English: Laila Ali in A Pea in the Pod (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Priyanka Chopra
English: Indian actress Priyanka Chopra (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
What she said:
“Today, I can beat (up) anyone, it feels great.”
Actress and pop diva Priyanka Chopra confesses that she draws some satisfaction from her new-found ability to physically match almost anyone post training for the title role of her latest film, ‘Mary Kom’.
Chopra was all laughs claiming that building the muscles for the role “tired her”.
“But it was worth it! Building muscles can’t make you feel empowered, but stronger. I did! I have lost all my muscle now, but I still feel strong. I still believe I have those muscles. Muscles are a very superficial thing. What they did for me, honestly, was being able to learn a sport. I’ve never learnt a sport in my life. That too a contact sport. For me, it was a huge challenge to learn an entire sport. Today, you can put me in a boxing ring. I may not be able to beat another boxer, but I’ll be able to give her a tough fight. I’ve learnt it that much.”
The thespian now believes that every woman should learn some form of self-defence.
“I think girls should be able to do what they want, be free and not be worried about protecting themselves. But I think that in the world that we live in today, unless the laws that have been made to protect us have been implemented well enough, we should learn some form of self-defence just for confidence. You may not be able to beat a guy who’s coming at you, but you’ll be able to put up a fight. And that can really scare some people off. So, with that, you will be able to put up a fight, and say, ‘You cannot take advantage of me’. For some, that power comes from the gym. But one has to find an individual source. For me, it came from being agile, from learning this new sport.”
Meanwhile, Mary Kom, was all praise for Priyanka Chopra’s work in the biopic.
“Priyanka did a great job. I am very happy for her. She is the best person to fit in the role.Priyanka did hard work, and you can see the muscles.”
The five-time World champion believes that her sport—boxing— should be promoted like kabaddi and soccer.
“If people like it (film) then it could happen. Promotion is necessary. Just like kabbadi and football. The country is getting medals in individual sports like archery, weightlifting, wrestling, and with promotion more medals could come in future.”
What Priyanka Chopra really meant:
“Now, I can get my own back on anybody who messes with me—by knocking them flat on their backs. ‘Chops’ is for real.”
What she definitely didn’t:
“Watch out, Laila Ali—here I come.”
Make Time For Sports. 
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