Esha Deol

Date of Birth
2 November 1981, Bombay, Maharashtra, India


Birth Name
Esha Dharmendra Deol


Height
5' 6" (1.68 m)


Mini Biography
Fluent in English, Hindi and Tamil, Scorpion Esha was born on November 2, 1982 to Hema 'Dreamgirl' Malini, and Dharmendra 'He-Man' Deol. She has a younger sister, Ahana, and two step-brothers, Sunny and Bobby, both well-known Bollywood super-stars in their own rights. Bobby is married to Tanya Ahuja, and has a child.

Esha studied in the Jamnabai Narsee School, excelled at football, then went on to attend Oxford University and obtained a Masters Degree in Media Arts and Computer Technology. She also learned classical dance forms from her mom, the daughter of Jaya Chakraborty.

Having Bollywood connections, she did aspire to be an actress and follow in the footsteps of her parents and half-siblings, and landed a lead role in 'Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche' in 2002.

She delivered her very first hit with 'Dhoom' in 2004 and went on to another hit after hit in 'Kaal' 'No Entry', and 'Dus'. She demonstrated her versatility when she accepted a negative character-role in 'Ankaee' in 2006. She has also acted in a Tamil movie 'Aiyatha Ezhuthu'.

Amongst her friends at Bollywood are Kareena Kapoor and Abhishek Bachchan. She likes to work out and listen to music.

She will shortly be seen in Just Married, and has started filming in the following movies; Cash, Darling, and Honeymoon.


Trivia
Daughter of Hema Malini and Dharmendra. She has inherited her mother's beauty and her father's acting talents.

Half-sister of Bobby Deol and Sunny Deol, and elder sister of Ahana Deol. Granddaughter of Jaya Chakravarthy.

Classically-trained Indian dancer in the Odissi style, along with her mother and sister. Her mother is also trained in the Bharatanatyam style, and together, they have performed in many dance recitals.

Favourite Perfume: Estee Lauder's Pleasure

Speaks Tamil fluently, which caused Mani Ratnam to offer her a role in his Tamil film, Ayitha Ezhuthu (2004).

Has received over eight awards for her performance in her film debut in Boney Kapoor's Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe (2002), a love story while exploring the relationship between a mother and a daughter.

As a part of the _LOC Kargil (2003)_ cast, Esha received a national award for being a part of the film.

Her favorite actresses are Kajol and Julia Roberts.

Has a Masters Degree in Media Arts and a Bachelor Degree In Computer Technology at Oxford University

Prefers to speak English, as she is not too fluent in Hindi.

Great friends with Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan

The name 'Esha' comes from Sanskrit and is derived from the Upanishads to mean "the divine beloved".

Longtime close friends with actress Kareena Kapoor.

Esha's physically fit body is a result of work-outs at Barbarian Power Gym, which is owned by her Rakhi brother, Satya.



Personal Quotes
"Face your fears and live your dreams."

"An actress is all about acting, revealing is not even in the job!"

Diya Mirza

Date of Birth
9 December 1981, Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India


Nickname
Dee


Height
5' 6" (1.68 m)


Mini Biography
Dia was born in December 9, 1981 in Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh, India. Her dad's name was Frank Handrich, a German National, and an Interior Designer by profession, and her mom, Deepa, is Bengali-speaking. Deepa and Frank separated when Dia was 6, and Frank passed away three years later. Deepa then married Ahmed Mirza. The family lived in Khairatabad near Hyderabad and she completed her schooling in Vidyaranya High School and in Nasr School. Her step-father passed away during 2004.

She was introverted and unhappy as a child, and it was her parents, especially her mom, who instilled self-confidence and assisted her to break free from the barriers of low self-esteem.

At the age of 16, after completing her 10th standard, she got a job with Sriven Multi-Tech in Hyderabad. This job paved her way to modeling assignments with Lipton, Emami amongst others. With this exposure she was encouraged to participate in the 2000 Femina Miss India Beauty Pageant, which she did, came up the second runner-up and won three titles namely Femina Miss India-Pacific, Sony Viewer's Choice Award, and Miss Beautiful Smile. She went on to be crowned Miss Asia-Pacific on December 2, 2000 at Manila, making her the second Indian to win this award after a gap of 29 years.

Dia wanted to complete her graduation in Arts by correspondence, but decided to postpone it as it was becoming difficult to juggle between the Miss Asia Pacific Competition, modeling assignments, traveling and training. She was assisted by Sabira Merchant on diction and etiquette; diet with Anjali Mukherjee; gymnasium and physical fitness with Talwalkars; clothes from Ritu Kumar and Hemant Trivedi; skin care with Dr. Jamuna Pai; and make-up and hair-care from Bharat and Doris Godambe.

Dia made her debut on the tinsel screen with 'Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein' during 2001, and thus was able to launch her career as an actress.

She has made a number of appearances on TV channels such as Zee, Zoom, AXN, Sony, and Channel V.

Trivia
Won the Miss Asia-Pacific contest in 2000 and is considered one of the most beautiful actresses in Indian cinema.

Born to a German father and a Bengali mother

Titles: Miss Beautiful Smile, The Sony Viewers Choice Award.

Her interests other than acting are reading, writing, and music.



Personal Quotes
"I have learned a lot in the film industry. There was a time when I told my mother let's go. I did not want to continue to act. It was getting frustrating. I realized that the minute your film flops those producers who are keen to sign you make an excuse and back out at the last minute. You are dropped from the film. Sometimes the film is announced in a lavish way but does not take off. I got tired of all this and thought of seriously giving up my career once and for all. But then I realized that things were not so bad for me after all. Filmmakers respected me! Few have shown genuine interest to cast me in their films. And that is what has kept me going."

About actor Salman Khan: "Once my mother fell unconscious. I called Salman since he stays close to my house. It was with his help that I was able to rush my mother to the hospital. The doctor later told us that had we not to got my mother admitted within those 15 minutes, she would have had very little chance of survival. I'm eternally grateful to Salman and will stand by him no matter what."

Deepika Padukone

Date of Birth
5 January 1986, Copenhagen, Denmark


Height
5' 9" (1.75 m)


Mini Biography
Deepika Padukone, born 5 January 1986 in Copenhagen, Denmark, is an Indian model & Actress. She is the daughter of former badminton Champion Prakash Padukone. Her mother tongue is Konkani.

She has been modeling appearances in print and television advertising campaigns for Liril, Close-Up toothpaste and Limca, receiving many prestigious modeling offers, including brand ambassadorship of the Jewels of India, an annual jewelery exhibition. She hit the international scene when Maybelline made her their new international cover-girl face.

At the fifth annual Kingfisher Fashion Awards, for Indian models and designers, she was awarded the title of Model of the Year. Shortly after wards, she was chosen as one of the models for the Kingfisher Swimsuit Calendar for 2006, thus cementing her reputation as a supermodel. She also bagged two trophies at the Idea Zee F Awards in 2006 - female Model of the year (Commercial Assignments) and Fresh Face of the year.

Deepika has a younger sister named Anisha.

Trivia
Daughter of badminton legend Prakash Padukone.

Her five favorite movies are Kabhi Kabhie - Love Is Life (1976), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), Rang-e khoda (1999), Cinderella Man (2005), and Mary Poppins (1964).

Favorite actresses are Hema Malini, Madhuri Dixit, Sridevi, Kajol, Rani Mukherjee, Preity Zinta, Sushmita Sen, and Juhi Chawla.

Favorite actors are Aamir Khan, Shahrukh Khan, Johnny Depp, Richard Gere, Brad Pitt, and Amitabh Bachchan.

Loves music, eating, sleeping, and watching movies.

Plays a little bit of basketball, tennis, throw ball and baseball.

She played state level badminton till the 10th standard. Then she had to study for her ICSE board exams, so she stopped playing for three months. She never considered taking it up as a career because she was never interested in a professional sport. She took up modeling as a hobby, but later realized she wanted to do it professionally.

Attended Sophia High School in Bangalore and later did her undergraduate studies from Mount Carmel College.

Has a younger sister named Anisha who plays all sports, except badminton.

Her mother is a travel agent while her father, a badminton player, played at the international level for India and won the All England Championship in 1980.

Born to Ujjala & Prakash Padukone.

Spokesmodel of Liril, Dabur Lal powder, Close-Up toothpaste, Limca, Jewels of India, Parachute's Advanced Massager, Levi Strauss (India) Pvt. Ltd., and Maybelline.

Indian supermodel.

Favorite Indian designers are Tarun Tahiliani, Manish Malhotra and Rohit Bal.

Her five favorite songs are Kabhi Kabhie Mere Dil Mein from Kabhi Kabhie - Love Is Life (1976), Pehla Nasha from Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992), Angel by Lionel Richie, Ankhon Mein Teri Ajab Si from Om Shanti Om (2007), and We Are The World by Michael Jackson.

Celina Jaitley

Date of Birth
9 June 1981, Kabul, Afghanistan


Birth Name
Celina Jiya Jaitley


Nickname
Chinto


Height
5' 6" (1.68 m)


Mini Biography
Celina Jaitley was born in Kabul, Afghanistan on 9th June 1981 to an Afghan mother and Indian father. She is daughter of a Punjabi father who was an Indian Army officer. Her mother is an Afghan and is a child psychologist by profession. Her schooling was done all over the country due to the frequent transfers of her father. She had to change thirteen schools till her Board exams. Presently her family stays in Bangalore. Celina's past five generations have served the army and there was a point of time in her life, when she was also tinkering with the idea of taking the Combined Defense Services exam.

But destiny willed otherwise. She graduated in Commerce and fetched a marketing job for a Cell phone company in Kolkatta. There she participated in a local beauty contest just for the heck of participation and to everybody's surprise she emerged victorious. This gave her a boost and she sent her pictures for the Miss India contest. Just a day before the preliminary rounds were to begin Celina got the invitation to participate. Soon she walked away with the coveted, Miss India crown bagging almost every title from Best Skin to Best Clothes to MTVs most wanted.

This title win enabled her to participate in the Miss Universe title. But Indian girls had won it for three consecutive years. There was an immense pressure on her persona with press flooding her with questions about rigging. She was weighed down by this pre -contest skepticism and it did cast its impact on the final outcome. Celina was adjudged fourth runner up from amongst 83 contestants.

Her latest movies are 'Shakalaka Boom Boom' and 'Red: the dark side'. 'Dulha Mil gaya', 'Kaash Tumse Mohabbat Na Hoti', 'Unusual Love Story', 'One Night', 'No Entry II' are some of her forthcoming films.



Trivia
Fourth runner up at the 2001 Miss Universe pageant.

Father is Punjabi and mother is Afghani.

Never wanted to become a model or an actress. Celina had her mind set on becoming a pilot.

Became a model in the Bollywood industry after the Miss Universe pageant.

Femina Miss India 2001

Hobbies: Surfing the net, reading, sketching and listening to music.

Her mother is a psychologist.

Her favorite actor is Aamir Khan, and favorite actress is Aishwarya Rai.

Her favorite Hollywood movie is Saving Private Ryan (1998).

Favorite holiday spot is St. Moritz in Switzerland.

Bebe and Jashn are her favorite brands. She is the brand ambassador for Jashn.

Has 5 pets: all dogs.

Speaks fluent Bengali, English, German, Punjabi, and Urdu. She says she speaks in Urdu at home.

Plays billiards and pool, sometimes she likes to go sailing.

Her qualifications are a Bcom grad, honors in accountancy.

Has one brother. He is in 3 Para Commando Special Forces.

Her favorite outfit is a sari.

Her terrace is her favorite hangout spot.

Owns 900+ pairs of shoes.

Is a vegetarian.

The first country she visited was Nepal.

Neither smokes nor drinks. She is a very health conscious person.

Loves Sweden, she used to live in Stockholm at Vallhallvagan.

Favorite cuisine is Indian and favorite dish is biryani.

Uses MAC cosmetics.

Good friends with Fardeen Khan, Riya Sen, and Shreyas Talpade.



Personal Quotes
"I'm young right now; I have a lot of time in the future to de-glam myself. Now I want to do roles of my age which are glamorous; because I have that image - I'm a glamorous woman. I wanted to be called a good and a good-looking actress."

About her cameo in Silsiilay (2005): "In Sisilay I have a special appearance; it was a strange experience because I can never imagine being a woman like the one I've portrayed. I'm in love with a married man, much older to me and who has a son her own age. It's a complex character, and I loved it."

When asked which character she would like to play in a remake: "I would like to play Meena Kumari's role in Pakeezah, Waheeda Rehmanji's role from `Chaudavi Ka Chand' and Rekha's role in `Umrao Jaan'." (erosentertainment.com interview, 2005)

"I think Fardeen and I have a special chemistry on-screen, I don't deny that. At the same time I think Hrithik and I will be great together. Our physical features will work well to create that chemistry - especially the combination of our height, the light eyes; together we'll have a good screen presence." (erosentertainment.com interview, 2005)

On turning down the lead in Julie (2004): "I turned down Julie because I didn't agree with the reasoning of the protagonist in the story, who resorts to prostitution because her man ditches her. I didn't see why any educated girl would take such a drastic step. I take up roles that I mentally agree with, and this was not such a role." (Stardust, April 2005)

"When I intend to settle down, I'm just gonna tell my parents to find someone for me. I have lost faith in myself to make the right decision as far as a man is concerned. Sean (her ex-boyfriend) was a big lapse in judgment."

"It's scary, if you think of it. You read these stories all the time in the magazines, how someone got duped in a relationship. You think, this could never happen to me, except, it does. Until you're a part of that statistic, you never believe that this could be you."

"I rate myself 8 as an actor...but everybody doesn't share the same viewpoint."

Bhumika Chawla

Date of Birth
21 August 1978, Delhi, India


Birth Name
Rachna Chawla


Height
5' 3" (1.60 m)

Mini Biography
The Punjabi-speaking Chawla family welcomed their youngest and latest arrival, Rachna, on August 21st 1978 in Delhi, India. They would call her by the nickname of Guddiya. Her dad is an officer in the Indian Army, her mom's name is Bali. Her brother, too, is in the Indian Army. She has an elder sister.

Aftre completing her schooling in Delhi, Rachna, began her career with Hindi music videos albums, appeared in 'Ponds Talcum Powder' advertisements amongst others, and then went on to star in 'Yuvakudu' in Telegu opposite Sumanth in the year 2000. This is how Rachna became Bhoomika. Her second release 'Khushi' in Telegu bagged her the best actress award. Since then she has acted in about 25 Hindi, Telegu, and Tamil movies. Her debut in Bollywood was in the 2003 hit 'Tere Naam' opposite Salman Khan.

She has not only acted opposite Salman Khan, but also with Abhishek Bachchan in 'Run', and has recently been involved in the filming of 'Gandhi My Father' and "Benaam' which are to be released in the near future.

Amrita Arora

Date of Birth
7 June 1981, Mumbai, India


Birth Name
Amrita Deepak Rao


Height
5' 5" (1.65 m)


Mini Biography
Amrita was born in the Rao family on June 7, 1981 in Mumbai, She speaks Konkani. She comes from a well to do Hindu family. Her dad owns an Advertising Agency.

Amrita did not want to purse any career with Bollywood as she wanted to graduate in psychology, which she eventually did.

No stranger to cameras and bright lights, she has modeled for approximately 35 advertisements. Her first assignment was for Fairever Face Cream. Amongst other assignments that got her noticed were Hindustan Lever's 'Close-up' Cadbury's Perk, & Nestle Bru Coffee. Ken Ghosh approached Amrita for his debut movie Ishq Vishq after seeing her in the perk commercial, where she plays a hungry bride eagerly awaiting the arrival of her husband on the religious occasion of 'Karva Chauth'. Ishq Vishq was a world-wide hit and made her famous virtually overnight. Amrita Rao is also a Brand Ambassador for D'Damas Gold Jewellery, Parachute Hair Oil, and Miss Players Apparels.

Her other hit movies 'Masti', 'Main Hoon Na' & 'Vivah' added to her popularity and stardom. While 'Pyare Mohan', 'Vaah! Life Ho To Aisi', 'Shikhar' 'Deewar' were average at the box office. So far she has won 6 awards, mostly related to her performances in 'Ishq Vishk' and 'Vivah'.

Barely 12 movies' old, she is already quite well-known for her skilled performances and her dancing talent. Madhuri Dixit went gaga over her performance at the Filmfare Awards 2007. Renowned artist M.F Hussain chose her as his Muse and theme of paintings after Madhuri Dixit.

She also has a Telegu movie to her credit which turned out a huge box office hit. She is fluent in English, Hindi, Marathi, and Konkani. She is passionate about reading short stories.

She has co-starred with Shahid Kapur, Zayed Khan, Shahrukh Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Akshay Khanna, and Mahesh Babu.

A winner of the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Academy Award at the young age of 25, Amrita Rao is all set for her successful innings at Bollywood.

Trivia
Daughter of Deepak Rao

Comes from a very well-to-do Saraswat Brahmin family

Philosophy of life: Life is short and sweet, so make others happy and never let anyone down.

Brands modeled for: Hindustan Lever's - Close-up, Godrej - Nikhaar Soap (2 ads.), Nestle - Bru Coffee, Wringly Chewing Gum, Anne French, Fena Detergent, Jolen Bleach, 3 Roses Tea (South India), Johnson & Johnsons - Clean & Clear Face Wash, Proctor & Gamble - Pantene Hair Wash, Cadbury's - Perk Chocolates, Parachute Jasmine - Hair Oil, Domino's Pizza, HMT Watches, Allukas Jewellery (South India), and Allapet Jewellery (South India).



Personal Quotes
Marriages are forever, they should be forever. I think marriages are falling apart these days because egos have become larger than life. Women have become independent and so they easily walk out of relationships. Earlier the woman would totally depend on the man. There will be ups and downs in marriage and we should deal with it gracefully. Selfishness will leave us lonely at the end of the day. In my profession, girls are more committed; if they see someone or are married then they stick to their commitment. Guys just get carried away. So it is very difficult to say whether I will marry an actor. There are a few successful marriages in the industry too, but still... I feel that the first choice should be the last choice and that is also the reason why I haven't got a boy friend. If I decide to go around with a guy, I would want to marry him otherwise it doesn't make sense. So not just marriage but I must say that relationships are forever.

Amrita Rao

Date of Birth
7 June 1981, Mumbai, India


Birth Name
Amrita Deepak Rao


Height
5' 5" (1.65 m)


Mini Biography
Amrita was born in the Rao family on June 7, 1981 in Mumbai, She speaks Konkani. She comes from a well to do Hindu family. Her dad owns an Advertising Agency.

Amrita did not want to purse any career with Bollywood as she wanted to graduate in psychology, which she eventually did.

No stranger to cameras and bright lights, she has modeled for approximately 35 advertisements. Her first assignment was for Fairever Face Cream. Amongst other assignments that got her noticed were Hindustan Lever's 'Close-up' Cadbury's Perk, & Nestle Bru Coffee. Ken Ghosh approached Amrita for his debut movie Ishq Vishq after seeing her in the perk commercial, where she plays a hungry bride eagerly awaiting the arrival of her husband on the religious occasion of 'Karva Chauth'. Ishq Vishq was a world-wide hit and made her famous virtually overnight. Amrita Rao is also a Brand Ambassador for D'Damas Gold Jewellery, Parachute Hair Oil, and Miss Players Apparels.

Her other hit movies 'Masti', 'Main Hoon Na' & 'Vivah' added to her popularity and stardom. While 'Pyare Mohan', 'Vaah! Life Ho To Aisi', 'Shikhar' 'Deewar' were average at the box office. So far she has won 6 awards, mostly related to her performances in 'Ishq Vishk' and 'Vivah'.

Barely 12 movies' old, she is already quite well-known for her skilled performances and her dancing talent. Madhuri Dixit went gaga over her performance at the Filmfare Awards 2007. Renowned artist M.F Hussain chose her as his Muse and theme of paintings after Madhuri Dixit.

She also has a Telegu movie to her credit which turned out a huge box office hit. She is fluent in English, Hindi, Marathi, and Konkani. She is passionate about reading short stories.

She has co-starred with Shahid Kapur, Zayed Khan, Shahrukh Khan, Vivek Oberoi, Akshay Khanna, and Mahesh Babu.

A winner of the prestigious Dada Saheb Phalke Academy Award at the young age of 25, Amrita Rao is all set for her successful innings at Bollywood.

Trivia
Daughter of Deepak Rao

Comes from a very well-to-do Saraswat Brahmin family

Philosophy of life: Life is short and sweet, so make others happy and never let anyone down.

Brands modeled for: Hindustan Lever's - Close-up, Godrej - Nikhaar Soap (2 ads.), Nestle - Bru Coffee, Wringly Chewing Gum, Anne French, Fena Detergent, Jolen Bleach, 3 Roses Tea (South India), Johnson & Johnsons - Clean & Clear Face Wash, Proctor & Gamble - Pantene Hair Wash, Cadbury's - Perk Chocolates, Parachute Jasmine - Hair Oil, Domino's Pizza, HMT Watches, Allukas Jewellery (South India), and Allapet Jewellery (South India).



Personal Quotes
Marriages are forever, they should be forever. I think marriages are falling apart these days because egos have become larger than life. Women have become independent and so they easily walk out of relationships. Earlier the woman would totally depend on the man. There will be ups and downs in marriage and we should deal with it gracefully. Selfishness will leave us lonely at the end of the day. In my profession, girls are more committed; if they see someone or are married then they stick to their commitment. Guys just get carried away. So it is very difficult to say whether I will marry an actor. There are a few successful marriages in the industry too, but still... I feel that the first choice should be the last choice and that is also the reason why I haven't got a boy friend. If I decide to go around with a guy, I would want to marry him otherwise it doesn't make sense. So not just marriage but I must say that relationships are forever.