Indian actresses profile list series(Z)

Zareena wahab

"Tum to bhangan lagti ho!" Raj Kapoor told Zarina Wahab when he saw her at FTII. She was upset but this motivated her to pay more attention to make-up and become presentable. She hailed from the hometown of Waheeda Rehman and in fact, even shared her guru with Waheeda. She was good at befriending people, saying the right things to the right people and Nargis, Waheeda, Raakhee and Rekha started singing her praises even before she signed her first film! Zarina had the image of the girl-next door, made acceptable by Jaya Bhaduri earlier, and the roles of middle-class young girl fitted her like the proverbial glove in films like 'Chitchor'76, 'Gharonda' (1977), 'Do Hawaldar', 'Gopal Krishna' (79), 'Salaam Memsaab' (1979), 'Aakhri Insaaf', 'Sitara', 'Taxi Chor'(1980), 'Khoon Ki Takkar', 'Roohi' and others. She was perfect as a typist, or even as a girl who could not type, or a girl in love searching for a roof below which she could build a 'gharonda' (nest). 

After a brief affair with a young Aditya Pancholi, she made a real gharonda, marrying him and having two beautiful daughters. For quite some time, it seemed to be made of sand as the Poojas of the film world pursued the handsome and irresistable Aditya. There would be scenes. Their marriage was stormy, but the two finally settled down. These days Zarina is doing some TV serials.

Zeenat Aman

Born on: November 19, 1951

Nationality: Indian

Career: Actress

Nickname: Babushka

 

Zeenat Aman, the very name brings about images of a pot-smoking girl singing ‘Hare Krishna Hare Ram’ or a female dressed in white, trying to woo her guy by singing ‘Chura Liya Hai Tumne’, strumming her guitar all the while. Zeenat is one of the few actresses of the 1970s and 1980s who went against the 

norm and portrayed a heroine who was bold and comfortable in her skin as well as with her sexuality. She debuted in the Hindi film industry in 1971, with the film ‘Hungama’. However, it was her third movie, ‘Haré Raama Haré Krishna’ that made people sit back and take notice of her. Since then, she never felt the need to look back.

 

Childhood and Early Life

Zeenat Aman was born on 19th November 1951, to a Hindu mother and a Muslim father. Her father Amanullah was one of the writers of the classic, period film "Mughal-e-Azam". She was the only child of her parents and witnessed heartbreak at a very young age, when her parents got divorced. Tragedy further struck her at the age of thirteen, when her father passed away, leaving a void in her life. Zeenat attended Saint Xavier's school in Bombay during her schooling days and graduated from there.

 

After graduating from Saint Xavier's, she managed to bag a scholarship to study in Los Angeles, California. Completing her studies, she came back to India and started working as a reporter, for the magazine ‘Femina’. It were her friends who introduced her to modeling and she went on to do Pond's ‘7 day to better complexion’ ad campaign. She also modeled for Taj Mahal tea. Thereafter, she entered Miss India contest and ended up being the second runners-up. Later, she went to Miss Asia/Pacific and became the first ever Indian to win the title.

 

Career

Zeenat Aman began her film career in 1971, with a small role in O. P. Ralhan's movie ‘Hulchul’. Thereafter, she was seen in Hungama (1971), starring singer Kishore Kumar. None of the films proved to be successful and she was hardly noticed. It was another 1971 film ‘Hare Rama Hare Krishna’, which served as the first major role of her career. Zeenat played the role of Dev Anand’ sister 'Janice/Jasbeel', which was first offered to Zaheeda. She won the heart of the audience in the R. D. Burman's song "Dum Maro Dum".

 

The film ended up getting her Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award, along with BFJA Award for Best Actress. In fact, the movie got Zeenat even more attention than the female lead, played by the reigning actress ‘Mumtaz’. The rest of the 1970s saw Zeenat pairing with Dev Anand a number of times, in films like ‘Heera Panna’ (1973), ‘Ishq Ishq Ishq’ (1974), ‘Prem Shastra’ (1974), ‘Warrant’ (1975), ‘Darling Darling’ (1977) and ‘Kalabaaz’ (1977). Amongst all these films, ‘Warrant’ proved to be the biggest box-office success.

 

Her popularity during this time can be gauged from the fact that in December 1974, Cine Blitz magazine was launched with Zeenat Aman gracing its cover. Zeenat worked with some of the biggest names of that time - B. R. Chopra, Nasir Hussain, Shakti Samanta, Manoj Kumar and Manmohan Desai. The year 1978 saw her playing the lead role in Raj Kapoor's ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’. Though the film bombed at the box office at the time of its released, it was appreciated by audience in the later years.

 

‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ earned Zeenat the Filmfare nomination for Best Actress. The same year, she was seen in ‘Shalimar’, which was to serve as her entry into Hollywood. The film proved to be failure in USA as well as in India. However, soon she was seen in ‘Don’, the success of which covered up failure of both ‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ and ‘Shalimar’. She was back in the limelight once again. ‘Dharam Veer’ and ‘Dostana’ are amongst the other films that she did in the late 1970s.

 

In 1980 came Zeenat’s ‘Insaaf Ka Tarazu’, in which she played the role of a justice-seeking rape victim. She was highly appreciated in the movie and also received a Filmfare Best Actress nomination. The same year, she did Qurbani, a love triangle that became a box office hit. ‘Abdullah’, a costume drama set in the arid desert, was another film that she did in 1980. In 1981, she was seen in ‘Laawaris’, the film that is known for its song ‘Mere Angene Mein, Tumhara Kya Kaam Hai’ till date.

 

Zeenat continued to act in films through the 1980s, which included 'Jaanwar', 'Vakil Babu', 'Hum Se Hai Zamana', 'Sohni Mahiwal', 'Meri Adalat', and 'Daku Hasina'. It was in the year 1989 that she was last seen in a lead role, in ‘Tujhe Nahin Chhodunga’ and 'Gawahi'. Zeenat was again seen on-screen, after a gap of 10 years, in the film ‘Bhopal Express’ (1999). After acting in Boom (2003), she was last seen in Jaana: Let's Fall in Love (2006) and Sirf Romance: Love by Chance (2007).

 

Personal Life

Zeenat Aman’s first marriage was with fellow-actor Sanjay Khan, which ended in a tragic divorce. She married for the second, this time a minor-actor Mazhar Khan. The couple had two kids - Azaan and Zahaan. As if the marital stress was not enough for her, Mazhar fell ill with liver dysfunction. Zeenat spent almost all her savings on his treatment. However, neither doctors nor prayers could save Mazhar and he breathed his last in September 1998. She did not even get the time to get over the tragedy, when her in-laws started defaming her in public.

 

Along with that, they also stole her son and brainwashed him so much that he refused to see Zeenat and at times, even abused her. This went on for a period of five years. Finally, with the help of her old friends like Dimple Kapadia, Zeenat called a press conference and decided to let the world know her side of the story. Soon, all the allegations against her stopped and she managed to win back her son. Presently, Zeenat lives in Mumbai, with her two sons and makes many social appearances. However, she is seen on-screen very rarely.

 

Awards and Nominations

 

1972 - Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for Hare Rama Hare Krishna

1972 - BFJA Awards, Best Actress for Hare Rama Hare Krishna

1978 - Filmfare Nomination as Best Actress for Satyam Shivam Sundaram

1980 - Filmfare Nomination as Best Actress for Insaaf Ka Tarazu

2003 - Bollywood Awards 'Award for Lifetime Achievement' - Lifetime of Glamour

2006 - "Outstanding Contribution to the Motion Picture Industry of India Award” at the eighth annual Bollywood Movie Awards

2008 - Zee Cine Award for Lifetime Achievement

 

Filmography

 

1970 - The Evil Within  

1971 - Hungama, Hulchul, Haré Raama Haré Krishna

1973 - Yaadon Ki Baaraat, Heera Panna, Dhund

1974 - Roti Kapada Aur Makaan, Prem Shastra, Ishq Ishq Ishq, Manoranjan, Ajanabee

1975 - Warrant, Chori Mera Kaam

1976 - Deewangee, Balika Badhu (uncredited - voice)

1977 - Paapi, Kalabaaz, Dharam Veer, Darling Darling, Chhaila Babu, Aashiq Hoon Baharon Ka, Hum Kisi Se Kum Nahin

1978 - Shalimar, Heeralal Pannalal, Chor Ke Ghar Chor, Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Don

1979 - The Great Gambler

1980 - Takkar, Ram Balram, Bombay 405 Miles, Abdullah, Alibaba Aur 40, Qurbani, Dostana, Insaaf Ka Tarazu

1981 - Professor Pyarelal, Katilon Ke Kaatil, Krodhi, Laawaris

1982 - Samraat, Pyaas, Jaanwar, Daulat, Ashanti, Gopichand Jasoos, Vakil Babu, Teesri Aankh

1983 - Taqdeer, Pukar, Hum Se Hai Zamana, Mahaan, Bandhan Kuchchey Dhaagon Ka

1984 - Yeh Desh, Sohni Mahiwal, Pakhandi, Jagir, Meri Adalat  

1985 - Yaar Kasam, Bhawani Junction, Ameer Aadmi Gharib Aadmi, Yaadon Ki Kasam

1986 - Haathon Ki Lakeeren, Baat Ban Jaye, Aurat  

1987 - Daku Hasina

1988 - Namumkin  

1989 - Tujhe Nahin Chhodunga, Gawahi  

1999 - Bhopal Express

2003 - Boom

2006 - Jaana: Let's Fall in Love

2007 - Sirf Romance: Love by Chance

Zeba Bakhtiyar

Ziya Khan

Indian actresses profile list series(Y)

Yana Gupta

Biodata / Profile

Name	Yana Gupta
Birth Name	Yana Synkova
Date of Birth	April 23, 1979
Birth Place	Brno, Czech Republic
Nationality	Czechoslovakia
Yana Gupta Height	5′8″
Eye colour	Hazel
Star Sign	Taurus
Spouse	Satyakam Gupta [2001 -2005]
Languages known	Czech language, Spanish, Japanese, English and Hindi
Hobbies	Playing piano, flute, dancing, aerobics, health, fitness etc
Telugu debut	Gharshana (2004)
Tamil debut	Manmadhan (2004)
Profession	Actress, Model
Bollywood Debut_________	“Dum” [2003]

Hot facts in Biography

# Yana Gupta fell in love and married Satyakam Gupta an Indian painterin 2001, but separated very early on 18th May 2005.

# After divorcing her husband Yana Gupta dated Aftab. Yana and Aftab did not hide their relationship from media. They claimed that the understanding between them was so good that Yana actually encouraged Aftab to kiss his co-star Celina Jaitley in “Red”. [2007]

# She broke up with Aftab in 2007. She felt that he was not the person she would like to marry.

# Yana Gupta is penning a book on nutrition. “It’s a fitness and health book. I have been into nutrition since I was 16. I am a fitness trainer and also an acupuncture practitioner who treats people. ” [About her book, 2006]

# She is graduated in Park Architecture and Gardening.

# Her hobbies includes playing piano, flute, dancing, aerobics, health, fitness, and computers.

# Yana Gupta learnt singing in London to prepare herself for her musical album. She joined a course in London’s Trinity School of Music.

# The actress is a member of PETA and spreading awareness against the cruelty to animals.

# She appeared in Kannada movie “Jogi” which was a blockbuster of the the year.

# She is an European, but always mistaken as East Indian origin.

# Yana Gupta appeared on many magazine like ELLE, Cosmopolitan, Femina, Maxim etc.

She was named the new face for Lakme cosmetics in 2001. Thus she replaced its former model Lisa Ray.

# She is a vegetarian.

# The actress campaigned for Calvin Klein, Victoria’s Secret, Toyota, Honda, Sony, and cosmetic products such as Nivea, Rexona, Shuemura, & Shisheido etc..

Yana Gupta quotes

# “I have got a strong liking for south Indian dishes. I really love having all those idlis, upma and masala dosas. Most of the preparations here are made with coconuts, perhaps that’s one reason I like the food here”

# “I have not strutted my stuff yet. If I start showing off and try to look sexy, many actresses will not get a sound sleep. Till now, whatever I did was just the tip of the iceberg. The day I will show the whole iceberg, no one will stand any competition against me.”

# “I am working hard on improving my Hindi so that I can work easily in Bollywood. I don’t want to restrict myself to being an item girl. The artiste in me is waiting to bud out and brim with creativity.”

# “I’m very health conscious and carry small dabbas of stuff like my soya protein and calcium powder which I mix. They look kind of weird and I’m always questioned for it. I also have small acupuncture needles which I bought from China, which look like tiny sharp objects in the X-ray machine.”

# “I am passionate about my dance. I would always like to dance. But, I am not in a hurry to accept every offer that comes my way”

# “One has to stick to exercise regime and right dietary schedule to keep those extra pounds at bay and maintain baby soft skin”

# “I am even thinking that I should sing a song in Tamil and I think it’ll sound really cute what with my accent and all”

# “I am happy with what I am today. I thank all my fans who have given me so much love and affection and always appreciated my work.”

# “I enjoy dancing very much. Besides, I had started taking dance coaching when I was fourteen.”

Yana Gupta best movie list

Manmadhan [ T.R. Silambarasan , Jyothika Saravanan , Sindhu Tolani , Atul Kulkarni , Goundamani , Mandira Bedi , Yana Gupta ]

Gharshana [ Asin , Saleem Baig , Yana Gupta , Venkatesh ]

Anniyan [ Vikram , Sadha , Vivek , Prakash Raj , Yana Gupta , Nasser , Kalabhavan Mani , Nedumudi Venu , Saurabh Shukla ]

Shankardada Zindabad [ Chiranjeevi , Srikanth , Karishma Kotak , Dilip Prabhavalkar , Sayaji Shinde , Brahmanandam , Vennirade Nirmala , Sarathbabu , Subramaniam Dharmavarapu , Yana Gupta , Ravi Teja , Allu Arjun , Pawan Kalyan ]

Yogeeta Bali

Yukta Mookhey

Profile

• Name: Yukta Mookhey
• Date of Birth:  7th October, 1979
• Star Sign:  Libra
• Height:  5′ 11
• Hair Color:  Black
• Family Mrs.Aruna(Father) Mr.Inderlal (Mother)
• Contact Address:  1103/B Sky Pan Oberoi Complex, Near SAB TV Office Off Link Road, Near Laxmi Industrial Estate, Andheri (W), Mumbai 400 053

Indian actresses profile list series(W)

Waheeda Rehman

Waheeda Rehman is a famous Indian actress, who ruled over Bollywood in the late 1950s and 1960s. The epitome of Indian classical beauty, she was one of the most graceful actresses of the yesteryears. Who can forget the soulful song ‘Chaudhvi Ka Chand Ho, Ya Aftab Ho’, picturized on her? An extremely versatile actress, she could portray the role of a femme fatale as well as a prostitute, with equal elan. With time, she moved on from lead roles to character roles and even today, she is one of the most respected members of the Indian film fraternity.

Waheeda Rehman was born on 14^th May 1936, in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, into a traditional Muslim family. Her father was a DM (District Magistrate), which resulted in the family moving from one city in the South to another. However, he ultimately settled in Vizag and it was here that she was brought up and had her schooling. Though Rehman had dreamt of becoming a doctor, fate had something else planned for her. Due to some infection in her lungs, she had to drop out of school.

This ended her dream of attaining a medical degree. Just like most of the females born in South India, Rehman also underwent trained in the classical dance of Bharatnatyam. As if the shattering of her dream was not enough, she had to go through two more tragedies. In 1948, when she was hardly 12 year old, her dad passed away. By the time she came to terms with her loss, another tragedy had struck her. Rehman lost her mom within a few years. Alone in this world, she strived to chart out a path in her life.

 

Career

Waheeda Rehman made her debut in the Telugu film industry, with the movie ‘Jaisimha’ (1955). It was followed by another Telugu film, ‘Rojulu Maraayi’, released the same year. It was around that time only that Guru Dutt spotted the charming beauty and brought her to Mumbai. He cast her as a vamp in his production ‘C.I.D.’ (1956). From there on, started her career as one of the most popular actresses of Bollywood. Next, she was seen in a leading role in Guru Dutt’s ‘Pyaasa’ (1957).

 

In Pyaasa, she played the role of a prostitute, with a heart of gold, and managed to win the heart of everyone, including Guru Dutt. It is said that it was around the shooting of this film that Guru Dutt fell in love with Rehman. She again paired with Dutt, for the movie ‘Kaagaz Ke Phool’ (1959). The film was believed to be Guru Dutt’s autobiography, as it was based on the story of a successful director's downfall after he falls in love with his leading lady. Though both of them were excellent in the film, its somber mood didn’t go down well with the audience.

 

The marital status of Guru Dutt and the rising success of Rehman ultimately led to a breakup between the two. However, not even at a single point of time in her life did Rehman say anything about her relationship with Guru Dutt. Till date, she maintains a stoic silence on the topic. Even after breaking apart personally, Dutt and Rehman continued to appear in films together. They did ‘Chaudhvin Ka Chand’ in 1960 and followed it with ‘Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam’, in 1962. It is said that they did the latter one under great strain.

 

Rehman and Dutt parted ways after Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam’s screening at the Berlin Film Festival. Though the film received indifferent reception at the festival, it was much acclaimed in India and even won the President's Silver Medal. The year 1963 saw her in a dacoit drama ‘Mujhe Jeene Do’. In 1964, Dutt had the dangerous concoction of alcohol and sleeping pills and breathed his last in his Pedder Road home. The same year, she was seen in ‘Kohra’, a re-make of Hitchcock's ‘Rebecca’.

 

 In 1965, Rehman was seen in ‘Guide’, one of the most successful films of her career, and also won Filmfare Best Actress Award for the same. Then, she acted in ‘Teesri Kasam’ and ‘Dil Diya Dard Liya’, in 1966. ‘Patthar Ke Sanam’ and ‘Ram Aur Shyam’ were her movies in 1967, both of which were big hits of that time. Her next film ‘Neel Kamal’ (1968), won her another Filmfare Best Actress Award. ‘Khamoshi’ (1969) and ‘Reshma aur Shera’ (1971) were her other major films, with the latter winning her a National Award for Best Actress.

 

Later Career

With time, especially with the onset of 1980s, Waheeda Rehman moved on to character roles. She was often seen playing the mother of Amitabh Bachchan. ‘Namak Halaal’, ‘Himmatwala’, Mahaan’, ‘Coolie’, ‘Mashaal’ and ‘Chandni’ were some of her major films of that time. She was seen in ‘Lamhe’ in 1991, after which she took a sabbatical from work. She came back to films in 2002, playing mother to Anil Kapoor, Fardeen Khan and Abhishek Bachchan in ‘Om Jai Jadgish’ Her latest films are ‘Water’ (2005), ‘15 Park Avenue’ (2005) and ‘Rang De Basanti’ (2006).

 

Personal Life

Waheeda Rehman is said to have a brief affair with Guru Dutt, though she has refused to comment on it all her life. She married Kanwaljeet Singh, who starred opposite her in ‘Shagun’, on 27^th April 1974. Thereafter, she moved from Mumbai and settled in her farmhouse in Bangalore. The couple had two kids - Sohail and Kashvi. Kanwaljeet left for the holy abode on 21^st November 2000, after a prolonged illness. After the death of her husband, Rehman moved back to Mumbai and settled in her sea-facing Bandra bungalow, where she lives now.

 

Awards

 

1971 - National Award for Best Actress, for Reshma Aur Shera.

1965 - Filmfare Best Actress Award, for Guide

1968 - Filmfare Best Actress Award, for Neel Kamal

1994 - Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award

 

Filmography

 

1956 - CID

1957 - Pyaasa

1958 - 12 O'Clock, Solva Saal  

1959 - Kaagaz Ke Phool

1960 - Kala Bazar, Ek Phool Char Kaante, Chaudhvin Ka Chand

1962 - Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam, Bees Saal Baad, Baat Ek Raat Ki

1963 - Mujhe Jeene Do

1964 - Kohra

1965 - Guide

1966 - Teesri Kasam, Dil Diya Dard Liya

1967 - Patthar Ke Sanam, Ram Aur Shyam

1968 - Neel Kamal, Aadmi  

1969 - Khamoshi

1970 - Prem Pujari

1971 - Reshma Aur Shera

1973 - Phagun

1976 - Aadalat, Kabhi Kabhie

1978 - Trishul

1982 - Sawaal, Namak Halaal  

1983 - Himmatwala, Mahaan, Coolie  

1984 - Mashaal

1989 - Chandni

1991 - Lamhe

2002 - Om Jai Jagadish

2005 - Water, Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara, 15 Park Avenue

2006 - Rang De Basanti

2006 - Chukkallo Chandrudu

2008 - Dilli 6

Indian actresses profile list series(V)

Vasundhara Das

Biography / Biodata

Name	Vasundhara Das
Alternative Names	Vasundhra Das / Vasundara Das
Nick Name	Shakalaka baby
Date of Birth	1977
Birth Place	Bangalore, Karnataka, India
Nationality	Indian
Height	5′6″
Eye colour	Grey eyes
Hair colour	Brown
Father	CEO of a MNC, Bangalore
Mother	Nirmala Das, Scientist
Music Teacher	Pandit Parameshwara Hegde, Keherwana Gharana
Education	B.A, Economics & Math
College Days	Mount Carmel College, Bangalore, Karnataka
Hobbies	Travelling, Adventure Sports, Nature Sports, Camping
Mother tongue	Kannada
Languages worked	English, French, Tamil, Kannada and Hindi
Languages Known	English, Hindi, Kannada, Tamil, Spanish, Telugu
Genre	Western and Hindustani classical
Instruments She plays	Guitar
Her Musical band name	“Arya” with Roberto Narain
Her band’s first performance	Festival La Mar de Musicas, in Spain,2003
Favourite Actor	Kamal Hassan
Favourite Music director	A.R Rahman
Favourite singer	“Aziza Mustafa Zadeh”  Arabic singer
Dream person	Ricky Martin
Favourite music	Western, Hindustani Classical, Jazz, Pop
Favourite Book	The Fountainhead
Favourite Dress	Fusion clothes
Hindi Acting debut movie	Hey Ram (1999)
Tamil Acting debut movie	Hey Ram (1999)
Malayalam Acting debut movie	Ravana Prabhu [2001]
Kannada Acting debut movie	Lankesh Patrike [2002]
Singing Tamil debut	Mudhalvan, 1999, [Shakalaka Baby]
Singing Hindi debut	Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India, 2001 [O Rey Chhori]
First Album	“Meri Jaan”
Profession	Indian actress, singer, Model

Vani Vishwanath

Veena

Vidya Balan

Biography

Vidya Balan is a Tamilian from Kerala. She is from the Iyer community. She comes from a middleclass family from Palghat, on the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.  Vidya did her schooling from St Antony's School and later on joined St Xavier's College from where she graduated in sociology.  When she was doing her MA from Mumbai University, she was offered a role in a Malayalam film titled Chakram with Mohanlal, one of Vidya’s favorite actors. However, the project was shelved mid-way and Vidya had to wait for few more years to make her movie debut.  She made her debut as a model in a Surf Excel advertisement in 1998. She has acted in scores of ad films, most of which were directed by Pradeep Sarkar. A couple of months later, she featured in three music videos (again directed by Sarkar) for ‘Euphoria’, Shubha Mudgal and Pankaj Udhas.  Vidya Balan started work as an actress in the Malayalam movie Chakram, paired against Mohanlal, however the film was abandoned mid-way through production. After making her debut in television advertising as a model for a Surf Excel advertisement in 1998, she proceeded to do over 25 TV ads, (mostly directed by Pradeep Sarkar), followed with a variety of acting stints in music videos (Euphoria, Shubha Mudgal and Pankaj Udhas), Hindi TV soap operas (Hanste Khelte and Hum Paanch) and a Bengali movie, Bhaalo Theko, for which she won the Best Actress Anand Lok Puraskar award in Kolkata.Hanste Khelte and Ektaa Kapoor's Hum Paanch. In the meantime, she acted in Bengali movie Bhalo Theko with actor Joy Sengupta. She even won the ‘best actress’ Anand Lok Puraskar in Kolkata for her performance in the movie. It was in Mumbai, during a pop concert, when filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra approached her to play the female lead in his movie Parineeta, to be directed by Pradeep Sarkar. Vidya had to go through 40 screen tests and 17 make-up shoots before she was finally chosen for the lead role in the film. Vidya has a very traditional Indian look in contrast to most of today's Bollywood starlets. She is associated with AmFar (Americans for AIDSResearch) and Hale House, a home for children born with HIV and those affected by Drug Addiction. She also involves herself with the Harvard AIDS Institute, by Hosting Forums and participating in events throughout the year. No wonder that Vidya Balan is one of the most talked about names in Bollywood today.   Date of Birth : January 1, 1982   Education : St. Antony's School and St. Xavier's College   Family : Father - P R Balan (Vice-President of ETC   channel), Mother (House maker), Elder Sister.   City : Palghat, Kerala   Occupation : Bollywood actress and Fashion Model   Debut Film : Parineeta   Languages : Tamil, Hindi, English, Malayalam, Bengali   Awards : Star Screen Award Most Promising Newcomer - Female, Parineeta (2005), Filmfare Best Debut Award, Parineeta (2005) Zee Cine Award Best Female Debut, Parineeta (2005) IIFA Award Best Female Debut, Parineeta (2005) Stardust Superstar of Tomorrow - Female, Parineeta (2005).

Vidya Sinha

Vijayashanti (Telugu Lady Superstar, Hindi, Tamil)

Biography

Vijayashanti is an actress who has starred in over 165 movies in 7 languages including Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi. She was born in Andhra Pradesh, India on June 24, 1964. She is credited as The Lady Superstar and The Action Queen of Indian Cinema. At the peak of her career, she was among the highest paid movie stars in India.

Vijayashanti's given name was 'Shanti'. Her screen name was based her aunt Vijaya Lalitha, who was a veteran heroine in Telugu and Tamil films. She began her acting career in 1979 at the age of 15 as the leading lady in the Tamil film Kallukkul Eeram ('Stones Have Tears') directed by the legendary Tamil film-maker Bharati Raja. The same year, she debuted in her native Telugu with the movie Kilaadi Krishnudu ('Cunning Krishna'), pairing opposite superstar Krishna. For the first few years, she portrayed mostly glamour roles. Notable among them is her role in the Telugu film 'Satyam-Shivam' (1981), the cast of which included the two legends of Telugu Cinema - NTR and ANR. Vijayashanti's first break as a performer came in the 1983 Telugu film 'Neti Bharatam' directed by T. Krishna. The next few years saw her in performance-oriented roles (Desamlo Dongalu Paddaaru, Vandemaataram, Pratighatana, Repati Pourulu, Devalayam, etc), and in glamorous roles (Challenge, Desodhdhaarakudu, Pasivaadi Praanam, Muddula Krishnaiah, Agni Parvatam, etc). By 1985 she was exclusively acting in Telugu films. 

Viveka

Vyjayantimala (Now Vyjayantimala Bali)

Vyjayanthimala or Vyjayanthimala Bali  was born on August 13, 1936, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. She is a major Indian actress of the 1950s and '60s, very prominently in Bollywood, and won a large number of awards for her acting and classical dancing achievements. Following her cinema career, she entered Indian politics, and became a Member of Parliament.

Early life

Born in Madras. She did her schooling at Sacred Heart Church Park Convent, Chennai. She trained in Bharatnatyam, a South Indian genre of classical dancing.

Career

Early career

At age 15, she got a break in an AVM (production house) Tamil movie, Vazhkai, which was produced by M. V. Raman, a family friend. The movie was a success, and was remade in Hindi as Bahaar (1951). She acted in a few more Tamil movies before moving on to a highly successful career in Bollywood Hindi movies. Her dance competition with Padmini in the Tamil film, Vanjikottai Vaaliban, received much acclaim.

Vyjayanthimala got her initial Hindi movie roles in Ladki and Nagin (1954). Hemant Kumar's music and her dance accompanying the song, Man Dole, Mera tan dole, in Nagin made the movie an enormous success, and the movie's success helped Vyjayanthimala break out of B grade movies. Bimal Roy cast her as Chandramukhi opposite Dilip Kumar in the critically acclaimed Devdas. She subsequently starred in four successful films opposite Dilip Kumar: Madhumati, Ganga Jamuna, Leader, and Naya Daur. The first two of those four roles earned her Filmfare Best Actress Awards. She also received a Filmfare nomination as Best Actress for portraying in Sadhana a tawaif (a courtesan) who eventually got rehabilitated in the society. She costarred with Raj Kapoor in Sangam which earned her the Filmfare Best Actress Award. (She denied rumors of an affair with Raj Kapoor during the production of Sangam, saying that it was a publicity stunt by Kapoor to boost his image[1].)

Vyjayanthimala starred in the 1966 historical epic, Amrapali, which was based on the life of the legendary Buddhist courtesan Amrapali. The movie was not a commercial success, and the commercial failure much disappointed her as she considered it the magnum opus of her career. Later, she said that she would like to see a remake of that movie, with Madhuri Dixit playing her role.[2]

She costarred with Dev Anand in Jewel Thief, with Rajendra Kumar in Suraj, with Shammi Kapoor in Prince, and with Kishore Kumar in his inane yet zany comedies,including the blockbuster New Delhi.

Vyjayanthimala's Tamil movies included Vanjikottai Valiban, Irumbuthirai, Then Nilavu, Vaazhkai, Penn, Parthiban Kanavu (old), and Baghdad Thirudan.

[edit]

Personal life

Vyjayanthimala married Dr. Chamanlal Bali. After marriage, she terminated her acting career and moved to Chennai. She has a son, Suchindra, by Dr. Bali. After she moved to Chennai, she entered politics as a member of Lok Sabha (lower house). Later, she got nominated as a member of Rajya Sabha (the upper house). In 2007, she published her autobiography, titled Bonding, with Jyoti Sabarwal as the co-writer.[3]

Filmography

Sangam

Awards

1956 - Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award, for a role in Devdas. Vyjayanthimala did not accept the award, her contention being that her role in that movie was that of the main actress rather than a supporting actress. (That was the first time a person had declined to receive a Filmfare Award.) [4]

1958 - Filmfare Best Actress Award, for a role in Madhumati

1958 - Filmfare Nomination for Best Actress, for a role in Sadhana[5]

1961 - Filmfare Best Actress Award, for a role in Ganga Jamuna

1961 - BFJA Award for Best Actress for her role in Ganga Jamuna [6]

1964 - Filmfare Best Actress Award, for a role in Sangam

1982 - Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, 1982 for Bharatanatyam[7]

1995 - Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award

2004 - "Legend of Indian Cinema" Award at Atlantic City (United States). [8]

2005 - Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bollywood Movie Awards [9]

Indian actresses profile list series(U)

Udita Goswami,Ujjwala Raut,Uma shankari(south actress),Urmila Matondkar,Urvashi Sharma,Umashree Kannada Actress,Urvashi

Indian actresses profile list series(T)

Tabu (Tamil, Telugu, Hindi),Tamanna Bhatia,Tanisha(Hindi, Tamil),Tanushree Dutta,Tanuja,Tanvi Verma,Tara Sharma,Tina Majumdar,Tina Munim(Now Tina Ambani),Tisca Chopra,Trisha Krishnan,Tulip Joshi,Tuntun,Twinkle Khanna

Chitrashi Rawat

Chitrashi Rawat

Chitrashi Rawat is a state hockey player and an actress from India. She played the role of Komal Chautala, a member of the Indian women's national hockey team, in the movie Chak De India. At age 17, Chitrashi played left striker in hockey for Uttarakhand state in India.

She was picked for the role of a hockey player in the movie Chak De India by the producers after an audition in Jabalpur.

Rawat is a former student of the Guru Nanak Academy. Daughter of TS Rawat, a resident of Raipur, Uttarakhand, Chitrashi regularly represents the Uttarakhand hockey team in the national championships. Currently, she is studying at St Andrew FYBMM pursuing her bachelor's degree in mass media. She has campaigned for Minute Maid pulpy orange, along with co-stars Vidya Malvade and Sagarika Ghatge.

She hails from Dehradun. She is also hosting Star Gold's Sabse Favourite Kaun. She also was a contestant in a Comedy Circus 2 of Optimystix

Asin Thottumkal(Malayalam lady superstar,Tamil, Telugu, Hindi)

                             

                         Asin Thottumkal

(Malayalam lady superstar,Tamil, Telugu, Hindi)

Born :Asin Thottumkal
October 26, 1985 (1985-10-26) (age 23) ^[1]
Kochi, Kerala, India Occupation: Actress Years active :2001 - present

Asin Thottumkal (Malayalam: അസിന്‍ തോട്ടുങ്കല്), (born October 26, 1985^[1]) is an award-winning Indian film actress from the state of Kerala. She is currently considered to be one of the most popular actresses in the South Indian film industry.

Making her acting debut in Sathyan Anthikkad's Narendra Makan Jayakanthan Vaka (2001), Asin had her first commercial success with Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi in 2003, and won a Filmfare Award for the Best Telugu Actress for the film.

After a number of critically and commercially successful films, she received her second South Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her performance in her second Tamil film, Ghajini (2005). She played the lead female roles in two consecutive top grossers, Ghajini (2005) which is her biggest commercial success to date, and the action comedy Varalaru (2006) and this way has established herself as one of the most prominent leading actresses of South Indian cinema. More recently, Asin made her début in Bollywood, with Ghajini, the remake of its Tamil namesake.

Early life and background

Asin was born into a Roman Catholic, Syrian Christian family in Kochi , Kerala. Her father, Joseph Thotumkal originally from Thodupuzha, managed several businesses and was considered a prominent entrepreneur before he stopped managing his businesses and decided to manage his daughter's acting career instead. Furthermore Asin's father accompanies her to all her foreign shoots. Her mother, Seline Thottumkal, remains a surgeon despite moving settlements from Cochin to Chennai to Mumbai to live with her daughter. Asin has quoted that her name "means without blemish and pure". She claims that "the 'A' in [her] name is from Sanskrit and word ‘Sin’ from English". She also mentions that she "has not come across anyone with same name".

Career

Early work, until 2004

Asin Thottumkal debuted in a supporting role in Sathyan Anthikkad's unsuccessful Malayalam film Narendran Makan Jayakanthan Vaka in 2001, at the age of 15. After taking a year out to pursue her education, Asin returned with her breakthrough film as an actress, Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi opposite Ravi Teja, portraying a Tamil girl in her first Telugu language film, which subsequently fetched her the Telugu Filmfare Award for Best Actress.^[2] In the same year she won the Santosham Best Actress Award for her performance alongside Nagarjuna in her second Telugu film, Shivamani.^[2] Her following two Telugu films, Lakshmi Narasimha and Gharshana, both portrayed Asin as the love interest for police officers, giving her two more solid hit films, cementing her place as a leading actress in the Telugu film industry.

Asin's first Tamil language film was M. Kumaran son of Mahalakshmi, in which she co-starred with Jayam Ravi. Asin reprised her role from her film Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi for the remake, which saw her portraying a Malayali girl instead of the Tamil girl in the original. The movie subsequently went on to become one of the biggest hits in Tamil cinema during 2004, introducing Asin to Tamil film industry.^[3] After a brief return to Telugu films, to do Chakram, her first failure as a senior artiste, she appeared in Ullam Ketkumae.^[4] The film, initially launched in 2002, was originally meant to be the launch for Asin as a lead actress, along with then-debutants Arya and Pooja Umashankar. The college love story, directed by Jeeva, was long-delayed but eventually became a successful venture at the box-office, creating wider opportunities for her and the rest of the lead cast.^[5]

Breakthrough, 2005 - 2007

After the release of Ullam Ketkumae, Asin became publicized as a leading heroine after signing films with the four leading actors of the Tamil industry: Surya, Vikram, Vijay and Ajith in Ghajini, Majaa, Sivakasi and Varalaru respectively.^[6] The venture which provided the breakthrough for Asin to become the leading South Indian actress was her Tamil film, Ghajini. The film, co-starring Surya and Nayantara and directed by A. R. Murugadoss, helped Asin secure the Tamil Filmfare Award for Best Actress. Her role, that of a vivacious young model called Kalpana who dies, became a trendsetter and was parodied in several other films after the release of Ghajini.^[7] Sify.com praised her portrayal as "magical" and that "Kalpana was the lovable chatterbox, [with] sheer ability in the romantic interludes, the poignant and heartfelt scenes when she rescues minor girls from villains and her gory end are touching".^[8] The reviewer further went on to mention that "The chemistry between the lead pair in the first half is a delight", a view that became common among film producers who attempted to put their pair opposite each other for the films, Sillunu Oru Kaadhal and Vaaranam Aayiram, both of which started without Asin.^[9] The following Diwali in 2005, Asin had two big releases in Sivakasi and Majaa. Despite the latter becoming an average grosser, the former also went on to be a successful venture at the box office, despite Asin's poorly etched out role.^[10][11]

The following year, Asin opted for a less hectic schedule, becoming more choosy with her roles, rejecting several opportunities in the process. Her long-delayed venture, Varalaru opposite Ajith Kumar, became the biggest blockbuster of 2006 in Tamil cinema, after releasing for Diwali 2006. The film's hero-centric plot retreated Asin to the sidelines, but her role was well acclaimed by critics.^[12] Asin kept intact with her popularity in Telugu films by appearing in Pawan Kalyan's Annavaram, another successful venture in hwich she had a poorly-etched out role.^[13] In January 2007, Asin appeared opposite Ajith Kumar and Vijay in two different films, Aalwar and Pokkiri, with the latter becoming a super success, whilst Aalwar became a failure. The two projects which released on the same day, had been billed up as rival films due to the rivalry of the lead actors in the films. Whilst Asin's role in Aalwar was criticized, her performance in Pokkiri was lauded by critics.^[14][15] Her final project of the year was opposite in Hari's Vel, which had a Diwali 2007 release, subsequently becoming her third successful film which released during the Diwali season in three years. The film saw Asin and Surya put apart their creative differences and appear alongside each other after Ghajini. Asin, who portrayed a TV anchor, was appreciated for her role in the film.^[16]

Success, 2008 - present

Asin appeared in her first dual role in K. S. Ravikumar's magnum opus Dasavathaaram opposite Kamal Haasan, who portrayed ten roles. The film, which was under production since September 2006, became Asin's largest film till date. Despite being overshadowed by Haasan's ten roles, Asin's portrayal's in the film were praised as her "best-to-date" with one of her roles being that of a Vaishnavite in the 12th century; whilst the other character was a Brahmin girl from Chidambaram.^[17] Dasavathaaram subsequently went on to become one of the biggest blockbusters in South Indian film history.^[18] Since establishing herself as the leading actress in South India, Asin opted to move into Bollywood, to get nationwide fame. Her first film, Ghajini opposite Aamir Khan was the remake of her breakthrough film of the same name. Upon release, the film garnered positive reactions from critics and masses alike, with Asin being singled out for her "fabulous" portray. Noted critic, Taran Adarsh describes her Hindi debut as "fabulous" and that "to share the screen space with an actor of the stature of Aamir Khan and yet remain in your memory even after the show has ended is no cakewalk. She looks fresh and photogenic and acts her part brilliantly", giving Asin's performance a positive outlook.^[19] Asin is committed to Vipul Shah's London Dreams alongside Salman Khan and Ajay Devgan, in which she plays a member of a five-troupe band.^[20] Furthermore, Asin is commited to Bharat Bala's trilingual international project titled 19th Step made in English, Japanese and Tamil in which she co-stars along with Kamal Hassan and Tadanobu Asano.^[21] In the project, Asin reportedly plays the role of an Indian Princess who falls in love with a Japanese Warrior who comes to ancient Tamilakam to learn the ancient Dravidian martial art of Kalaripayattu from a veteran.^[22]

Filmography

Year	Film	Language	Role	Other Notes
2001	Narendra Makan Jayakanthan Vaka	Malayalam	Swathi
2003	Amma Nanna O Tamila Ammayi	Telugu	Chennai	Winner, Filmfare Best Telugu Actress Award
	Shivamani 9848022338	Telugu	Vasantha	Winner, Santosham Best Actress Award
2004	Lakshmi Narasimha	Telugu	Rukhmini
	Gharshana	Telugu	Maya
	M. Kumaran son of Mahalakshmi	Tamil	Malabar
2005	Chakram	Telugu	Lakshmi
	Ullam Ketkumae	Tamil	Priya
	Ghajini	Tamil	Kalpana	Winner, Filmfare Best Tamil Actress Award
	Majaa	Tamil	Seetha Lakshmi
	Sivakasi	Tamil	Hema
2006	Varalaru	Tamil	Divya
	Annavaram	Telugu	Aishwarya
2007	Aalwar	Tamil	Priya
	Pokkiri	Tamil	Shruti
	Vel	Tamil	Swathi
2008	Dasavathaaram	Tamil	Kothai Radha, Andaal
	Ghajini	Hindi	Kalpana	Winner, Star Screen Best Female Newcomer Award Winner, Stardust Female Superstar of Tomorrow Award
2009	London Dreams	Hindi	Priya	Filming
2010	The 19th Step	Tamil English Japanese		Pre-Production