FILM INTERVIEW: PRIYANKA CHOPRA

Piggy Chops Dubs ‘Don 2’ the "Best Action Movie of 2011"

By: Parimal M. Rohit

December 23, 2011

The lady colloquially known as Piggy Chops is returning to the big screen in one of the most anticipated sequels in recent Bollywood memory. Starring alongside Shah Rukh Khan in Farhan Akhtar’s Don 2, Priyanka Chopra reprises her role as Roma – this time as a police officer out to get the man who killed her brother and future sister-in-law four years earlier. Joining Piggy Chops on the return voyage to catch Don are Boman Irani, Lara Dutta, and Om Puri.

In speaking to the press about her reprisal of Roma, Ms. Chopra talks about Don 2 – what makes it different from the original, whether she thought a sequel was in the works, and her attraction to the film’s chief antagonist so uniquely portrayed by Mr. Khan.

Parimal M. Rohit: When did you realize a sequel was in the works?

Priyanka Chopra: I always knew Don 2 was being made. I think we knew Don 2 was being made when we made the first Don. There was always a conversation. Don is a character -- somebody who can do just about anything. He just continues his story.

PMR: What’s different about the sequel?

PC: Most people who are watching the film … want to know what happens. The first Don, because it was a remake, everyone already knows what happens. We already knew the story. Here (in Don 2), the story is completely fresh. This story is Don going forward. The fact that Don escapes and … what will he do, what happened to Don in four years, what happens now? That’s what Don 2 is about. What will he do now?

PMR: Is Don himself fresh? What is he doing now?

PC: Don’s character has evolved more. He’s meaner. He’s more menacing. He’s evil. But, at the same time, there’s something about him that is intriguing.

PMR: What is fresh about your character?

PC: Roma is coming with her vengeance, her want for revenge. It’s all really confusing in her head because he just comes back into her life after, like, four years. She’s become a cop because she wants to catch him. In Don 2, Roma doesn’t know whether she hates him or loves him. She hates him, of course, because he’s Don and he betrayed her. He pretended that he was Vijay. He gained her trust and then completely betrayed her, so she hates him for that. But somewhere she loved this man. “Hell hath no fury like a women scorned" – that’s who Roma is in this film.

PMR: How is your role in Don 2 different from your role in the original?

PC: Don 2 is a cool role for me. It's an action film of another level in Bollywood. I am more angry in this one. I've done a lot of fist fighting that I didn't do too much of in the earlier Don. I went through intense rehearsals for my action with guidance from Farhan and Shahrukh, who often pulled my leg. I don't play a damsel in distress, so missed all the dance and frolic I've been doing in my other movies. Don 2 is one of those rare movies where I have to be serious all the time. I can't even sport my foot-long smile. But that's what's good about Don 2. It makes me do things I've never done. That's one advantage of playing a cop, but it's got disadvantages also.

PMR: What is your relationship like with Don?

PC: Don cannot be predictable. By that I mean Don as a person. You can never tell what his next move is going to be. He is one bad guy you can't mess with. Don is cold-blooded, and such people are really dangerous to deal with. Roma has such a relationship with him, hot and cold, as she is hell bent on taking her revenge and wants Don at any cost. It's a cat-and-mouse chase.

PMR: What is Don 2's unique selling point?

PC: Don 2 has redefined slick in Bollywood. It's suspense to another level too. Music is also rich, but the film is so huge in itself that music will stand out once the movie is released. You will get to the groove of the songs once you see the film. Don 2 is Farhan's best work I have seen.

PMR: What sets Shahrukh Khan apart from any other star?

PC: Shahrukh Khan can live up to anything. He is a man who believes in challenges at this point in his career. He puts in more than one needs to in his movies. There are very few actors who are like that. Don 2 is SRK’s best action movie of 2011, I feel.

PMR: Switching gears slightly, what are your thoughts on the soundtrack?

PC: I have always loved the essence of Don. The music of Don has a franchise. It’s got this disco-house kind of sound to it. (Don 2) has less songs compared to the first Don, but we have really cool songs, and they go with the flavor of the film. The theme is very nice. It’s very different as a sound.

PMR: Finally, Priyanka, what does Don 2 mean to you?

PC: It’s been a very special film. Don 2, for me, was new beginnings as a phase in my life. Lots has changed in the years -- as an actor, as a person -- during this film.

Reliance Big Pictures' 'Don 2' opens worldwide in 2D and 3D on December 23, 2011.