Ashok Chopra
Dr. Lt Col Ashok Chopra, born on August 23, 1950, in Ambala Cantonment, Haryana, to Army officer Kasturi Lal Chopra and Champa Wati Chopra, was a distinguished Indian Army surgeon and the father of Priyanka Chopra. After completing his medical studies at Armed Forces Medical College, Pune, he joined the Army Medical Corps in 1974 and rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel before retiring in 1997. Known for his passion for music as well as medicine, he conducted school choirs and performed frequently, later founding three Kasturi Hospitals in Bareilly in his father's honor. Ashok Chopra married Dr. Madhu Chopra, also an Army doctor, on February 19, 1981, and together they raised two children: Priyanka and Siddharth. Remembered for his discipline and protective parenting, he shared a particularly close relationship with Priyanka, who even has a tattoo in his handwriting. After battling cancer since 2005, Dr. Ashok Chopra passed away on June 10, 2013, in Mumbai, leaving a profound impact on his family and all who knew him