Priyanka Chopra Reveals She Still Worries About Daughter Malti After NICU Stay: ‘The Stakes Are So High’

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Priyanka Chopra Reveals She Still Worries About Daughter Malti After NICU Stay: 'The Stakes Are So High'

Honest insight. Priyanka Chopra Jonas made rare comments about becoming a mother — and how the newest addition to the family changed her perspective on life. “It’s been 20 years of hustling and working at breakneck speed. I’ve always been like, ‘What’s the next thing?’ Chopra Jonas, 40, told British Vogue in an interview for their February 2023 cover, which was published on Thursday, January 19. “But now I feel I have a center, a sense of calm, because every decision ends up being about her.” The Baywatch star, who shares 12-month-old daughter Malti with husband Nick Jonas, noted that her outlook on her career has shifted. “I want her to be able to look back and be proud of my choices,” she said. “I want to do right by her.” The twosome announced the arrival of their first child in January 2022. "We are overjoyed to confirm that we have welcomed a baby via surrogate," the couple, who tied the knot in 2018, said in a statement. "We respectfully ask for privacy during this special time as we focus on our family. Thank you so much." Before expanding their family, the pair made headlines for their romance. Chopra Jonas and the musician, 30, sparked romance rumors after they crossed paths at the 2017 Met Gala. Us Weekly broke the news in May 2018 that the duo were officially dating. [jwplayer fjvYJoL2-zhNYySv2] Jonas and Chopra Jonas got engaged after two months together and tied the knot that same year. The band member later praised his unique bond with the Isn't It Romantic star. "It's just that magical connection you've got with somebody when it's right. We're very lucky. We knew each other well before we started dating properly, and I think that foundation as friends always helps in relationships that have evolved in an organic way," he explained during an interview with SiriusXM in March 2021. "It's been a wild first couple of years of marriage, and I'm very blessed to have a life partner that I can rely on, and vice versa hopefully." Since becoming parents, Jonas and Chopra Jonas offered a glimpse at their new roles. “I have, like, seven cameras in her room,” the India native admitted on Thursday. “There’s really nothing more satisfying than seeing her face as soon as her eyes open.” Meanwhile, the former Disney Channel star said there was "nothing better" than being a dad, adding, “Overwhelming. The joy, the anxiety, all of the things.” Scroll down for Chopra Jonas' biggest confessions about motherhood:

Credit: Zoë Ghertner

Her Decision to Have a Surrogate

Chopra Jonas candidly discussed her journey to motherhood — and addressed her decision to stay tight-lipped about surrogacy.

“I had medical complications [so] this was a necessary step, and I’m so grateful I was in a position where I could do this," she said. "Our surrogate was so generous, kind, lovely and funny, and she took care of this precious gift for us for six months.”

The former beauty pageant contestant slammed the trolls who questioned her personal choice.

“You don’t know me,” she added. “You don’t know what I’ve been through. And just because I don’t want to make my medical history, or my daughter’s, public doesn’t give you the right to make up whatever the reasons were.”

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Addressing the Response to Her Surrogacy

“I’ve developed a tough hide when people talk about me,” the Quantico alum shared, referring to speculation about her approach to growing her family. “But it’s so painful when they talk about my daughter. I’m like, ‘Keep her out of it.’ 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. 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.”

Credit: Zoë Ghertner

Dealing With Malti's Early Delivery

Chopra Jonas broke down her daughter's first three months following a premature birth.

“I was in the OR [operating room] when she came out. She was so small, smaller than my hand," she explained. "I saw what the intensive-care nurses do. They do God’s work. Nick and I were both standing there as they intubated her. I don’t know how they even found what they needed [in her tiny body] to intubate her.”

The new mom continued: “We spent every single day with her on my chest, on my husband’s chest. I didn’t know if she would make it or not.”

Credit: Zoë Ghertner

Sweet Glimpse at Their Daughter

"Most people say she looks like Nick. I don’t believe it," Chopra Jonas joked when discussing who she thinks Malti resembles more.

The Bollywood star also recalled adjusting to life as a mother, adding, “The first time she had a solid morsel, she gagged and I thought I’d killed her.”

According to Chopra Jonas, having her in-laws around has helped her settle into the next chapter of her life. “They talk me through a lot of this. Like, ‘They’re gonna gag. It’s normal,'" she shared. "But because I’m a NICU mommy, the stakes are so high. And I have to shed that. I will.”

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Making Romance Work Amid Parenthood

“We did go zero to 60,” the actress recalled of her courtship with Jonas. “We didn’t know each other’s careers before we met. Like, didn’t know them well. So we do a show and tell once in a while and share random things that we’ve done to show the other person what we were like when we were younger.”

Chopra Jonas gushed about her husband after nearly five years of marriage, saying, “He’s a wise man beyond his years. I get affirmations from him all the time, to remind me of my value when I forget or when I get insecure. He just sees through the fog for me. He sees the best in people.”