Priyanka Chopra's name, along with that of Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, had been doing the rounds as the new Incredible India brand ambassadors since January this year, though there had not been a formal announcement.
Priyanka Chopra is on a roll – it's been just a week since she got the Padma Shri, the country's fourth highest civilian award, and now, from what sources say, she's all set to become the sole brand ambassador for Incredible India, the government's global marketing campaign to promote tourism in India.
And what has tipped the scales in Chopra's favour is her new international celebrity status – in January this year, the actor bagged the "favourite actress in a new TV series" award at the People's Choice Awards the first south Asian actress to do so. The actress continued her run in the public eye when she became the first Indian to present an award at this year's Oscars – the award for best editing. At home, she's also had a good run with Bajirao Mastani, where her portrayal of the Maratha ruler's first wife has her won critical acclaim and a few awards.
But it is her new status as an international icon, say the sources, could go a long way to reverse India's image as a destination not safe for women tourists. As a woman and a known face in the West, her word would carry weight, so goes the reasoning in the government.
Chopra's name, along with that of Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan, had been doing the rounds as the new Incredible India brand ambassadors since January this year, though there had not been a formal announcement. However, the recent revelations about Bachchan's alleged links with dubious offshore companies in Panama, seem to have led to a government rethink on his appointment as brand ambassador to the campaign, which the ministry now calls 'Atulya Bharat'.
Bachchan and Chopra were to have replaced Aamir Khan who had been the brand ambassador for the Incredible Indian campaign for a decade before his comments on the "rising intolerance" controversy had led to his exit from the role last year. The ministry had then refuted the controversy saying that McCann Worldgroup, the creative agency for the Incredible India campaign, had hired Khan, and that since the agency's contract had ended so had the actor's tenure as brand ambassador.
Speaking to the media on the sidelines of an event in the capital on Tuesday, Union tourism minister Mahesh Sharma, however, refused to confirm that Bachchan's name had been dropped, saying that his ministry was yet to take a decision on the issue.
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