JD - One supposes that the OP is referring to undertaking an ab-initio PPL course whereas your acquaintance was already a professional pilot - hardly a valid comparison.
There is, as has been pointed out, no restriction on the class or type of aeroplane on which a PPL may be undertaken (except that it must be certified for single-pilot operation). If money is of no object, it is certainly achievable and could, in theory, be completed in as little as 105 hours flight time.