Priyanka Chopra ropes in designer Pria Kataria Puri for Zanjeer

Priyanka Chopra flew in to Mumbai from the US on Thursday morning for a very special appointment with Kuwait-based international designer Pria Kataria Puri. Known for her international couture which yokes Indian and global designs into one statement of grace, Pria has so far avoided doing up the Bollywood divas in any of their movies, although there’s been no dearth of requests. But when Priyanka wanted Pria Puri for the clothes and styling in Zanjeer the designer couldn’t say no. After all, Priyanka Chopra is now an international artiste, what with her first English-language single cracking the charts. Says a source, “Priyanka personally preferred Pria to do her clothes in Zanjeer. This is Priyanka’s first assignment after the release of her international single ‘In The City.’ She wants an entirely international look for her character. Moreover Priyanka plays an NRI in Zanjeer. She wants her clothes to reflect the tastes of a global woman who happens to be Indian. Priya with her Indian background and international attitude was seen to be an ideal candidate to dress up Priyanka in Zanjeer.” The first dress rehearsal took place on Thursday evening, but not before Priyanka heard three scripts and sat for a dialogue discussion for a film. Only then was she free to sit down with Ms Kataria, her Zanjeer director Apoorva Lakhia and producer Amit Mehra for discussions on the clothes. Says the source, “Priyanka flew into Mumbai at 4 am on Thursday spent the entire day listening to scripts and then went into a huddle with Pria Kataria Puri that lasted way past midnight. They discussed her look in Zanjeer and finally came up with a line-up of clothes that would define both the character and Priyanka’s new stature as a global artiste.” The team has decided for a look for Priyanka in Zanjeer that has never been tried before for any Bollywood actress.