Is Priyanka Chopra too hot to handle in Quantico for Indians?
Bollywood is forever trying its luck to get Hollywood's attention. They continue to hire agents in Los Angeles and shuttle back and forth in the hope of striking gold. Anyone and everyone is welcome to try - even Mallika Sherawat took her shot. The latest to test the waters is Priyanka Chopra, she of the "Exotic" song and the even more exotic accent.
Former Miss World, National Award winning actor and a bonafide Bollywood superstar, Priyanka Chopra is definitely an A-lister in India. Balancing trashy movies such as Gunday and Zanjeer with performance-based ones such as Mary Kom and Fashion, she has ended up making a mark before the West came calling or rather she made the call.
Full marks for originality
Her foray into Hollywood hasn't been some inconsequential role in a movie or an indie project that no one has taken notice of. She has also used her singing prowess and auto-tune to get a spot during the National Football League with her first song "In My City". Considering she has lived in many cities while growing up, thanks to her parents who worked with the defense forces, it’s okay to ask though which city was she referring to.
Next was "Exotic" where she donned some stunning swimsuits, showed off her hourglass figure while Pitbull rapped alongside. We didn’t hear much of her singing after that, apart from a highly-forgettable version of "I Can’t Make You Love Me", which was best forgotten till news surfaced that Priyanka had signed a deal with ABC Television Network for a series.
For those who don’t know, television in the US is serious business. Their shows have a plot, great performances and a massive fan following. TV stars there are as big as movie stars and good shows form their own set of loyal fans. We have all seen Anil Kapoor in 24 and Rahul Khanna in The Americans. Even Nimrat Kaur has worked in Homeland. So, Priyanka frontlining the cast of a crime-drama is definitely a big deal. Her predecessors may have played supporting characters but in Quantico, she’s the leading lady. Whether she manages to grab enough eyeballs and take the show from the first season to the next is yet to be known, but going by the way the show has been promoted worldwide, you can expect great ratings atleast for the pilot episode that premieres on October 3 in India.
On the verge of Priyanka making her acting debut in Hollywood, here’s what you can expect from Quantico.
The accent finally making sense
From Karan Johar’s infamous couch where Kareena Kapoor questioned its very existence to social media where people leave no opportunity to talk about it, Priyanka’s accent has seen a lot. She has never managed to fully hide it; unfortunately, it isn’t ever consistent. Since Quantico is set in the US, there’s no questioning the accent. We’re just hoping it stays consistent though - Alex Parrish (her character) can’t be struggling with pronunciation in the middle of fighting crime.
Her Bollywood action training coming to use
From Don to Mary Kom, Priyanka has proved time and again that she can kick butt better than most actors, female and male. While her stunts in Hindi movies have been more gimmicky than gritty, we’re hoping with Quantico she finally does action like it’s supposed to be done.
Her somewhat-superhero avatar
Priyanka has never hidden how she would love to play a superhero someday. Bollywood, unfortunately, has always restricted her as the superhero’s love interest. But things might change now. "Protecting our country had always been my dream" is the first line she says in the trailer for Quantico. We’re hoping she actually gets to do that.
Casual sex
Forget actually doing it on screen, in Hindi cinema, female actors aren’t even allowed to talk about it. But here Priyanka is casually having sex in a car as she puts on her underwear without even telling the guy her name. And for a change the guy is embarrassed about it. Refreshing, isn’t it?
Actual substance
It’s a bit early to say, yes. But we are seriously hoping that the show will have more to offer than Priyanka, a bunch of good looking cast members and stylised action sequences. We are looking for grit and thrills, intrigue and excitement. Basically, we’re looking for more substance, something we haven't got from Priyanka’s music so far.