As an actor & producer, my hats are different: Priyanka Chopra on backing 'Born Hungry'

As an actress, Priyanka Chopra Jonas is constantly trying to challenge herself, but as a producer, she said she wants to back stories that move her personally, something that propelled her to back the documentary ‘Born Hungry’ on celebrity chef Sash Simpson.

The documentary, currently streaming on ‘JioHotstar’ in India, traces the life of Simpson - from being abandoned as a young boy in India to his adoption in Canada and his eventual success as a renowned chef. It is produced by Priyanka’s banner ‘Purple Pebble Pictures’ along with Barry Avrich’s ‘Melbar Entertainment Group’.

The actress, known for her extensive filmography in India and in the US, said she was moved by Sash Simpson’s story.

“As an actor and as a producer, my hats are kind of different. And my brain splits into two. I think as an actor, I’m constantly trying to challenge myself. I want to be able to see if I can navigate different genres and if I can do action, comedy and drama. I love challenging myself and that is why my acting career has had variety. As a producer, I’m empathetic and our ethos is around a lot of wanting to give opportunities to newer filmmakers or filmmakers that want to achieve something that they haven’t been able to or are kind of hitting a wall somewhere. My production side kind of comes from what personally moves me,” Priyanka told PTI in an interview from Los Angeles.

The story of ‘Born Hungry’, the actress said, came to her in 2023 via Barry, who wanted her company to amplify Sash Simpson’s story. “I just remember watching it myself and us, as a company and just being so moved by not just his story, but the narrative that the director had created. We really wanted to get behind it to maximise the reach of this film. So, hopefully, with JioHotstar’s reach, maybe Sash will get some answers about his birth family or where he comes from, which is what he's really seeking,” she said.

Priyanka said when she set up her production house, she started with strong stories like ‘Ventilator’ and ‘Paani’ in regional cinema.