Priyanka Chopra’s egg freezing news didn’t come as much of a surprise as the actor seemed in no rush to have babies with husband Nick Joanas, while she was in her late 30s. She recently revealed that she froze her eggs at the age of 36—a decision that Chopra says, gave her the freedom to pursue her career ambitions and focus on herself.
Chopra, who rose to fame with her roles in Bollywood and Hollywood, revealed that she underwent the procedure to expand her fertility potential on the encouragement of her mother, who is an Ob-gyn.
In an interview, Chopra candidly discussed the physical and emotional toll that egg freezing took on her. She described the process as painful but necessary, emphasizing the importance of educating women about their reproductive choices.
“The biological clock is for real. It gets so much harder to get pregnant after 35 and to carry to term and all of that, especially with women that have been working all our lives. If you can afford it, I tell people you save money for a car, do it for this Christmas,” the actor said in a recent episode of Dax Shepard’s Armchair Expert podcast.
Ideal age for egg freezing?
Is there an ideal age for egg freezing? Yes, it’s usually done best at a younger age—your early 30s. The quality and quantity of a woman’s eggs declines with age and female fertility declines sharply in her late thirties.
Noting this possible fall in her fertility, Priyanka said that even though her mother nudged her, she did it for herself.
“Science is at such an amazing place right now, and if you can afford it, it’s the best gift you’ll give yourself because you’re taking the power from your biological clock,” she said. “Your eggs will be of the same age as when you froze them.”
In the two-hour-30-minute podcast interview, the actor also opened up about initial reluctance towards husband Nick Jonas, female fertility, freezing one’s eggs, pay disparity in her industry as well as her life and work in Bollywood and Hollywood.
Meeting Nick and deciding to start a family
Priyanka was 35 years old when she met the much younger Nick Jonas.
Nick was already besotted with the gorgeous Indian beauty since their earlier meeting at the Met Gala but it was on his brother Kevin’s encouragement that he reached out to the Quantico star.
Apparently, the singer-songwriter slid into her DMs and they started chatting but Priyanka wasn’t single at the time; she was in a “tumultuous relationship”.
Eventually however, they started dating but even then, their 10-year age gap made Priyanka hold back a little.
“I didn’t want to engage as much at the time. I was like 35, he was 25. I really put a stop on it in a way because I judged the book by the cover,” she said, adding that she was clear about wanting to settle down.
“I have been there and done the fun days. I was like ready to get serious, not realising my husband was actually a dear old man stuck in a 25-year-old’s body.”
Chopra has earlier told Vanity Fair that kids were a “big part” of the future she and husband Nick Jonas imagined together.
Always wanted kids
“I always knew I wanted kids and that was one of the reasons I didn’t want to date Nick because I was like I don’t know if he would want kids at 25… I love kids, I have worked with kids at UNICEF, I have volunteered at kids’ hospitals, I am like a kid whisperer, and I would rather spend time with children than with adults. I love kids, all our parties are kids- and dogs-friendly, at our house, you can bring them anytime,” Priyanka said
So, she decided to freeze her eggs to maintain her fertility potential through the years.
“I felt such freedom. I did it in my early 30s and could continue on an ambitious warpath. I wanted to achieve, and I wanted to get to a certain place in my career. Also, I had not met the person I wanted to have children with,” she added.
Priyanka Chopra on achieving pay parity
Achieving pay parity has been a popular topic with women in recent times and Priyanka who says she was always paid only 5-10% of her male co-stars, always demanded equal pay and finally got it for her Amazon Prime Video Series Citadel.
“I have asked for it. I have been down this road before. After that, whatever it was, I’ve always had parity if I’m playing a co-lead with someone. It’s amazing. I hope my daughter, or the next generation of girls, are not having this conversation,” she said.
“It obviously depends on what role it is, and how much work you’re putting in. But if he is a co-lead of mine, he should get paid what I’m paid, or the other way round,” the actor added.
In the entertainment industry, actors are however paid more for their popularity and ability to draw crowds. Men in showbiz typically have a much longer runway as compared to women, and they also have obvious biological advantages over women, which allows them to work consistently for much longer and thus have a wider fan base.
As advancements in science allow more freedom to women, and as their roles evolve, we might see real pay parity in future.
Priyanka Chopra’s surrogacy decision and the painful criticism
In January 2022 Priyanka and Nick announced the arrival of their baby girl, Malti Marie, who arrived via surrogacy. The couple’s use of a surrogate invited much criticism as people assumed it to be a decision of convenience.
An year later, Priyanka Chopra addressed the comments in Vogue UK’s February 2023 issue.
“I’ve developed a tough hyde when people talk about me,” she told the magazine. “But it’s so painful when they talk about my daughter. I’m like, ‘Keep her out of it.'”
Malti was born three months premature and spent the first 100 days of her life in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).
“I know what it felt like to hold her little hands when they were trying to find her veins, so no, she’s not going to be gossip,” the protective mother said of her daughter.
The former Miss World also revealed that surrogacy was not a convenience but a medical necessity. “I had medical complications,” she explained. “This was a necessary step, and I’m so grateful I was in a position where I could do this. Our surrogate was so generous, kind, lovely and funny, and she took care of this precious gift for us for six months.”
She said she’s quite because she doesn’t want to discuss her own or Maltie’s medical history in public but that “doesn’t give you the right to make up whatever the reasons were.”
“I’ve been really protective of this chapter of my life with my daughter. Because it’s not about my life only. It’s hers too.”
She is magical
In the May 2023 issue of Elle, Chopra revealed that Malti has her “wrapped around her finger.”
“I don’t even know how I’ll ever discipline her because I just don’t have it in me. I was so close to losing her so many times that she can get away with anything, and I just want to see her happy,” she said.
Baby Malti, who will turn 2 on January 15, 2023, is the sunshine of her parents’ lives revealed the actor, in the May 2023 episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen. “She is like magical. She doesn’t jet lag. She sleeps whenever and she is the happiest, most joyous baby ever,” Chopra gushed.
How much does egg freezing cost?
Even Priyanka Chopra finds it expensive! It is true that fertility treatments don’t come cheap but there are ways you can preserve your fertility at an affordable price.
The cost of egg freezing depdsn upon where you get it done, the technology used by the clinic, the qualification and capabilities of the doctors, etc. Don’t let the high cost of the procedure hold you back.
If you are in your early to late thirties and are looking for affordable egg freezing, we can help you.
Many of our clients form the US and Canda chose to go to Mexico for egg freezing, where we use the world-best Cryotec technology (which has almost 100% freeze-thaw survival rates) and costs only $4,600.
We also have the cryotec technology at JCI-accredited IVF clinics in Thailand, where it costs $5,500, as well some top fertility clinics in Malaysia, where egg freezing package is $4,000.
