Parineeti Chopra wants her own identity

Mumbai: Parineeti Chopra loves Priyanka Chopra, but is somewhat wary of her star cousin`s name being mentioned every time she is being discussed.

Parineeti now wants her own identity. "I am proud to be Priyanka`s sister. But I want to be known for myself, the way Ranbir Kapoor is known although he is Kareena Kapoor`s cousin," said Parineeti who has been part of two hits ‘Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl’ and ‘Ishaqzaade’. "I don`t want to be called only Priyanka`s sister. I want to be as good as her. People should say Priyanka and Parineeti are both fabulous actors," she added. However, she clarifies that she doesn`t see Priyanka as competition at all. "How can Priyanka be my rival? She is been here so much longer," she said. Apart from acting, another common trait between them is that like Priyanka, Parineeti too is a trained singer. The former made her singing debut through international music single "In My City". "It runs in the family. My dad and Priyanka`s dad are brothers. They used to sing together on stage. And when Priyanka and I were kids, we performed on stage together. So yeah, I love singing. If I get a chance to make a dream singing debut like Priyanka, I`d grab it. Maybe later. And I also love reading. But most of all I like sleeping. That`s when I regain all my energy. Then I go out and act." For her, self-discipline is a precondition. "I was a focussed student in school and college. I want to continue that way as an actress," she said. As for stardom, Parineeti rejects it at the moment. "I am not a star at all! Stardom comes after years of work. It doesn`t happen with two films. Let me get a solid seven-eight years of work done before we talk of stardom for me. I`m just lucky to be here at a time when audiences are willing to watch newcomers. "Yeah, I do enjoy being recognised on the streets. If that didn`t happen, I`d be really depressed. My aim is to be known by everyone who sees films. I don`t want any viewer to ask, `Parineeti who?` I am here for a very long time," she said. IANS