent shoot, when the actress faced the camera with Sanjay Dutt for Apoorva Lakhia's Zanjeer.
Priyanka kept forgetting her lines, admits a source from the sets. "It was not like Priyanka at all. She is never known to forget a single line. But there she was, standing in front of Sanjay Dutt, faltering and fumbling over her lines repeatedly," says the source. Sanjay was indulgent and understanding, as he himself began to forget his lines on seeing Priyanka doing the same.
This is said to have gone on for hours, as the leading man Ram Charan Teja — who has his own problems with the Hindi language — sat patiently and waited for his two
co-stars to get their act
together. "Priyanka said she was forgetting her lines because she was overawed by Sanjay Dutt's presence. But we feel it was something a lot deeper. Priyanka is not known to lose her cool under the most trying circumstances," says the source. A friend reveals how her father's illness has indeed begun to take toll on Priyanka's concentration.
"Outwardly, she is doing fine, going about all her duties as per schedule. And god knows, her plate is more than full at the moment — what with her international singing career and slew of Bollywood projects happening simultaneously. But Priyanka is deeply troubled by her father's illness," the source says.
"She will never talk about it with any of us, not even her mother or kid brother. When her father had first been diagnosed with a serious illness some years ago, Priyanka didn't even mention it to her friends. She is a very strong girl. She can take any kind of adversity in her stride," adds the source. "Just see how calmly and confidently she dealt with all the backlash regarding her friendship with Shah Rukh Khan. But this (her father's illness) has overpowered her equipoise," the source adds.
Priyanka is extremely close to her father and even has a tattoo — 'Daddy's Li'l Girl' — on her wrist. Priyanka's doctor father, Lt Col Ashok Chopra, retired from the Indian Army in 1997.
He's Salman's biggest fan!
Autorickshaw driver Ram Lal, who generally works around Bandra, is a diehard Salman Khan fan. Every time his favourite star's film releases, he decks up his auto with the film's name.
He has also driven his auto in one of the scenes in both Dabangg as well as Dabangg 2. His biggest moment was when he met the star on the sets during the shoot. For Dabangg 2, he was given the responsibility of delivering invites to the film's screening to the celebrity guests.
"It was the production unit's idea, as my auto is now a Dabangg auto!" he confirms. Ram Lal, who hails from Unnao district in Uttar Pradesh, adds, "I have been Bhai's fan since his Maine Pyaar Kiya days. I have not missed a single film of his till date."
"For the Dabangg shoot I even put a UP number plate for the auto!" he says.
'Aamir is so grounded'
Actress Pariva Pranati, who made her Bollywood debut with Reema Kagti's Talaash, says she will not leave television for films, because this is where she had started her acting career. "Television was where I started and I will not leave it because I have entered Bollywood. I have always tried to do different work. Even on television, I have always done different types of shows and if TV offers me something different, I will do it," says Pariva.
Pariva has been a part of shows like Armanon Ka Balidaan - Aarakshan, Hamari Betiyon Ka Vivaah and Tujhko Hai Salaam Zindagi. She was recently seen as Sushila in the show Ek Doosre Se Karte Hain Pyaar Hum. Asked about her experience on the sets of Talaash, Pariva has nothing but praises for director Reema Kagti and co-star Aamir Khan.
"I was not nervous while shooting because at the end of the day, you are acting with another actor. Reema is such a warm person. A lot depends on how a director treats an actor. Aamir is so grounded, I never felt I was working with a super star," the 26-year-old says. Pariva reveals that her entry into the world of acting was unplanned. "I had no plans of entering acting. It just happened because I like to do different things. For me, acting should be challenging — then I enjoy doing it," she adds. After having worked in both television and Bollywood, the actress finds working in films easier. "I was playing the role of a wife, who lost her husband and for that I had to cry a lot — something which I do everyday on television. TV has long hours and many high-intensity scenes are done in one day. Here (in Talaash) if there were two or three high-intensity scenes, only one was done in a day," she points out.