Chopra is in no mood to be small about storytelling. She was at the Cannes Lions to put some numbers to it: she lauded the horror film Obsession as evidence that the old gatekeepers are on their way out, and made it known that Rajamouli’s Telugu opus Varanasi is set to be put into nearly 200 languages for a 2027 audience that is truly without borders.
Why Chopra’s praise for Obsession matters
It was a message the other creators in the room could get behind: if you have something to say, the industry isn’t as hard to get into as it used to be. With Obsession’s kind of worldwide pull, she said, you don’t need to be part of the in-crowd to make an impact.
Have an idea? Make it, put it up on YouTube, and before you know it, it’s your version of Obsession, she put it. It’s a bit of a 180 for the star who first made inroads in the West with Quantico.
Varanasi aims global with 200-language push
She is putting her own money where her mouth is. Varanasi, which has Mahesh Babu and Prithviraj Sukumaran in front of the camera, will be available in close to 200 dubs, according to Chopra.
She has nothing but good words for how Rajamouli runs his set. “You come in with your character and that’s it,” she says, a far cry from the headspace of a producer. The movie is on track for Ram Navami 2027.
Key milestones ahead
For those keeping score, here is what is on the docket:
– Varanasi in 200-some languages
– Hitting the big screen on Ram Navami 2027
– First day of shooting for Reset in August 2026
– Matt Smukler at the helm of Reset
From Purple Pebble to Prime Video: producer instincts
With Purple Pebble Pictures in India, she has been opening doors for some fresh talent. Over in Hollywood, she made her mark as a producer on The Bluff for Amazon Prime, a project done in with the Russos’ AGBO, Cinestar and Big Indie.
What makes a film worth her time? Not whatever is in vogue right now. She has a way of following her gut because trends are fleeting. You see it in everything she does, whether in India or the U.S.
Reinventing in Hollywood, without losing balance
Chopra is open about where she is headed. In Hindi, she has had her fill of working with the best in every genre. In English, not so much. That is what she is after now.
That is where a survival thriller like Reset comes in. She and Orlando Bloom have been looking to put one together for a while. She is co-producing the Smukler-directed effort through Purple Pebble, with cameras rolling in August 2026.
Things have mellowed a bit since she became a wife and a mother. She is not churning out five movies a year any more; she is picky about how she uses her time. It is probably why there is so much chatter around her latest moves.
A changing industry, in her own words
When she was starting out, she was on her own in a very specific corner of the business. “My parents were doctors,” she will tell you. And back then, people would say Indian film would never be as big as Hollywood’s due to the language barrier.
But with the way non-English films and a title like Obsession have been received, that is old news. It is an invitation to the rest of us: make the movie and let the world come to it.
