It would be easy to dismiss Sophie Choudry as just another PYT (pretty young thing). She’s always seen at the hippest soirees, perfectly turned out in outfits that enhance her glamorous image. Her friends include Mallya scion Sidhartha. And yet, there’s more to Sophie — who shot to the limelight as part of the girl band Sansara and then as an MTV VJ — than meets the eye.
Named by her father after the legendary Sophia Loren, it seems Sophie was predestined for the glamour industry. A prophecy that came true when music composer Biddu discovered her when she was only 12. He was also responsible for her move to Mumbai in 2003.
“My mentor Biddu told me that if I was serious about my career I would have to move to India for a year and see what happens,” Sophie recounts. The transition wasn’t without its difficulties. “Despite the acute differences between London and Mumbai, I fell in love with the city; its people were welcoming, the energy infectious and it allowed me to pursue my dreams. I adjusted quickly thanks to people like the late Feroz Khan sahib who knew me from London and treated me like family. So did Fardeen and Zayed (Khan) and their families. Rocky S too. I can never forget that. They were all so welcoming! And of course the MTV family.”
The London School of Economics alumnus (Sophie graduated in European Politics and French) received a lot of support from her mother, whom she calls her “icon”. Incidentally, Sophie’s mother also became her manager after their move to India, and Sophie says, “We make a great team; she left her home and business in London just so I could come here to follow my dream.”
It’s a dream that Sophie’s worked hard to see to fruition, although being photographed in the company of the jet set at various Page 3 dos seems to suggest otherwise. “I believe in supporting my friends. All the events I attend are for them or for PR purposes. I’m not someone who goes out weekly and parties the night away. In fact, I’m not even a drinker. For me partying is about hanging out with close friends and dancing to great music,” Sophie explains, adding with a laugh, “I just like to dress up and look good, hence I go out! But I’m definitely not some bimbette ‘party girl’. If I were making as much money as Paris Hilton attending parties, I may reconsider the tag. And trust me, having met Paris, I can tell you she’s anything but a bimbo.”
In between appearances with her famous friends, live shows in places as diverse as Bali and Thailand and her Bollywood commitments, Sophie also manages to make time for her childhood friends in the UK. “They are all successful, enterprising men and women in the fields of law, advertising and banking. I catch up with them whenever I’m in London. But I’m blessed to have really good friends in India and Dubai and I cannot imagine my life without them! They are amazing!”