Meera Chopra, best known as one of the Chopra sisters, was born on July 8, 1983. She hails from Delhi. Chopra made her debut in films with the hit Tamil movie Anbe Aaruyire in 2005. Known as Nila in the Tamil film industry, Meera went on to feature in several southern movies in Telugu and Kannada languages.
Well, starting her career with southern cinema wasn't a planned move by Meera Chopra. She said because of the offers that knocked on her door she went down south, but her dream was always to work in Bollywood.
Meera Chopra was working with a leading news channel and simultaneously doing modelling projects when she got opportunities down South. As her debut became a huge hit, Meera Chopra started getting good offers. "Had I got opportunities from Bollywood I would have definitely done that. The dream was to work in Bollywood," Meera Chopra had admitted, earlier.
Meera Chopra did her Bachelor's degree from Saginaw Valley State University in Saginaw, Michigan, US. After studying mass communications in New York, Meera joined NDTV, however, showbiz attracted her more and she quit her job to pursue modelling.
While her career was shaping well in the southern film industry as Nila, her life changed after facing various controversies one after the other. She was in news in 2011 over a murder case. In 2011, she was said to be apparently wanted by the Delhi police in connection with the death of a 28-year-old married woman, who was found dead under mysterious circumstances.
Meera Chopra was said to be in an alleged relationship with the deceased's husband. In 2009, her name was apparently also implicated in an MMS scandal. The controversies resulted in Meera losing out on plum movie offers and she even had to change her name from Nila to Meera. Ultimately, she had to leave the South industry to look for work elsewhere.
"I will make Chopra surname more strong. I will not let my surname down," said Meera Chopra in 2013.
Her cousin Priyanka Chopra was always ready to help Meera in her Bollywood career and Meera has even said that she shares an 'emotional bonding' with PC.
"Priyanka has always been there for me but I have never asked for her help. She is a sister, a superstar and she knows I have self-respect and that I will never ask for anything," Meera said while talking about shaping up her career in Bollywood.
Though Meera Chopra is close to Priyanka, she doesn't share the same relationship with her other cousin actress Parineeti. Parineeti even went on to say that Meera isn't family but a distant relative. In the past, Meera reacting to Parineeti's remarks against her said they are "unwarranted and stupid". "We all have been brought up together 20 years ago. We used to stay together. All brothers were close to each other before they spilt and brought up in different cities. Parineeti is young, Priyanka and I are of the same age. We are close," Meera said.
For Meera, Priyanka has always been a "huge inspiration" because she has risen to stardom on her own and without any background or godfather. "When I decided to get into Bollywood, I decided not to use her name (to get work) and she appreciates this thing. I want people to take me in films due to my talent and not because of Priyanka putting in a word or she is related to me," Meera said.
Meera Chopra entered Bollywood in 2014 with Satish Kaushik's Gang of Ghosts. Priyanka had promoted Meera's film, 'Gang of Ghosts' by sharing the film's theatrical trailer and tweeting "My sister's first Hindi movie! Check it!!! (sic)". "It was sweet of her (Priyanka) to tweet about the film. She did it herself I did not ask her to do it. I want to prove a point to my family and to everybody that I can do things on my own. Now when I would need help, I will ask her," Meera said.
Gang of Ghosts did not give any boost to her career. She later signed the third instalment of Vikram Bhatt's '1920' franchise - 1920 London. Soon, comparisons were being made with her cousins - Priyanka and Parineeti. But she took it positively and said, "I know comparisons will be there. I am confident as an actress. I think whatever comparisons will be made will be good."
In 2019, Meera Chopra featured in the critically acclaimed courtroom drama, Section 375. She played a cop in the film and earned applause for the role. She will be next seen in Arjun Rampal-starrer Nastik, which is under post-production.
Meera Chopra wants to solely focus on Bollywood projects, which might pay her less but give job satisfaction. "I stopped doing South films as I made a conscious effort to shift to Bollywood. South was giving me work, money, but not happiness. I am a typical north Indian Punjabi girl and I wanted to work with my people, in my language, even if it pays less. I want job satisfaction. I am very happy with Hindi films. I feel at home here," she added.
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