Gotham Chopra

Early life

Chopra was born Gautam Chopra in what is now part of the Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Massachusetts in 1975, the son of spiritualist and author Deepak Chopra and his wife, Rita. He is a first-generation American and the first in his family to be born outside of India. Chopra's father was busy and rarely home during the first years of Chopra's childhood. He recalls that his father drank and smoked a lot until he joined the Transcendental Meditation (TM) movement when Chopra was five. The family as a whole started practicing TM.

Chopra graduated from Belmont Hill School in 1993, then Columbia University with a bachelor's degree in English and Literature. In 1993, while Chopra was in college, the family relocated to California.

Career

After graduating from Columbia, Chopra was a news anchor for the Los Angeles-based Channel One News, which broadcast to teenagers in social studies classes across the United States. In August 2001, he was arrested at Islamabad International Airport when empty bullet shells were found in his bag. These were a gift from the Taliban, who he had been in Pakistan to interview. His father, at this point popular within celebrity circles, called Colin Powell and arranged his release. Within a few weeks, 9/11 occurred and Chopra's interview tapes were confiscated. Between 2006 and 2008, he worked as a consultant for Current TV.

In 2000, he co-founded Chopra Media with his sister Mallika. In 2012, Chopra launched the YouTube channel The Chopra Well along with his father and sister. At its debut, Vicente Fox, Paulo Coelho, Lisa Ling, and Fran Drescher were featured.

In 2006, he, Sharad Devarajan, and Suresh Seetharaman co-founded Virgin Comics and convinced Sir Richard Branson to invest. In 2008, the company changed its name to Liquid Comics following management changes. Chopra co-created the Bulletproof Monk comics with Brett Lewis and R. A. Jones. Devarajan, Chopra, and Seetharaman established Graphic India in 2011 under the Liquid Comics name. This company focuses on the Indian youth market and the creation of characters inspired by Indian myth and legend. Peter Chernin joined the team as an investor in 2013 and is a joint owner of Graphic India.

In 2012, Chopra created, produced, and directed Decoding Deepak about his father. In 2014, Chopra hosted the talk show Help Desk on the Oprah Winfrey Network. In 2015, he was the executive producer on Kobe Bryant's Muse on Showtime. He also directed The Little Master, a documentary about Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar as part of ESPN's 30 for 30 series, and directed and produced I Am Giant about New York Giants wide receiver Victor Cruz.

Religion of Sports

Religion of Sports, a sports-focused media company, was founded in 2016 by Chopra, Michael Strahan, and Tom Brady. Chopra created, directed, produced, and narrated the docuseries Religion of Sports, which examines the profound influence sports can have on societies and cultures beyond entertainment value. The show's third series aired in 2018.

Religion of Sports' Why We Fight, an eight-part docuseries about opioid addiction in sports starring Zachary Wohlman, received a Sports Emmy nomination in 2018 in Outstanding Serialized Sports Documentary. This was Chopra's first Sports Emmy nomination. It won a Sports Emmy for Outstanding Serialized Sports Documentary in 2019. The same year, Shut Up and Dribble was nominated for Outstanding Open/Tease and Outstanding Sports Promotional Announcement at the Sports Emmys. The three-part docuseries, which aired on Showtime, was inspired by Fox News host Laura Ingraham's February 2017 comment that LeBron James and Kevin Durant should stay out of politics and "shut up and dribble". The series, produced by LeBron James and directed by Chopra, shows "attempts by NBA players to bring about social change and speak up politically" throughout the years.

Chopra is also involved with several podcasts for Religion of Sports, including as the host for Man in the Arena: Tom Brady and Why Sports Matter (with Tom Brady and Michael Strahan).

Personal life

Chopra married Candice Chen c. 1993; the couple have a son. As of 2022, Chopra is based in Los Angeles.

Works

Books and comics

Filmography

References

References

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