The Indian-born star said that getting a role in the Garth Davis-directed movie was a dream come true for her, reported Femalefirst.
"There is a dark hole sometimes because I have this hyper ambition about the type of artist or actor I want to be, and you know, in India, I'm not valued that much for this intensity. There are different ways of thinking and casting in Bollywood, and I'm not the prototype who has been say, a model turned wannabe actor - a beauty queen who's come into acting.
Priyanka also talked about how they achieved a particularly heart-wrenching scene when Saroo (Patel) finds himself reunited with his mother.
"That scene was their reunion after an entire lifetime. Garth, Dev and I workshopped a lot prior, and Dev and I got to know each other very intimately, in a very beautiful way. Then Garth made sure we didn't see each other for about four days.
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"Lion", also stars Oscar-winning actress Nicole Kidman, is based on the true story of Saroo Brierley, a young Indian boy who gets separated from his brother and mother when he ends up 1,000 miles away from his home, lost at a train station in Kolkata.
Patel is already nominated in the best supporting actor category at the 2017 Oscars for his role of Saroo.