Priyanka Chopra's dating history: From those spicy Shah Rukh Khan rumors to fairytale wedding with Nick Jonas
Love can be a rollercoaster ride. For Priyanka Chopra — who is all set to star in ‘The White Tiger’ — it definitely has been a journey of a thousand miles. Born on July 18, 1982, in Jamshedpur, Bihar, to doctors Ashok and Madhu Chopra, the leggy lass has climbed the ladder of success not only in India but the West too.
Who doesn't know about her fairytale wedding to Nick Jonas that broke millions of girls' hearts? Just after three dates, the Jonas Brothers singer had decided she was “the one” and the couple got married in a lavish Indian-style wedding and another Christian ceremony on December 1 and 2, 2018. But before she took the big step with Jonas, here's a look at her dating history and the rumored six men from her past apart from, of course, what was nothing but a fabrication from the gossip mills (cough… Tom Hiddleston… cough).
Aseem Merchant
Back in her modeling days in 1999, Chopra was rumored to be dating actor Aseem Merchant. If rumors are to be believed, the couple parted ways after her big Bollywood debut. Much later, Chopra's ex-manager Prakash Jaju opened up about their volatile relationship, saying they had several fights that left the former Miss World 2000 in tears.
In a series of now-deleted tweets, he said Chopra “tried to commit suicide 2-3 times” during her “struggling days” and that he stopped her. However, Chopra's father Ashok Chopra strongly dismissed those claims and filed a police complaint against him, citing false accusations and threatening of the family members. In 2008, Jaju was arrested and spent over two months behind bars. Moreover, Jaju’s Twitter account has now been suspended.
Harman Baweja
In 2008, Chopra starred opposite actor Harman Baweja in a futuristic movie called ‘Love Story 2050’. She played a double role in the movie, with the black-haired girl from the past and the red-haired chick in the future. The film tanked at the box office and their chemistry was poorly received by both, critics and viewers, alike. Soon after the movie flopped, the co-stars parted ways.
The two actors never went on to accept or deny their relationship and it isn't clear what exactly went wrong. According to India Today, Baweja once explained the reason for the split, saying, “I blame myself. She kept asking me to give her time but I didn't. I couldn't. After two flops, I felt a lot of pressure to do well in my third film.”
He continued, “I got too engrossed in it. I got too close to the project. Too involved. In fact, Ashu Sir (Ashutosh Gowariker) used to tell me, 'we are not used to people getting into our space. We don't let any actor do that.' But I crossed all boundaries. I was involved at every stage, every level. What's Your Raashee was very important to me.”
He later said in another interview, “Whether we were together or now, I don't think our work can ever get affected. We're thorough professionals about this. We've been great friends and we still are great things. It was fabulous working with her earlier. It's fabulous now. I don't think personal relationships should affect the quality of my work.”
Shahid Kapoor
Having starred in several movies together, Chopra and actor Shahid Kapoor used to live in the same building at one time. The hit duo even made a stint on a popular Indian talk show called ‘Koffee with Karan’ together and stirred gossip mills with dating rumors despite their tight-lipped answers.
In another season, he did confirm the two were once dating. When director and talk show host Karan Johar quizzed him which relationship’s memories he would like to delete, Chopra or actor Kareena Kapoor, Shahid quipped, “See, my relationship with Kareena was longer and with Priyanka, it was shorter. I think the man that I am today is because of all the experiences that I’ve had. So I wouldn’t want to delete any of the memories. It’s taught me a lot.”
Moreover, Chopra said that the relationship didn't come in the way of her equation with Kareena. “Actually, that was not a point of contention. It was the only point of commonality,” she remarked on the show.
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar and Priyanka Chopra starred in a string of films together and in an interview, the blockbuster star opened up about his fallout with her. Since the 2003 film ‘Andaaz’, their fiery on-screen chemistry led to speculations that the two were involved in a relationship. If rumors are to be believed, Kumar's wife Twinkle Khanna landed up on the sets of one of the films when he wasn't answering the call.
A few years down the line, the two stopped working in films together and that led to speculations if they had had a fallout. Kumar rubbished those rumors on a news show ‘Aap Ki Adaalat’ and said, “There is nothing like that. I have worked on five films with Priyanka. It's not like I don't want to work with her. Except for Rani Mukerji, I have worked with every heroine. If there is an opportunity, I will surely work with Priyanka Chopra.”
Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra's rumored affair is one of the most talked-about scandals to date in Bollywood. In one of her earlier interviews, Chopra confessed that SRK was her biggest crush since childhood.
After the two starred in ‘Don’ together, they were seen getting cozy at a few award functions and the buzz got stronger when Shah Rukh went on to receive PeeCee and landed a kiss on her cheeks. In a few interviews, SRK said she was the only one who made him feel like a friend instead of a “star”. However, SRK's wife Gauri Khan is rumored to have stopped him from being in touch with the actress and Johar also threw shade at her.
When Chopra spilled the beans on a jacket owned by an ex, eagle-eyed fans traced it back to SRK. “This is a jacket that I literally live in. It's my airport jacket, but it belonged to an ex-boyfriend,” she said. Moreover, one Twitter user alleged that Chopra accidentally liked and unliked his post about the confirmation that she was dating SRK. Was it true or not? No one really knows.
Gerard Butler
Back in 2009, when Gerard Butler came to India, he was invited to Chopra's Versova home and rumors swirled that he was smitten by the former beauty queen.
Dishing out details, an insider told The Times of India, “Of course the party was for Gerard who was completely besotted by Priyanka and kept proposing to her every half hour. It's become a standing joke rather than a 'kneeling' joke between them. 'Will you marry me?' he knelt and said every half hour while she would burst into laughter.” In a 2012 interview, he jokingly said, “I’m still single because I’m waiting for Priyanka Chopra.”
Nick Jonas
Priyanka is now happily married to Nick Jonas and they often share moments from their private life with their followers. Wondering how their relationship started? It began with a text message. Yes, can you believe it? “I'm hearing from a few mutual friends that we should meet,” he texted to Chopra. She saw that and was quick to respond, “My team can read this. Why don't you just text me...” along with her phone number.
From there, the relationship only got stronger and in 2018, Nick's parents Denise and Paul arrived in Mumbai to meet Priyanka's mom, Madhu, who threw an engagement party for the couple.
“One of the most special things that our relationship has given us is a merging of families who love and respect each other’s faiths and cultures. And so planning our wedding with an amalgamation of both was so so amazing,” Jonas wrote in a post.
Recently, in an interview, the actress said she was shocked by his “audaciousness” and added, “That was the most attractive thing about Nick and still is for me...” She also said, “We build each other up. There's no, like, I want to pull you down, negativity, drama. We can have real conversations. It's the sexiest thing about our relationship, to be able to have conversations and actually enjoy them. Where it's not tedious. You can talk for hours and hours, and you're just like, 'Oh, we don't even remember what we talked about.'”