Exclusive Interview: It's payback time for Priyanka Chopra

Call Priyanka Chopra the flavour of the season and she unabashedly corrects you saying I am the flavour of every season Life was never a bed of roses for PeeCee especially during her academic days in the US where she often found herself at the receiving end of racist barbs Today the same girl is having the last laugh courtesy the rousing response to the trailer of her debut American TV series Quantico In an exclusive interview with hitlist the actress talks about her experience in the West working with the Khans and marriage ExcerptsPriyanka ChopraQ How do you feel about the response Quanticos trailer has receivedA Overwhelmed as I didnt expect it I knew people were not expecting it either In Western films and television Indians have always been relegated to playing characters that are not headlining We are stereotyped Thats why I didnt talk about Quantico much and waited for the trailer release to see peoples response I am just keeping my fingers crossed in a big way and hope that the show does well for many more reasons than onePriyanka Chopras much talked about liplock scene in QuanticoQ What are the other reasonsA I am not saying I am some messiah today but when I was studying in an American school I faced a lot of racism I was told to go back on the same boat that I came on pauses Browny and all of that It wasnt everybody but a group of people in high school It became too much for me which is why I quit school midway and came back to India So when I started working in the West I was aware of all that had happened and I was very clear that I dont want to do something that will put me in that box again I am an actor and want to be taken seriously for my job I think Indian talent deserves respect and I am grateful for the opportunity that I got So that is one reason very personal in natureQ You have made a mark in the West where many others have failed What have you done differentlyA The only different thing I did is stand my ground and say no to all those offers which would have put me in that box I didnt want to be the exotic Indian princess who rides on elephants I used to be asked those stereotypical questions all the time Like In India do you go to school on elephants It is ridiculous sometimes to know how the perception is When Quantico happened the only thing I told the agency was that you have to find me a path which is ethnically ambiguous as an actor It should have nothing to do with my race country religion and to their credit they found me one I am playing a halfAmerican halfIndian FBI agent Its a great femaledriven partIn pictures Indianorigin actors making waves on American TV showsPriyanka Chopra and Farhan Akhtar in a still from Dil Dhadakne DoQ Your steamy sex scene in the trailer has created quite a stir Were there any apprehensionsA It is not a sexual role There is one shot of my knee one of the car and then another of Jake McLaughlin Thats all We had to tell that as a story and found an aesthetic way of saying it without me having to do anything We had to show that my character has no inhibitions as a person and men dont matter to her How guys usually treat girls is how she treats guys So that was important to convey As far as personal inhibitions go I didnt have to do anything Indians films today show a lot more than what I have done in it smilesPriyanka Chopra in a still from her maiden US teleseries Quantico in which she plays Alex Weaver a halfAmerican halfIndian FBI agent Q Moving on to your upcoming film Dil Dhadakne Do what is the most interesting thing about your characterA I love Ayesha because she is gentle sensitive and brilliant She is an achiever but only seeks approval from her father I havent played a girly character in a long time We dress up similarly too We share a lot of qualitiesPriyanka Chopra From beauty queen to Bollywood heroineQ So its very close to how you are in real lifeA I am not playing what I am in real life I have spent all my life being different people so I dont know the real me I will find that out when I stop actingQ Will a movie with the Khans happen againA Ask the Khans I have never thought that I need to work with a particular person I am blessed to have had an amazing array of films to pick from It is the prerogative of the directors and producers to cast an actor and not the other way roundQ Buzz is you will be seen in Don 3 tooA I dont know if Farhan Akhtar is making Don 3 as of nowQ You pretty much have everything that a woman aspires to have but marriage is unticked in your bucket list When will that happenA Nobody knows what a woman wants If you do you will make a lot of money I am blessed with a lot of work Marriages are made in heaven and I greatly believe in it I know there is someone made for me When the time is right the universe will conspire and it will happen Till then you live life and revel in it