During the early phase of his career as a director, Suneel Darshan largely worked with Karisma Kapoor as his leading lady. Following successful outings together in ‘Ajay’ (1996), ‘Jaanwar’ (1999), and ‘Ek Rishtaa’ (2001), he collaborated with her sister Kareena Kapoor for ‘Talaash: The Hunt Begins’ (2003). For his next production, Raj Kanwar’s ‘Andaaz’ (2003), however, he steered away from Kareena and instead brought on board two relatively new faces: Priyanka Chopra and Lara Dutta.
Priyanka Chopra’s first meeting with Suneel Darshan
At the time, Priyanka, who had been crowned Miss World 2000, had only two films to her name, while ‘Andaaz’ turned out to be the acting debut of Lara, who had earlier won the Miss Intercontinental 1997 and Miss Universe 2000 titles. Interestingly, when Priyanka first walked into Suneel Darshan’s office, he wasn’t instantly impressed and even found himself questioning what had made her Miss World.
Priyanka Chopra “appeared ordinary” at first glance, says Suneel Darshan
During her appearance in Hindi Rush, he recalled, “When I cast them, I had access to pretty much all the A-grade actresses in India, such as Karisma Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, and Aishwarya Rai. But I wanted to do something different that time, and decided to hire two new ladies. Lara had just had a photoshoot with Akshay Kumar for a magazine. So, I asked my team to call her over. For the second female character, I didn’t want someone who looked similar to the first. One day, Priyanka Chopra came to my office. At first glance, I felt that she appeared ordinary. I interacted with her for a few minutes, wondering, ‘What style did she have that made her Miss World?’ I kept looking at her, and at one point, a realisation hit me.”
Priyanka Chopra reminded Suneel Darshan of a young Rekha
That’s when Suneel felt she looked like a young Rekha. “Without makeup, Rekha ji also looked similar. ‘What if she (Priyanka) is Rekha?’ Priyanka spoke Hindi so well and was a very intelligent girl. She had an issue with her nose at that time, which she later fixed (through surgery),” he added.
Priyanka Chopra’s breakthrough with ‘Andaaz’
According to Suneel, ‘Andaaz’ was completed in a short time and hit screens within nine months of the shoot beginning. He noted that the film served as Priyanka’s actual breakthrough in the industry, given that her debut in Anil Sharma’s ‘The Hero: Love Story of a Spy’ (2003), where she played a supporting part, hadn’t really caught attention. He also pointed out that Priyanka was noticeably different from the other actresses he had worked with. “Priyanka knew who to keep happy and how to behave towards whom,” he added.
Priyanka Chopra’s upcoming projects
Meanwhile, Priyanka Chopra was last seen in Frank E Flowers’ ‘The Bluff’ (2026). At present, she is busy filming SS Rajamouli’s ‘Varanasi’, which features Mahesh Babu in the lead, and also has Mira Nair’s ‘Amri’ and Nicholas Stoller’s ‘Judgment Day’ in her upcoming lineup.
