Priyanka Chopra has enjoyed a remarkable and prosperous career in the film industry spanning two decades. However, filmmaker Anil Sharma recently disclosed that her journey nearly came to an abrupt halt before it truly began. Early in her career, the actress experienced complications from a nose surgery, which led to her dismissal from nearly all her projects. Sharma intervened during this challenging time, preventing her from returning home.

Anil Sharma on Priyanka Chopra's nose surgery

In a discussion with Siddharth Kannan on his YouTube channel, Anil Sharma, who directed Priyanka in her Bollywood debut, The Hero, reflected on her formative years. Reports indicated that Priyanka underwent a 'botched nose job' in an attempt to resemble Julia Roberts. Nevertheless, the filmmaker contested this narrative, clarifying that it was merely 'a medical procedure that went awry' and emphasized that it was 'not her fault.'

Despite the unfortunate incident resulting in the loss of several projects, Priyanka approached Sharma to return the signing amount she had received for The Hero. “At that time, I had already given her a token of ₹5 lakh. She came with the cheque, stating that she had been let go and was planning to return to Bareilly. They mentioned they were waiting to refund my money. I told her to keep the money and admonished her a bit. She then explained the situation regarding her nose,” the filmmaker recounted.

Sharma noted that Priyanka was on the verge of abandoning her film career and relocating back to Bareilly, where her family resided. However, he dissuaded her from doing so. He recalled, “She mentioned that her father had already returned to Bareilly and resumed his duties in the army. Her mother indicated she would also return to her practice. They believed it would take some time for Priyanka to recover, planning to return after a year or so. They were incurring significant rent here, and they were not affluent like the Ambanis. I urged them to reconsider.”

Priyanka Chopra's career

Ultimately, Priyanka chose to remain in India and marked her entry into Hindi cinema with The Hero, featuring Sunny Deol and Preity Zinta. That same year, she achieved commercial success with Andaz and garnered critical recognition through her performances in Aitraaz, Barfi, and Mary Kom. In the mid-2010s, she relocated to the United States, embarking on a new chapter in her career with the television series Quantico, followed by significant roles in major productions such as The Matrix 4 and Citadel.

Read Also: Meet Abhimanyu Thilakan: The Ferocious Antagonist in Marco and Heir to a Cinematic Legacy