Deepika Padukone

Deepika Padukone was born on 5 January, 1986, in Copenhagen, Denmark, to Indian badminton champion Prakash Padukone and Ujjala Padukone. She has a younger sister, Anisha Padukone, who is a golfer. The family shifted to Bangalore when Deepika was a year old. Deepika Padukone began her showbiz career with modelling and walking the ramp at many fashion shows. She made her Bollywood debut opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Om Shanti Om in 2007 and never looked back. With her 2017 Hollywood debut in xXx: Return of Xander Cage opposite star Vin Diesel, Deepika Padukone gained worldwide following. She is also amongst the highest paid film actors in India and Hollywood.

The long legged damsel too wanted to be a badminton player like her father and trained to be one. All throughout her schooling in Sophia High School and through her course at Mount Carmel College, Deepika Padukone continued to train and her daily schedule included early morning practice. She went on to play national level badminton until she realized that her true calling was not in badminton. She enrolled in Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and met with instant success in modeling. She was launched successfully as a Liril girl in their 2004 ad. She made her ramp debut at Lakme Fashion Week in 2005. She was much appreciated and rose to fame when she was identified as the Model of the Year. She started receiving offers for movies and Farah Khan announced that she would be launching Deepika Padukone in her movie.

However, the movie was shelved at the time and Deepika Padukone debuted in a Kannada movie called Aishwarya opposite actor Upendra in 2006. The movie was a success and in the meanwhile, Deepika Padukone started working in Farah Khan's Om Shanti Om opposite superstar Shah Rukh Khan. In the film, Deepika Padukone played a double role of Shanti, a yesteryear actress who was murdered by her lover, and a young film actress (her rebirth). Her murder is witnessed by a struggling television actor Om played by Shah Rukh Khan who too dies in the incident. Om then reincarnates as a very rich and successful actor and meets Sandy, a look alike of Shanti. The movie did fairly well at the box office and Deepika was hailed as the most promising new comer. She even received the Filmfare Award for Best Debutante.

Deepika was not that lucky in her subsequent releases however. She was next seen in Bachna Ae Haseeno opposite Ranbir Kapoor in 2008. The movie did not do that well. In early 2009, her movie opposite Akshay Kumar titled Chandni Chowk to China also released but was a big dud. The film flopped. However, in the same year, Imtiaz Ali's Love Aaj Kal featuring Deepika Padukone, Saif Ali Khan and Rishi Kapoor also released, which was a hit. Deepika portrayed the role of Meera Pundit, a career-oriented woman. The movie was a high grosser and Deepika's role of a feisty and modern woman was much appreciated by fans as well as critics.

The journey was just starting for Deepika Padukone, but with every success came failure as well. Her next two releases, Karthik Calling Karthik and Housefull, failed to get her appreciation. Though her next movie Lafangey Parindey failed at the box office, Deepika Padukone's acting as a blind girl was widely appreciated. She was seen in a period drama Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey in 2010 opposite Abhishek Bachchan. The movie, though was critically applauded, failed to shine at the box office and was a commercial failure.

Deepika Padukone seemed to slow down in the following year and started 2011 with a highly successful item number, which was a remix of the super hit song Dum Maaro Dum. Deepika Padukone was then seen in the movie Aarakshan in 2011 opposite Saif Ali Khan. The movie also had industry bigwigs like Amitabh Bachchan and Manoj Bajpayee, among others. Aarakshan had drawn a lot of attention but failed to deliver at the box office.

The next release for Deepika Padukone was Rohit Dhawan's romantic comedy Desi Boyz (2011), which paired her against John Abraham. The movie was a success, though Deepika Padukone failed to impress critics. Her next release however changed the negative tide.

Deepika Padukone was seen in Cocktail (2012), again paired opposite Saif Ali Khan. She portrayed the role of a strong career-driven female who lives life as per own terms and conditions. The movie was a box office success and Deepika Padukone won various award nominations for her role.

The year 2013 was truly Deepika Padukone's year and she featured in four top grossers, including Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani opposite her former boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor. The movie did exceptionally well. Her 2013 release Chennai Express opposite Shah Rukh Khan was another super hit and Deepika was the reigning queen of Bollywood. Her Tamil accent in the movie was loved by the masses and the critics alike. Her next 2013 movie was Sanjay Leela Bhansali's adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, titled Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram Leela. She played the role of Leela opposite Ranveer Singh. The movie was a super hit and critics and fans praised Ranveer and Deepika. She won many awards for both the movies as well as a Filmfare Aware for the latter. In 2013, Deepika Padukone was also seen in an ensemble cast movie Race 2, again paired opposite Saif Ali Khan. She played sister to John Abraham in the film. Race 2 was a hit.

In 2014, Deepika Padukone acted with south Indian superstar Rajinikanth in Kochadaiiyaan. That same year, Deepika Padukone acted opposite her first costar Shah Rukh Khan in Happy New Year. This year, she was also seen in a hatke role in Finding Fanny.

In 2015, Deepika Padukone was seen in Shoojit Sircar's comedy Piku in which she played the title role of a Bengali architect who takes care of her ageing father, played by Amitabh Bachchan. The movie was extremely well received and won Deepika Padukone Filmfare and Screen Awards for the Best Actress. Though her next 2015 movie Tamasha opposite Ranbir Kapoor did not do well, Deepika Padukone's acting was much appreciated. However, her next 2015 release on the silver screen was a huge hit. It was Bajirao Mastaani, starring her rumoured boyfriend Ranveer Singh and her then bestie Priyanka Chopra. Bajirao Mastani won her a nomination for best actress, but she won an award for her stellar performance in Piku.

Deepika Padukone made a big splash in Hollywood opposite action hero Vin Diesel in xXx: Return of Xander Cage in 2017. She will now be seen in Padmavati (2017), costarring Ranveer Singh and Shahid Kapoor. She plays the role of Rani Padmini in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali historical. Deepika Padukone was also seen in the title song of the film Raabta (2017). 

In the interim, Deepika Padukone came out about depression and launched her foundation Live Love Laugh to help people combat mental illness.