Throwback Tuesdays: When Preity Zinta claimed IPL didn’t require her and she opted for Nach Baliye

Punjab Kings, previously known as Kings XI Punjab, is one of the oldest teams in the Indian Premier League (IPL), formed in 2008. The team is owned by Preity Zinta, Mohit Burman, Ness Wadia, and Karan Paul. Despite its long history, Punjab Kings has yet to secure an IPL trophy, though it’s recognized for delivering memorable cricket moments.

In 2015, Preity Zinta took on the role of a judge in the dance reality show, Nach Baliye. Speaking with IANS, the Kal Ho Naa Ho actress revealed that in 2008, she prioritized cricket over acting. She had recently launched a new business and wanted to devote more time to her IPL team. Zinta understood that focusing on cricket might impact her acting career and chose not to take up roles that could hinder her commitments to the production house or herself. Consequently, she made a conscious decision to concentrate on her professional growth and dedicated additional time to cricket.

But, in 2015, when she joined Nach Baliye as the judge, Preity said, “IPL doesn’t need me anymore. Now I just have to come and watch the game. The business is doing well, the team is doing well. Things have fallen into place. Now, doing this (Nach Baliye) or movie sounds exciting to me because I’ve been away from them for some time. I’ve come back with a fresh perspective, and I’m in a different space. I never thought that I would be so excited about judging a dance reality show.”

Preity Zinta served as a judge on Nach Baliye for Season 7 in 2015. In her acting career, she made a cameo in Welcome to New York and featured in the 2018 movie Bhaiaji Superhit with Sunny Deol and Arshad Warsi.