Preity Zinta

Preity Zinta प्रीति ज़िंटा
Preity Zinta on the sets of Indian Idol 2 (2006)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	1998 - present
Spouse	None
Partner	Ness Wadia (2005 - present)
Website	PreityZinta.Com

Preity Zinta (Template:Lang-hi. Pronunciation: /priːt̪ɪ zɪɳʈaː/ born 31 January, 1975) is an award-winning Indian film actress who appears in Bollywood movies. She is among the most popular actresses in the industry.

Making her acting debut in Mani Ratnam's Dil Se (1998), Zinta had her first commercial success with Soldier in the same year, and won a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award for both of the films. She was widely recognized with her performance as a teenage single mother in Kundan Shah's hit Kya Kehna (2000), and following this went on to demonstrate her versatility and flexibility as an actress, portraying a diversity of different characters, which were usually distinct from typical roles played by Indian actresses at that point of time, and introduced a new image of a Hindi film heroine.

After a number of critically and commercially successful films, Zinta received her first Filmfare Best Actress Award for her performance in Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003). She played the lead female roles in two consecutive top grossers, the science fiction Koi... Mil Gaya (2003), which is her biggest commercial success to date, and the romance Veer-Zaara (2004), which earned her much critical acclaim. She was later praised for her portrayal of Indian modern and independent women in international hits like Salaam Namaste (2005) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), and this way has established herself as one of the most prominent leading actresses of Hindi cinema. According to the Indian box office, she is rated with the highest success ratio of 65% among Bollywood actresses of this generation.

Zinta is widely known in the Indian media for her penchant for speaking her mind, being forthright about her personal views and expressing her opinions in public, which have occasionally been surrounded by controversy.

Personal life

Family

Born in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, Zinta hails from a Hindu Rajput family of Rohru in Shimla District. She studied at the Convent of Jesus and Mary school in Delhi, and later attended the Bombay University. She initially planned to do an English honours but later decided to pursue psychology. After earning a degree in criminal psychology at the St Bede's College in Shimla, Zinta began her career as a model and appeared in several commercials.

Her father, Durganand Zinta was an officer in the Indian Army. Durganand Zinta died when Preity was thirteen, in a car accident which also involved her mother, Nilprabha Zinta. Her mother broke many bones in the accident, including her spine, and was bedridden for two years because of this incident. Zinta has two brothers, Deepankar Zinta and Manish Zinta, a year older and a year younger, respectively. Deepankar is a commissioned officer in the Indian Army, while Manish is settled in Los Angeles.

Relationships

File:PreityZintawithNess.jpg

Preity with boyfriend Ness Wadia at the 51st Filmfare Awards (2006)

In 2000 Zinta began dating model Marc Robinson. They separated one year later in 2001, and according to Zinta, they remained on good terms. After their break-up, Zinta said in an interview, "We aren't seeing each other anymore, but I have very, very fond memories of the times we were together and I'd like to keep it to that."

Zinta has been dating the Bombay Dyeing heir, Ness Wadia since February 2005. Their relationship is widely reported in the media and there are frequent media notices of false wedding rumors.

In 2007, there was an alleged crisis in Preity's relationship with Wadia, due to Krishnamuthy's controversy (vida infra), and the rumours that Ness' mother Maureen Wadia was not pleased with Zinta and Ness dating. Maureen Wadia reacted to the rumours in an interview saying: "I'm delighted at my son's choice". As of September 2007, the couple are still together.

Gossip has also linked her with many other Bollywood stars, but Zinta has strongly denied all these rumours.

Previously, when she was not shooting she used to return to her native town Shimla. In 2006, Zinta moved into her own home in Mumbai, which she bought in mid-2005.

Zinta narrowly escaped death twice in late 2004, once after an explosion at a Temptation concert in Colombo, Sri Lanka and later in the Indian Ocean earthquake.

Career

Early career (until 1999)

Zinta began her career as a model in the mid 1990s, and was seen in several commercials and other advertisements. She met Shekhar Kapur when she accompanied her friend to an audition and was requested to be auditioned too. Coincidentally, after seeing her audition Kapur insisted on her to become an actress. Zinta was meant to make her acting debut with Kapur's Tara Rum Pum Pum opposite Hrithik Roshan but the film never took off. Later, Kapur recommended Mani Ratnam to sign her for his next film Dil Se.

Technically, her first film was Kundan Shah's Kya Kehna, but it was delayed until 2000. The delay of another film, Soldier meant that she made her acting debut with, Dil Se (1998). She was appreciated for her portrayal of a middle class Delhi girl, which was only twenty minutes long. She had her first commercial success with her second release, the action drama Soldier. She played the lead role in the film, and it became one of the year's biggest hits. Dil Se and Soldier were considered as her breakthrough roles and she won the Filmfare Best Female Debut Award for her performances in both of the films.

She then tried her hand in the Tollywood film industry and starred in two Telugu films, Premante Idera (1998) opposite Venkatesh, and Raja Kumarudu (1999) opposite Mahesh Babu. This was followed in 1999 by Tanuja Chandra's woman-oriented thriller Sangharsh, co-starring Akshay Kumar. Though the film did not do well at the box office, it gave Zinta an opportunity to explore new avenues to her personality, and her performance as a CBI officer, a woman of strong convictions was critically acclaimed.

Personal life

Relationships

File:PreityZintawithNess.jpg

Preity with boyfriend Ness Wadia at the 51st Filmfare Awards (2006)

In 2000 Zinta began dating model Marc Robinson. They separated one year later in 2001, and according to Zinta, they remained on good terms. After their break-up, Zinta said in an interview, "We aren't seeing each other anymore, but I have very, very fond memories of the times we were together and I'd like to keep it to that."

Zinta has been dating the Bombay Dyeing heir, Ness Wadia since February 2005. Their relationship is widely reported in the media and there are frequent media notices of false wedding rumors.

In 2007, there was an alleged crisis in Preity's relationship with Wadia, due to Krishnamuthy's controversy (vida infra), and the rumours that Ness' mother Maureen Wadia was not pleased with Zinta and Ness dating. Maureen Wadia reacted to the rumours in an interview saying: "I'm delighted at my son's choice". As of September 2007, the couple are still together.

Gossip has also linked her with many other Bollywood stars, but Zinta has strongly denied all these rumours.

Previously, when she was not shooting she used to return to her native town Shimla. In 2006, Zinta moved into her own home in Mumbai, which she bought in mid-2005.

Zinta narrowly escaped death twice in late 2004, once after an explosion at a Temptation concert in Colombo, Sri Lanka and later in the Indian Ocean earthquake.

Breakthrough (2000 - 2002)

Zinta's first release in 2000 was the drama, Kya Kehna. The film was a delayed project and was not expected to make an impact at the box office, however it turned to be the surprise hit of the year. Apart from being a commercial success, the film was known for its bold social controversial theme of single parenthood and teenage pregnancy, and gained Zinta a wide recognition as an actress; critics and audiences began to take more notice of her after her performance in the film, and her portrayal of a teenage single mother earned her various nominations for Best Actress at different award ceremonies.

Later that year, she starred in Vidhu Vinod Chopra's drama, Mission Kashmir, which was the third highest grossing film of the year. Her role as a TV reporter earned her positive reviews. Film critic Naresh Kumar Deoshi wrote about her performance, "Preity Zinta is no longer a bubbly chatterbox. With the characteristic ease of a veteran she plays the demure TV reporter."

In 2001, she starred in Farhan Akhtar's award-winning Dil Chahta Hai (2001), a realistic romance which depicted the routine life of Indian youth nowadays. The film entered into the top five highest grossing films of the year, yet its box office reception was only average. M. Ali Ikram from Planet Bollywood noted, "Preity is Preity, lovable and extremely pretty all the time. Plus, you know what this woman is always thinking thanks to that great emotive visage."

2001 saw three more releases by Zinta, but she was mainly recognized with Abbas Mustan's romantic drama Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, which was released after a delay of one year. The film was one of the first Bollywood movies to handle the taboo issue of surrogate childbirth. Zinta took the supporting role of Madhubala, a prostitute who is hired as a surrogate mother; she received unequivocal praise for her portrayal. Her performance in the film earned her a Best Supporting Actress nomination at the Filmfare. Sukanya Verma from Rediff.com noted, "Preity Zinta, who clearly has the meatiest part of all, makes the best of it. Her transformation from the cocky and unabashed prostitute to a sensitive and warm person is amazingly believable."

She was regarded as a different actress, known for enacting diverse roles. Roles like the mentioned CBI officer in Sangharsh, the teenage single mother in Kya Kehna and the prostitute in Chori Chori Chupke Chupke were different from typical roles played by Indian actresses at that point of time, and introduced a new image of a Hindi film heroine to Bollywood.

In 2002, Zinta collaborated once again with director Kundan Shah, playing the main protagonist in his family-drama Dil Hai Tumhaara, co-starring alongside Rekha, Mahima Chaudhary and Arjun Rampal. The film marked an important milestone in her career. Although it failed to do well at the box office, Zinta's portrayal of Shalu, an adopted daughter craving for love, was appreciated by critics and earned her positive reviews. Critic Faiz Khan wrote of her performance, "Preity Zinta is the life of the film and the film revolves almost entirely around her. And she brings a freshness to her performance that perhaps no other would be able to do. With Preity, she makes her character very believable and you never feel that this is Preity playing Shalu. And it is this underplaying and naturalness which belies the fact she is an excellent actress, probably far better than most but she manages to underplay to the extent that you almost don’t notice." Another film critic praised Zinta for her acting manner, "What’s particularly impressive about her is the quicksilver delicacy with which she switches from one facial expression to another." Consequently, she became sought-after by some of the best known filmmakers in the following years.

Success (2003 - present)

2003 proved to be a very good year for Zinta, as she was the female lead in three of the year's highest grossing films: The Hero: Love Story of a Spy, Koi... Mil Gaya and Kal Ho Naa Ho. The Hero is considered to be the most expensive Hindi film ever made, costing around Rs 550 Million, yet performed poorly at the box office; Koi... Mil Gaya was the biggest hit of the year as well as Zinta's highest grossing movie up so far with a domestic nett gross of Rs 430 million; Kal Ho Naa Ho was a wide international success, earning over Rs 600 million worldwide.

In that same year, she starred in Honey Irani's directional debut, Armaan alongside Anil Kapoor. Though the film did not do well at the box office, Zinta received many positive notices for her role as a schizophrenic spoilt girl turned dominant wife, as well as several nominations for Best Villain at different award ceremonies. Taran Adarsh from indiaFM.com wrote, "Preity Zinta comes up with another superb performance, essaying her part with utmost sincerity."

However, her most notable film out of the above-mentioned was, Kal Ho Naa Ho, a tearjerker directed by Nikhil Advani and written by Karan Johar, co-starring along with Shahrukh Khan and Saif Ali Khan. The film was India's second biggest hit after Koi... Mil Gaya, with a revenue of Rs 350 million in its domestic box office, and grossed over Rs 257 million overseas, making it the biggest hit of the year overseas. She played the role of Naina Catherine Kapur, an insecure and angry Indian-American girl, who falls in love with a guy who has a heart disease. Her performance was unanimously praised and won her many awards, including the Filmfare Best Actress Award. Akash Gandhi from Planet-Bollywood proclaimed, "Preity Zinta has given her best performance as an actress. It’s amazing to see how much energy and talent is given in creating her character, Naina."

In 2004 she played the role of a TV journalist in Farhan Akhtar's war drama Lakshya, co-starring Hrithik Roshan. Despite being the fourth highest grossing film of the year, the film failed to do well at the box office. The film was based on the historical events of the 1999 Kargil Conflict, and Zinta's performance, which was modeled after renowned TV journalist Barkha Dutt, won her favorable reviews. Taran Adarsh wrote about her, "Preity Zinta's character Romi is modeled after renowned TV journalist Barkha Dutt and she enacts the part with incredible authority."

Later, Yash Chopra chose her for the lead female role of Zaara in the love legend Veer-Zaara opposite Shahrukh Khan, which was the biggest hit of that year in both India and abroad, earning over Rs 750 million worldwide. She was generally praised for her portrayal of a Pakistani girl. One critic wrote, "Preity looks good like all Yash Raj heroines and her acting is commendable. Whether she plays the carefree teenage girl or a girl madly in love, whether she is the responsible daughter or a girl torn between love and responsibilities, she is believable in every shade her character goes through." Veer-Zaara was her second highest grossing film and third major hit in two consecutive years, and marked her entry into Yash Raj Films, which is considered to be one of the biggest production houses in Bollywood. All these achievements promoted her as one of the biggest stars in the industry.

She had two releases in 2005. Her first release was the comedy Khullam Khulla Pyaar Karen, co-starring alongside Govinda, which was a delayed project since 2002. The film received negative reviews and poor collections at the box office. Zinta's role was small, and her performance was fairly received, with one critic saying "Preity Zinta has got little scope and hence she could not make any impact."

Her next release was Siddharth Anand's comedy-drama Salaam Namaste, co-starring Saif Ali Khan. The film was another Yash Raj high budget film and went on to be the year's biggest hit overseas, earning over Rs 430 million internationally. It is about two Indians who have left their homes to make a life on their own, and later decide to live together without marriage. Zinta played the female part of Ambar, a single modern young woman who leaves India to make her own life in Australia. She received various nominations for Best Actress at different award ceremonies as well as positive reviews from critics. Taran Adarsh noted, "After Kya Kehna, Preity Zinta accepts the challenge of portraying an unwed mother yet again in Salaam Namaste. The actor is terrific, delivering her most accomplished performance to date. Her lip locks with Saif will catch a lot of people unaware, but that's the sign of a thorough professional."

File:PreityZintakank.jpg

Preity Zinta as a fashion magazine editor Rhea Saran in Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006)

Zinta was welcomed with similar success in 2006. She starred in Karan Johar's drama Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, co-starring along with a multi starrer cast that included Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan and Rani Mukerji. The film became one of the biggest box office hits in India, earning Rs 464 million, and grossed over Rs 445 Million overseas, the biggest Bollywood hit in the overseas market ever, which simultaneously became her fourth overseas top earner in four consecutive years. It tells the story of two unhappily married couples in New York, and an extramarital affair as a result. Zinta played the role of Rhea Saran, a stylish and modern fashion magazine editor; her role was well received by critics. One critic wrote "Preity not only looks gorgeous, but the dedication to her role shows at vital points. Her penultimate scene with Rani [Mukerji], when she confronts her at the marriage reception, is fabulous." and Rediff.com concluded, "Preity looks glamorous and in a couple of scenes, manages to overshadow King Khan too"

She then starred in Shirish Kunder's romantic musical Jaan-E-Mann, a typical Indian story of two guys in the US loving the same girl, co-starring alongside Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar. The film received positive reviews from critics, yet performed poorly at the box office. Zinta played the role of Piya, the cynosure of two men. Although she had a small role and an underdeveloped character, she was generally praised for her performance. Naresh Kumar Deoshi said, "Preity Zinta is a natural performer. She brings a wide range of emotional variety to her character. At times she is bubbly, at times sombre, at times assuring and at times inhibited and unsure."

In 2007 Zinta starred in Shaad Ali's comedy Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. Although much anticipated, the film was a critical and commercial failure in India. The film did better overseas, especially in the UK. She received mixed reviews from one extreme to the other. Ashok Nayak praised her, "Preity Zinta, looks bubbling and gorgeous. The chemistry between Abhishek [Bachchan] and Preity is mind blowing. She is equally competent and gives a commendable performance." On the other hand, The Times of India criticised her that "she is too plastic as the Paki-Brit girl".

In that same year, Zinta took on a professional turning point in her career. She began working more with art film directors, and turned towards a neo-realistic cinema, known in India as parallel cinema, rather than mainly working on commercial cinema. She starred in her first English film, Rituparno Ghosh's The Last Lear, opposite Amitabh Bachchan. The film premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival, and has received a remarkable response as well as many accolades when it was showcased at a Gala Presentation. Zinta played a bad theatre actress in the film, and the first reviews have been positive, with one critic writing "It's great to see her doing a completely natural role. She played her role with real dignity and it was a pleasure seeing her getting back to her initial style of acting". On her first art film, Zinta said "I did think with art films that they don't pay you, they don't feed you, but I was wrong, and I'm so happy to be here". Currently, she is set to star in Jahnu Barua's forthcoming film Har Pall.

Commitments

Columnist

In 2004, Zinta turned columnist. She joined a line up of some of South Asia's most renowned commentators including Ahmed Rashid and Kaushik Basu, and wrote several columns for BBC News Online South Asia. She expressed her joy at being part of this project, saying: "I am pretty outspoken and have my own view on every subject. So it will be a good platform for me to air my views."

Her first column, The changing face of Bollywood was published in January 2004. She wrote about the progression Bollywood has gone through down the last decade. The column turned to be one of the site's top ten most widely read stories on the day, attracting an overwhelming response from all over the world.

In her second column, Odds stacked against Indian women, Zinta scathed the Eve teasing phenomenon in India, and criticised eve-teasers overall. She wrote, "Incidences like these take away a woman's dignity, her space and her freedom. Sometimes I wonder why some men behave like barbarians. And why the state is so helpless in protecting the women. Why should women feel unsafe in a country which had an internationally revered woman prime minister?" Her complaints caught a worldwide attention by readers, and thousands of E-mails were addressed to her from people across the globe. She was particularly applauded by women across India and abroad for her brave stand against abuse of Indian women.

Her third column, The darkness that all actors fear was a more personal column and dealt with her stardom, fans, insecurity and fears as an actor.

Her fourth and last column titled Facing death in Sri Lanka and Thailand was published in 2005. In this column, she described her two near escapes from death in late 2004.

Stage Shows

Zinta is an active stage performer, frequently taking part in big stage shows and world tours.

Zinta's first world tour was an international concert called Craze 2001, along with Anil Kapoor, Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Gracy Singh taking place across the U.S.. At that time, shows in America were cancelled due to the September 11, 2001 attacks, and the team was willing to return to India as soon as possible. However, the shows continued in Canada and went on to do well.

Likewise, in 2002 Zinta took part in the world tour From India With Love in the UK, alongside Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Shahrukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai. The show was displayed in two outdoor extravaganzas at Manchester’s Old Trafford Football Stadium and London’s Hyde Park, being widely watched by over 100,000 people.

Zinta's biggest world tour was undoubtedly in 2004, when she joined a group of stars (Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Saif Ali Khan, Arjun Rampal, and Priyanka Chopra) in the Temptation 2004 concert. The show turned to be the biggest international success for Bollywood concerts.

In 2006, Zinta toured again, participating and performing in the successful Heat 2006 concert around the world, along with Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Sushmita Sen and Celina Jaitley.

Humanitarian Work

In 2004, Zinta went to Singapore for the year's International Indian Film Academy Awards ceremony, which was held at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. Some of the week events included a charity football match at the Jalan Besar Stadium, which Zinta took part in.

In 2005, along with other Bollywood stars, she performed at the HELP! Telethon Concert to help raise money for the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.

In July 2006, Zinta participated in a blood donation camp organised by the Rotary Club of Delhi in association with Godfrey Philips Bravery Awards and donated blood. She supported the promote of this humanitarian cause, saying:

Donating blood doesn't kill one but goes on to save somebody's life. Blood donation also creates a universal world. Once blood is donated it becomes universal and might be used by anyone in need, irrespective of community, caste or region. It binds people together.

Apart from it, Zinta lended her support to the cause of women empowerment for Godfrey Philips.

Zinta donated her winnings, from her 2007 appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati to the Shimla District Red Cross Society in Himachel Pradesh, along with Rani Mukerji. She donated Rs 25 lakhs to the society in support of its welfare activities.

In January 2007, Zinta visited Hisar, Haryana, and spent a day at the army training base to boost the morales of the jawans, and experience the kind of life that they lead. It was for a special show on NDTV's hallmark show Jai Jawan, where entertainers and actors visit Indian troops in far-flung regions to encourage them along with the NDTV team. In the frame of the show, Zinta also met children who were differently abled in the Asha School, and shared a reunion with her elder brother, Deepankar, who is serving in the Army as well.

In August of that year, Zinta along with Mumbai-based artist Gurcharan Singh, painted for the cause of street children for the Non-governmental organization Khushi. She painted a dog in flaming red and named the work as Circle of Life. She said, "I am sure this piece of art will win many little hearts and make a difference to the lives of street children. After all, we are all a part of the circle of life."

Controversies

During her years in the Indian film industry, Zinta has been the subject of numerous controversies and media speculations, which put her among the most controversial celebrities in Bollywood.

Bharat Shah Case

In 2003, Zinta was a witness in the Bharat Shah case and his links to the Indian Underworld. Bharat Shah was the financer for the film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2000), in which Zinta also starred. In 2000, Shah and the producer of the film, Nazim Rizvi were arrested for having connections with Chhota Shakeel, a Mumbai underworld boss.

Unlike several of her colleagues in the film industry, Zinta stuck by her earliest statement in the court. She told the court that she had received threatening phone calls from the mafia, trying to extort money from her while shooting the film Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, and told her that she would have to bear the consequences if she did not pay up. Zinta informed the court that she had confided Nazim Rizvi about the threatening incident, "He told me not to worry and that everything would be alright. He gave me his cell phone number and told me to call him if I have any further problems." After that, she was given police protection and was forced to stay out of the public eye for two months.

Thirteen other witnesses before her, including celebrities Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan were witnesses in the case but they soon retracted their statements. Zinta was the only witness not to have turned hostile, and her courage to testify was much appreciated by the nation. Consequently, she was declared as the special recipient of the Bravery Award given to her for her "Courageous Act" to stand against the Mumbai Underworld, as it had been described. At receiving the award, Zinta said:

To be brave is not to be fearless. It is when you fear and you get over it, then you can be called brave. I am human. It is not that I fear nothing. But getting over a fear is a continuous process and I have been successful so far.

Ness Wadia case

In December 2006, Zinta's boyfriend Ness Wadia was reported to have beaten up some construction workers at her building residence in Bandra. The rumours also reported that a woman was critically injured and a child was hurt. Zinta reacted angrily at hearing these rumours, and had repeatedly shouted at the media about the incident, claiming it was not true, "You have said that at 12 O'clock there has been a fight. Tell me, which place in India do you have workers working in a building at 12 O'clock at night? You all put any kind of news in print in circulation and then the onus falls on us to clarify. On what basis are you putting a news item?"

Zinta lectured the press on how they should conduct themselves, "Please do your homework before you report anything to the nation. You cannot target me and my boyfriend just because I am a film star. If you want to talk about me, then say I'm the most beautiful woman and I have the most amazing films. Why are you bringing in my boyfriend and me and creating this mess?"

She even challenged the press and offered Rs 1 crore to whoever could find an injured woman. The press came up with no findings, and this rumour was considered to be false.

Alleged affair

In March 2007, actress and singer Suchitra Krishnamurthy cited Zinta as the cause of her divorce with Shekhar Kapur, alleging that Preity was having an affair with her husband.

It was not the first time that Krishnamurthy has accused Zinta in this issue. Previously, she had written the same in a personal blog. However, initially Zinta kept silent and refused to talk about the issue, waiting it to disappear for itself.

When Krishnamurthy accused Zinta for the second time in an interview, Zinta was on vacation and learned of the new allegation through her business manager Tanuja Mehra. Zinta denied all the accusations saying,

It is unfortunate that I am bearing the brunt of someone else’s paranoia. She’s clearly unstable and I wish her a speedy recovery."

She has demanded Kapur to step into the picture and clear her name from this controversy.

Zinta said on the accusations: "I really don't understand why is the media going crazy about something that does not even exist". She stated that she had met Kapur only five times in 10 years. In regard to Krishnamurthy, Zinta said, "Everyone who is a nobody wants to be somebody at the expense of famous people like me." Since then, apparently this controversy has come to an end.

Defamation case

On July 15, 2005, Zinta filed a defamation case against leading Mumbai tabloid Mid-Day. Zinta decided to sue the tabloid after tapes emerged alleging that Salman Khan had made derogatory comments about her. The tabloid published the part of the tape which concerned Zinta, indicating that Zinta had a sexual relationship with the actor. She was cross-examined as a chief witness in January 2007.

She later appeared in court for the hearing which took place on March 22, 2007. Zinta said on the issue "I felt humiliated as it spoiled my reputation and character in public". She stated that it has personally and professionally affected her. According to her, she was supposed to do a film with Salman Khan, which was called off. She explained that she had received disparaging phone calls from guys saying they were Salman Khan, and had been repeatedly asked by the media regarding this issue.

The alleged tape was tested in the Government's Forensic laboratory in Chandigarh, which concluded that it was a fake. The case is still on-going.

In the media

According to Box Office India, Zinta has the most success among all the Bollywood actresses of her generation, having the highest success ratio of 65%. Her trademark has been her dimple and she is often cited by popular media by this characteristic. She is known for her vivacious personality and is frequently described by the press as having a bubbly outgoing persona, an image she dislikes.

She is particularly known in the Indian media for her straightforwardness and honesty expressing her outspoken views and forthright opinions in public, be it about her on-screen or off-screen life or raising a voice against any social injustice. These features were widely noticed in her controversies, especially in the Bharat Shah Case, when she testified against the underworld. After this incident, she was described by journalists as "The only man in Bollywood".

In 2003, Zinta was placed number No. 1 on Rediff's Top Bollywood Female Stars. In the following years, she was placed at No. 2 for three consecutive years (2004-2006). Zinta was also ranked number two on the Filmfare Top Actresses list (2003-2004) and number three later on (2005-2006).

Zinta has been frequently featured in different lists by Rediff.com including the Bollywood's Most Beautiful Actresses, Bollywood's Best Dressed Women and Woman of Many Faces. In September 2006, she was placed No. 41 by UK magazine Eastern Eye as one of Asia's Sexiest Women. Zinta is the first Indian actress being featured on the cover of the first issue of the Marie Claire magazine to be sold in India.

Zinta has made three appearances on the Indian talk show Koffee with Karan, hosted by Karan Johar. Her first appearance was in 2004 with Saif Ali Khan, and the second appearance was in March 2005, along with Abhishek Bachchan. The episode with the latter was the highest viewed episode of season one. She made her third appearance in season two of the show with Bobby Deol. She was also a guest judge in Indian Idol 2.

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Zinta at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival

She repeated her initial occupation as a model, when she modeled and walked the ramp for Manish Malhotra's fashion display Fashion Week 2006, titled Freedom, along with actress Kajol.

Later that year, Zinta and filmmaker Karan Johar received an invitation to represent Bollywood at the 2006 Cannes Film Festival. They took this opportunity to promote Johar's then forthcoming film Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, which had Zinta in one of the leading roles. She attended the festival the following year in 2007 once again, coming for the premiere of My Blueberry Nights, which opened the festival.

2007 was a year of diverse media appearances for Zinta. She co-hosted the 52nd Filmfare Awards ceremony, alongside Shahrukh Khan, Karan Johar and Juhi Chawla, and was chosen as the first brand ambassador for GoAir, a new Airway service. The airline owner, Jeh Wadia from Wadia Group, is Ness Wadia's younger brother and there were some speculative issues whether she is doing it for her boyfriend rather than for her own interest. Zinta denied all the rumours, saying that Ness has no relation to this participation in the air liner's publicity: "I did it because I truly think it's a fantastic airline with really low fares" said Zinta.

She was the guest of honour in an art event called Spandan 2. The event took place in the famous Mumbai art gallery Articulate.

In September 2007, Zinta along with Rituparno Ghosh, Amitabh Bachchan and Arjun Rampal, attended the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival for the worldwide premiere of her film The Last Lear, which was showcased at a Gala Presentation. She was welcomed with overwhelming reception of many fans when she arrived with her limousine, to which they were crowded past barricades trying to get her to come over.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Other notes
1998	Dil Se	Preeti Nair	Winner, Filmfare Best Female Debut Award Dubbed into Tamil as Uyire Dubbed into Telugu as Prema Tho
	Soldier	Preeti Singh
	Premante Idera	Jaanu	Telugu film Dubbed into Hindi as Dulhan Dilwale Ki
1999	Raja Kumarudu	Rani	Telugu film Dubbed into Hindi as Prince No. 1
	Sangharsh	CBI Officer Reet Oberoi
	Dillagi	Rani	Guest Appearance
2000	Kya Kehna	Priya Baxi	Nomination, Filmfare Best Actress Award
	Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega	Jahnvi
	Mission Kashmir	Sufiya Parvez
2001	Farz	Kajal Singh
	Chori Chori Chupke Chupke	Madhubala (Madhu)	Nomination, Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award
	Dil Chahta Hai	Shalini
	Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke	Sakshi
2002	Dil Hai Tumhaara	Shalu
2003	The Hero: Love Story of a Spy	Reshma/Ruksar
	Armaan	Sonia Kapoor	Nomination, Filmfare Best Villain Award.
	Koi... Mil Gaya	Nisha	Nomination, Filmfare Best Actress Award
	Kal Ho Naa Ho	Naina Catherine Kapur	Winner, Filmfare Best Actress Award
2004	Lakshya	Romila Dutta
	Dil Ne Jise Apna Kahaa	Dr. Parineeta (Pari)
	Veer-Zaara	Zaara Hayat Khan	Nomination, Filmfare Best Actress Award
2005	Khullam Khulla Pyaar Karen	Priti
	Salaam Namaste	Ambar 'Amby' Malhotra	Nomination, Filmfare Best Actress Award
2006	Alag		Special Appearance in song Sabse Alag
	Krrish	Nisha	Special Appearance
	Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna	Rhea Saran	Nomination, Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award
	Jaan-E-Mann	Piya Goyal
2007	Jhoom Barabar Jhoom	Alvira Khan
	The Last Lear	Shabnam	Post-production First English language film
	Om Shanti Om	Herself	Special appearance in song Deewangi Deewangi
2008	Mera Bharat Mahaan		Releasing on January 25, 2008
	Har Pall		Filming
	Suryamukhi	Suryamukhi	Announced
	Heaven on Earth		Announced

Awards and honors

Main article: List of Preity Zinta's awards and nominations

Template:S-awards

See also

• List of Indian movie actresses
• List of Rajputs

Further reading

• Khubchandani, Lata. 'I had this illusion that filmstars are like kings and queens'. Rediff.com, May 22, 2000. Accessed September 15, 2007.
• Pillai, Jitesh. Freedom at midnight...Preity Zinta. Indiatimes.com. April 2001. Accessed September 27, 2007.
• Verma, Sukanya. Preity purrfect!. Rediff.com, 2001. Accessed September 15, 2007.
• V. Gangadhar. Preity magic. The Tribune. July 24, 2004. Accessed October 8, 2007.
• Hahn, Lorraine. Bollywood Actress, Preity Zinta TalkAsia Interview Transcript. CNN.com, December 18, 2004. Accessed September 26, 2007.
• Nambiar, Smitha. The Dimpled Preity. January 10, 2005. Accessed September 15, 2007.

External links

• Preity Zinta at IMDb