Meera Chopra, who gained success in Tamil and Telugu cinema, faced significant challenges transitioning to Bollywood. Despite being the second cousin of Priyanka Chopra and Parineeti Chopra, Meera considers herself an outsider in the Hindi film industry. She recently opened up about her struggles breaking into Bollywood and the impact of nepotism.
Speaking to Hitflik, Meera discussed her bond with Priyanka, sharing, “Our fathers are first cousins. We were a very close-knit family when we were young. Very middle class. When we were small, nobody really thought that we will get into the glamour field. When Priyanka made her breakthrough, she paved the way for us all. Otherwise, I feel, back then, the middle class never considered cinema as profession. People didn’t think beyond doctors and engineers.”
View this post on Instagram
Meera, who debuted in the 2005 Tamil film Anbe Aaruyire, acknowledged her successful South Indian film career, despite initial hesitation. “In the South, I never went out and looked for work. I was not even interested in the South because I am a very North Indian Punjabi girl. The language was always an issue for me. Every movie I did there, I told myself, ‘This will be my last film’. Yet, I ended up doing about 25 films. It was because they were offering me work and the money they gave was so tempting,” she recalled.
However, Bollywood proved to be more challenging. “I have heard stories of people who have been dying to work down South meeting the wrong people. I never faced that; in fact, I faced this in Bollywood. Here, I was going out and looking for work. I never got work served on a platter,” Meera said, highlighting her struggles with networking in a close-knit industry where connections are key.
She added, “It’s a little scary to start with. It’s a very close-knit industry. A lot of people don’t know what goes inside. Nobody knows where to start. When I came here, I didn’t know if I need to meet a certain director, and how I need to go about it. Nobody shares their numbers, and even if they do, the person never replies to your messages.”
Coming from a successful South Indian career, Meera had to let go of her ego and start fresh in Bollywood. “I came from a very successful career, and I had the confidence that I will be able to make it. When you come from a successful career in one industry, it becomes difficult to start from scratch in another.”
She also reflected on how important networking is in Bollywood, something she initially overlooked. “In the beginning, I was told, ‘You have to network, you have to go to parties, you have to make your own connections’, which now I know is very important because this industry is like a cult. There are many different cults in this industry, and you have to be a part of one group so that you keep getting work from that group. It still happens that way. In this industry, you get work if you are friends with the right people. It’s much easier. To prove your worth takes much longer time and struggle.”
Meera, who lost several roles to star kids, shared her frustration with the industry’s favoritism. “I would have done over 20 films even if I didn’t have the talent,” she said. “A lot of times, I have given auditions for several roles, which I don’t give anymore because I have lost faith in it. It happens that you audition for a role, and a month later you are informed the role has gone to somebody who belongs to the industry. It has become a rampant practice.”
Concluding her thoughts, Meera commented on the current state of Bollywood, saying, “Right now, the industry is flooded with star kids, and sorry to say, they are very average. Except Alia (Bhatt), I don’t see anybody having the calibre to do the kind of work they are doing. They are getting work only because they are born and raised in this industry. Will anybody bet on an outsider after four flops? No.”
