Meghan Markle Is Dealing With "Plus One" Status, According To Priyanka Chopra

Priyanka Chopra is one of Meghan Markle's best friends, and she's irked that Markle is being treated as a "plus one."

"Sometimes women become plus-ones, and sometimes guys become plus-ones," Chopra, 35, told People Tuesday evening. "It’s who is on the radar more."

Markle, who is dating perhaps the most high-profile bachelor on the planet, is often mentioned only in reference to Prince Harry — often, she's nothing more than an asterisk next to the name of the Prince of England. This is natural; Harry is, by default, more "on the radar" than Markle. Still, Chopra argued, it's harder for a woman to escape this kind of sidecar title.

"I think in an overall scheme of things, it’s harder for girls to be able to make their own stand for what they are," she explained.

In early September, Chopra criticized Markle's Vanity Fair cover for the same reason.

"I don't know if I will get into trouble for this, but I have an opinion," Chopra told Entertainment Tonight after the cover was released. "I mean, she's on the cover of Vanity Fair. It would have been nice to write about her not just her boyfriend. I'm just saying. I mean, she's an actor, she's an activist, she's a philanthropist. I mean, she does so much more."

Chopra called the profile "a little sexist" because it focussed on Markle's relationship with Prince Harry, when Markle is also a Global Ambassador for World Vision Canada and a star of the television drama Suits. Unfortunately, this isn't what Markle is known for at the moment. Markle rose to sudden — and almost dangerous — level of fame in 2016 when news broke that she was dating the younger Prince. Interest in Markle grew so frenzied that Kensington Palace issued a statement condemning comments made about Markle in the press.

"[Harry's] girlfriend Meghan Markle has been subject to a wave of abuse and harassment. Some of this has been very public — the smear on the front page of a national newspaper; the racial undertones of comment pieces; and the outright sexism and racism of social media trolls and web article comments," the statement read. "Prince Harry is worried about Ms. Markle’s safety and is deeply disappointed that he has not been able to protect her."

Chopra is right — Markle has been suffering from "plus one" status from the moment the public discovered she was dating a royal. It's only natural that we're fascinated with Markle; she's dating the progeny of Princess Diana, the world's most beloved princess. However, it's important to keep in mind Markle's individual achievements as she ascends to A-List celeb status.