Is Parineeti Chopra the next Kajol?

Harshada Rege (DNA; September 13, 2013)

The lights up the screen every time she is on it. Critics call her a powerhouse of talent. She is spontaneous, and effortlessly overshadows her heroes. She is careless about her appearance, is not size zero and is unapologetic about it. She defies rules and does unconventional roles. You'd think we are describing Kajol. Yes, all that holds true for her, but it also does for Parineeti Chopra. All of the above, plus the the fact that she isn't trying to fit into anyone's (including cousin sister Priyanka Chopra's) shoes has put this newbie on the wishlist of many B-Town filmmakers. While the glamour brigade might not consider her competition, Parineeti is slowly but surely making her way to the top. Just like Kajol did. The parallels between the two actresses are just too many to be ignored. Read on and you'll soon be nodding in agreement...

Slow start: Kajol made her debut with Bekhudi in 1992. The film failed to make much noise at the box office. Similarly, Parineeti started her inning with Ladies VS Ricky Bahl (LVR) that was average fare and she shared screen space with Dipannita Sharma, Aditi Sharma, and more importantly Anushka Sharma (the leading lady). And despite the no-show at the cash register, both Kajol and Parineeti were noticed by the critics as well as the industry.

Girls-next-door charm: Parineeti, like Kajol, doesn't follow or set trends. Her dressing style has even drawn flak at times, but the actress chooses to dress for comfort rather than to make a fashion statement. Like Kajol, she believes that her work should speak for her and that is all she is really bothered about. As long as she gets a thumbs-up from the audiences, she doesn't care about the thumbs down from fashion critics.

Adi's girls: The Yash Raj bond is common to both the actresses. Kajol was in Aditya Chopra's debut film as a director " Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge. And Parineeti is Adi's find. She made her debut with YRF. Kajol made her comeback with the banner after having her daughter Nysa, with Fanaa. Parineeti has so far only acted in Yash Raj films " Ishaqzaade and Shuddh Desi Romance. With Kill Dil, Pari will be a part of KJo's Dharma production (another Kajol territory)

Critics' favourite: Like Kajol, who won praise even in movies that were absolute disasters, Parineeti has proved her mettle in every movie that she has acted in. She has manage to woo the critics in movies that didn't really focus on her (LVR) or were meant to be the hero's launch vehicle (Ishaqzaade). And now in Shuddh Desi Romance she has stolen the thunder from Sushant Singh Rajput. Often tagged as spontaneous, an attribute that Kajol has possessed, Parineeti seems to be doing everything right in front of the camera.

The future: Parineeti's innings in B-Town will now depend on the choices she makes. After playing the much-loved Simran in DDLJ (1995), Kajol shocked everyone when she played the villain in Gupt (1997). She is probably one actress who has tried her hand at all sorts of roles and has been extremely convincing at it. Shuddh Desi Romance sure wasn't run-of-the-mill, but hereon it will be interesting to see if Parineeti continues to pick projects that are slightly risky. Will her journey be like that of Kajol, or will it take a different route? Watch this space.