Priyanka Chopra compares her life with friends who married early: ‘They have kids that are 16 or 17 now’

Priyanka Chopra reflected on her life and said many of her friends got married in their twenties and weren’t encouraged to pursue their ambitions or careers.

In a new interview, Priyanka Chopra opened up about coming from a small town and making it big in the film industry, first Bollywood and now Hollywood. The actor said that unlike her, many of her old friends 'weren’t encouraged to pursue their ambitions or professional careers'. She said they married young and now have 'kids that are aged 16 or 17'.

Priyanka Chopra, Nick Jonas with daughter Malti Marie Chopra Jonas at Mumbai airport in March. (File Photo)

Priyanka, who was born in 1982 in Jamshedpur to Ashok Chopra and Madhu Chopra, both Indian Army physicians, was crowned Miss World in 2000. She made her acting debut in the Tamil movie Thamizhan (2002), followed by her first Bollywood film, The Hero: Love Story of a Spy (2003). She married Nick Jonas in 2018, and their daughter Malti Marie Chopra Jonas was born last year.

In a recent interview, Priyanka, who was last seen in the Hollywood film Love Again and is now working on her next with Idris Elba, said women are 'are raised with having many glass ceilings' as she made a comparison between her friends' life and her life. She told Femina, "It’s hard because I think we are raised with having many glass ceilings. Unfortunately, many of us are told that there’s only that much you can do. And ambition is usually – and maybe for you and me, maybe for our families – it’s different."

Priyanka continued, “But there are so many girls around the world. I come from a small town. So many of my friends got married in their early twenties and weren’t encouraged to pursue their ambitions or professional careers. They have kids that are like 16 and 17 now. And that’s fine. There’s nothing wrong with wanting to be at home, taking care of your family. I love doing that. It’s one of my favourite things.” She then adds something that is crucial for her, and not an addendum. “I think encouraging girls to have dreams is key. To be able to navigate their aspirations and not set a glass ceiling. My parents didn’t do that with me. That’s the reason why you and I are here. Because we had parents that encouraged us and who didn’t treat us differently from our brothers. Who told us – you have a dream, we are here with you.”

Priyanka was recently seen at Met Gala 2023 with singer-husband Nick Jonas. She has been busy with the promotions of Love Again, and her Prime Video series Citadel in recent weeks. She is now working on Heads of State in which she will be seen with John Cena and Idris Elba.