Group	Aroras
langs	Urdu • Punjabi • Saraiki • Hindi
Rels
related	}}

The Arora is an Indo-Aryan community of the Punjab region. Commentators differ in their opinions regarding the relationship between the Arora and the Khatri community.

They are traditionally a Kshatriya community, whom Lakshmi Chandra Jain, an economic historian writing in 1929, believes "control[led] the finance of much of the commerce of India with central Asia, Afghanistan and Tibet."

The name of the community is claimed to have originated from the ancient city of Aror in the northwestern part of what is now the Sindh province of Pakistan. The Hindu temples of Kabul and the Hindu Fire Temple of Baku built and maintained by them still exist.

Aroras were mainly concentrated in West Punjab (now Pakistan) along the banks of the Indus River and its tributaries; in the Malwa region in East Punjab (a part of India), although not greatly in what became the North-West Frontier Province from 1901; in Sindh (mainly as Sindhi Aroras but there were many Punjabi and Multani speaking Aroras as well); in Rajasthan (as Jodhpuri and Nagauri Aroras/Khatris); and in Gujarat. In post-independence and post-partition India, Aroras mainly reside in Punjab, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Delhi, Jammu, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Gujarat.

Origins

Denzil Ibbetson, who wrote the Report for the Indian census of 1881, notes that "The Aroras are often called Roras in the east of the Panjab". However, he considers the community calling itself Ror to be distinct from the Punjabi Arora, stating that "I can hardly believe that the frank and stalwart Ror is of the same origin as the Arora" even though they shared a common account of their origin. The account was that in the past they had denied their original status in order to avoid persecution, and were in fact "Rajputs who escaped the fury of Paras Ram by stating that their caste was ''aur'' or 'another'", from which word their name came.

According to Ibbetson, the belief of the Punjabi community is that in fleeing the persecution there was at some point a bifurcation, with some members moving north and others moving south. From this arose the two major endogamous divisions within the Arora, respectively known as Uttradhi and Dakhna, which in turn had subdivisions. H. A. Rose is more specific, considering this to be the belief of the Arora of Gujarat, who maintain that Paras Ram pushed the community towards Multan, where they founded the town of Arorkot, probably near to the present day Rohri. That town was subsequently cursed and its inhabitants fled in different directions through its north, south and west gates. While Rose agrees with Ibbetson that the Dakhna division is sometimes thought to include a subdivision called Dahra, he states that the Dahra went westwards, rather than south, and that there is also another major division known as the Sindhi of Sindh.

For the purposes of his report on the census, Ibbetson treats the Arora as a separate community from that of the Khatri, although similarly one of the "great mercantile castes". He notes that the Arora claimed to be of Khatri origin, evidenced by their claims to have denied their true origin to avoid persecution, but that the Khatri themselves rejected this. Jogendra Nath Bhattacharya, writing in 1896, goes further and states that only the Arora believe this connection to be true. However, a more recent commentator, Scott Cameron Levi, believes that they are a "sub-caste of the Khatris".

Occupation and demographics

At the time of the 1881 census, more than half the Arora in the then Punjab Province lived in the areas of Derajat and Multan, with another significant presence at Bahawalpur. Their influence extended as far as Kohat and Peshawar, as well as towards Sirsa. Unlike other mercantile castes of the region, the Arora had almost sole control of the mercantile activities in their areas of abode, sharing them with no other mercantile community as defined by Ibbetson. He noted of the Punjab mercantile classes that

Ibbetson further noted that unlike other Punjabi mercantile castes such as the Bania, the Arora did not confine themselves solely to that economic activity, although it was nonetheless their primary occupation: they had a "peculiar versatility .... trader[s] first indeed, but after that anything and everything." He considers that the Khatri shared the same trait. The Arora were "the trader ''par excellence'' of the Jakti-speaking or south-western portion of Panjab", which corresponded to the lower river valleys, and were a match for the Khatri in the higher reaches of those rivers.

Despite their versatility and industry - they worked in such occupations as agriculture, metalwork, weaving and basket-making, as well as trading - they were not well respected and were particularly liable to be referred to as ''kirár'' (roughly, "coward"). This term was also used, but less frequently, in respect of other mercantile communities, except the Khatri. Ibbetson believes that the prevalence of usage against Arora may have been connected to their status as Hindus in an area where Hindus were looked down upon.

In 1911, Rose reported that the Arora of Bahawalpur were " ... dealing in every commodity, and even selling shoes and vegetables. Some are contractors, bankers or moneylenders, and in the latter capacity they have now acquired a considerable amount of land by mortgage or purchase from Muhummadan owners, though forty or fifty years ago they did not own an acre of cultivated land".

After partition

The Aroras settled in Amritsar during the time of Maharaja Ranjit Singh or even earlier. It is presumed that they migrated from Sind or Multan to Lahore, and then to Amritsar. This is inferred from the fact that, after a very long stay in the central Punjab, they ceased to speak their Lahnda dialect. The Arora Sikhs are mostly found in big towns, especially in Amritsar. They were living there even before the partition. Their Hindu counterparts, the majority of whom migrated from Pakistan, arrived in India in 1947 after a journey lasting up to a month or more to cross only 100 to 400 miles, starved, dehydrated, ill, and often with only the clothes they were wearing. Aroras not only have survived but have prospered. The ''Amritsar Gazetteer'' claims Aroras are very energetic and intelligent. They are mostly engaged in trade and industry. They are superior in business acumen to their counterparts settled in the district. A good number of them have also joined public and private services. The Hoshiarpur Gazetteer says

Before the partition, Aroras used to marry only among their sub-group i.e. Uttradhi, Dakkhna or Dahra and members of the same geographic region. But after the partition, spheres of permissible arranged matrimonial alliances were widened to others of Punjabi origin,< especially Khatris, Bhatias, and Sood. Inter-caste marriages with other communities of Punjab (with Brahmins and Baniyas especially) and other parts of India and world have become quite common and are becoming more common every day. These sub-castes have mixed so overwhelmingly that all of these castes together are now referred to as the Punjabi Aroras or simply the 'Punjabi' community. Aroras have been increasingly shunning the caste system, twith he Aroras (and all Punjabis in general) becoming more liberal, especially the populace in bigger towns and cities. Among Punjabis, socioeconomic status has replaced caste as the primary concern in matrimonial alliances.

Notable Aroras

See also

Hinduism in Punjab

References

;Notes ;Citations ;Bibliography

Category:Punjabi people Category:Hindu communities Category:Social groups of India Category:Punjabi tribes Category:Social groups of Haryana Category:Social groups of Punjab, India Category:Social groups of Delhi

hi:अरोड़ा

Name	Amrita Arora
Birth date	January 31, 1981
Birth place	Chembur, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Yearsactive	2002–Present
Occupation	Actress, VJ
Spouse	Shakeel Ladak (2009–Present) }}

Amrita Arora (born 31 January 1981) is a Bollywood actress.

Personal life and education

Arora was born in thane to Joyce Polycarp and Anil Arora.She attended Holy cross convent high school thane briefly.Mumbai .Her sister is Malaika Arora Khan.

Career

Arora made her Bollywood debut in 2002 opposite Fardeen Khan in the film, ''Kitne Door Kitne Paas'', which was not successful at the box office. Her first successful film was the action comedy, ''Awara Paagal Deewana''. A series of flops followed, among them the controversial ''Girlfriend'' (2004), about a lesbian relationship, in which she appeared opposite Isha Koppikar.

In 2007, She made a special appearance in Farah Khan's film, ''Om Shanti Om'' in the song "Deewangi Deewangi" with her sister and brother-in-law Arbaaz Khan. In the same year, she appeared in ''Speed'' and ''Red: The Dark Side'', also starring Aftab Shivdasani and Celina Jaitley. The films received mixed reviews at the box office.

In 2009, her releases were ''Deha'' and ''Team the Force''. The same year, she appeared in a supporting role in ''Kambakth Ishq'', produced by Sajid Nadiadwala.

Filmography

! Year	! Film	! Role	! Other Notes
2002	''Kitne Door Kitne Paas''	Karishma
2002	''Awara Paagal Deewana''	Mona
2003	''Ek Aur Ek Gyarah''	Priti
2003		Singer/Dancer	Special appearance in song "Dilli Ki Sardi"
2004	''Shart: The Challenge''	Saryu
2004		Sapna
2004	''Mujhse Shaadi Karogi''	Romi
2004	''Rakht''	Natasha Singh
2006	''Deha''	Rini Sinha
2006	''Fight Club - Members Only''	Sonali Bose
2007	''Red: The Dark Side''	Ria Malhotra
2007	''Heyy Babyy''	Herself	Special appearance in song "Heyy Babyy"
2007		Sameera Mehra
2007	''Om Shanti Om''	Herself	Special appearance in song "Deewangi Deewangi"
2008	''Rama Rama Kya Hai Dramaaa''	Khushi Bhatia
2008		Radhika Jha
2008		Priya
2008	''Golmaal Returns''	Esha Santoshi
2009	''Kambakkht Ishq''	Kamini Sandu
2009	''Team - The Force''	Riya
2010
2011	''Ek Tho Chance''

References

External links

Category:1981 births Category:Living people Category:Indian film actors Category:Malayali people Category:Punjabi people Category:Indian actors Category:Indian Christians Category:Hindi film actors Category:People from Mumbai

ar:أمريتا أرورا de:Amrita Arora fr:Amrita Arora hi:अमृता अरोड़ा it:Amrita Arora ml:അമൃത അറോറ mr:अमृता अरोरा

name	Malaika Arora Khan
birth date	August 23, 1973
birth place	Chembur Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
occupation	Actress, Dancer, model, VJ, Television Presenter
spouse	Arbaaz Khan (1998–present)
birth name	Malaika Arora
other names	Malaika Khan
years active	1997–present }}

Malaika Arora Khan (born on 23 August 1973), also known as Malaika Arora, is an Indian model, actress, television personality and former MTV VJ. She is one of India's top item girls. She is most famous for her dance on the song "Chaiyya Chaiyya" (1998), more recently, "Munni Badnaam Hui" (2010) and "Anarkali Disco Chali" (2012).

Early life and background

Arora Khan was born as Malaika Arora in Thane and moved on to live in Chembur, Mumbai to a Punjabi father, Anil Arora, a native of Indian border town Fazilka and a Malayali Catholic mother, Joyce Polycarp. Her father worked in the Merchant Navy.

She completed her secondary education at Swami Vivekanand School in Chembur, Mumbai. Her aunt Grace Polycarp was the principal of the school. She is also an alumnus of the Holy Cross High School Thane where she had studied until ninth grade. She completed her college education from Jai Hind college, Churchgate. She lived in Borla Society, Chembur opposite Basant Talkies before starting her modeling career.

Career

Khan was selected as one of the MTV VJs when MTV India started its operations. She rose to an interviewer for MTV India, becoming the most prominent non-movie, non-model female in urban India. MTV India, recognizing her potential, gave her plum roles co-anchoring with Cyrus Broacha the popular program ''Love Line'' and ''Style Check'', at award ceremonies and concerts on the television channel. Khan then entered the modeling world. Her modeling career was equally successful. She appeared in many advertisements as well as cameos for song and item numbers in Bollywood films such as "Chaiyya Chaiyya" in the film ''Dil Se..''.

In 2005, she did another item number, "Kaal Dhamaal" in the film, ''Kaal''. She also did an item number in Mahesh Babu's Telugu film ''Athidhi''. In 2007, she did a title song in ''Heyy Babyy'' directed by Sajid Khan and another popular song for ''Om Shanti Om'' whose director is the sister of Sajid, Farah Khan. She also did an item number in the film, ''Welcome'' with Nana Patekar and Anil Kapoor. In 2009 she was a Rishton Ke Parkhi in the Star Plus reality show called ''Lux Perfect Bride'' with Shekhar Suman and Amrita Rao.

In 2010, she featured in the superhit item song "Munni Badnaam" in the film ''Dabangg'', which was produced by her husband Arbaaz Khan. On March 12th, 2011, she led a successful world record attempt in Melbourne, Australia, as part of the Indian Film Festival - Bollywood & Beyond. 1235 participants performed a choreographed dance to "Munni Badnaam" with Malaika leading them from the stage.

Television

Arora Khan appeared in the television show ''Nach Baliye'' as one of the three judges. The show was aired on STAR One in mid-2005. She continued as a judge in ''Nach Baliye 2'' that started airing in the last quarter of 2006. In this show, she performed many item numbers as an example for all contestants. She highly criticized Bakhtiyaar Irani for being arrogant in the show. She strongly mentioned that he should do a crash course on humility to improve his behaviour.

Khan appeared in the show ''Zara Nachke Dikha'' as a judge with the Indian actor Chunky Pandey on Star One.

Khan was seen as judge in the show ''Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa'' in 2010 with actress Madhuri Dixit and choreographer Remo D'Souza.

Personal life

Khan is married to Bollywood actor-director-producer Arbaaz Khan whom she met during a coffee ad shoot. Together they have a son, Arhaan. Her sister is actress Amrita Arora, and her brothers-in-law are Bollywood actor Salman Khan and Bollywood actor-director-producer Sohail Khan. Her father-in-law is the famous scriptwriter Salim Khan.

Filmography

''Dil Se..'' ''Bichhoo'' ''Indian (2001 film) ''Maa Tujhhe Salaam (film) ''Kaante'' ''The Hero: Love Story of a Spy ''Kaal'' ''Hey Baby (film) ''Athidhi'' ''Om Shanti Om'' ''Welcome (2007 film) ''EMI (film) ''Helloo India'' ''Prem Kaa Game'' ''Housefull (2010 film) ''Dabangg'' ''Gabbar Singh (film) ''Housefull 2''

Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
1993	''Aaja Meri Jaan''
1998	|		Special appearance in song "Chaiyya Chaiyya"
2000	|	Kiran	Cameo appearance
2001	Indian'' ||		Cameo appearance
2002	Maa Tujhhe Salaam'' ||		Cameo appearance
2002	|	Lisa
2003	The Hero'' ||	Reshma's Mother
2005	|		Special appearance in song "Kaal Dhamaal"
2007	Heyy Babyy'' ||		Special appearance in song "Heyy Babyy"
2007	|		Special appearance in song "Rathraina"
2007	|		Special appearance in song "Deewangi Deewangi"
2007	Welcome'' ||		Special appearance in song "Hoth Rasiley"
2008	EMI'' ||	Nancy
2009	|		Cameo appearance
2010	|	The Dream Girl	Special appearance in song "I Wanna Fall Fall in Love"
2010	Housefull''||	Pooja	Cameo appearance
2010	|	Munni	Special appearance in song "Munni Badnaam Hui"
2012	Gabbar Singh'' ||	Rathalu	Special appearance in song "Kevvu Keka"
2012	|	Sarla/Hetal/Anarkali	Special appearance in song "Anarkali Disco Chali" and also in a cameo appearance.

References

External links

Category:1973 births Khan Arora Malaika Khan Arora Malaika Category:VJs (media personalities) Category:Malayali people Category:Punjabi people Category:Living people Category:Indian Roman Catholics Khan Arora Malaika Category:Indian television presenters Category:Hindi film actors Category:People from Mumbai

ar:ماليكا أرورا خان bn:মালাইকা অরোরা খান de:Malaika Arora Khan el:Μαλάικα Αρόρα fr:Malaika Arora Khan it:Malaika Arora ml:മലൈക അറോറ mr:मलाइका अरोडा खान fi:Malaika Arora

name	Malaika Arora Khan
birth date	August 23, 1973
birth place	Chembur Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
occupation	Actress, Dancer, model, VJ, Television Presenter
spouse	Arbaaz Khan (1998–present)
birth name	Malaika Arora
other names	Malaika Khan
years active	1997–present }}

Malaika Arora Khan (born on 23 August 1973), also known as Malaika Arora, is an Indian model, actress, television personality and former MTV VJ. She is one of India's top item girls. She is most famous for her dance on the song "Chaiyya Chaiyya" (1998), more recently, "Munni Badnaam Hui" (2010) and "Anarkali Disco Chali" (2012).

Early life and background

Arora Khan was born as Malaika Arora in Thane and moved on to live in Chembur, Mumbai to a Punjabi father, Anil Arora, a native of Indian border town Fazilka and a Malayali Catholic mother, Joyce Polycarp. Her father worked in the Merchant Navy.

She completed her secondary education at Swami Vivekanand School in Chembur, Mumbai. Her aunt Grace Polycarp was the principal of the school. She is also an alumnus of the Holy Cross High School Thane where she had studied until ninth grade. She completed her college education from Jai Hind college, Churchgate. She lived in Borla Society, Chembur opposite Basant Talkies before starting her modeling career.

Career

Khan was selected as one of the MTV VJs when MTV India started its operations. She rose to an interviewer for MTV India, becoming the most prominent non-movie, non-model female in urban India. MTV India, recognizing her potential, gave her plum roles co-anchoring with Cyrus Broacha the popular program ''Love Line'' and ''Style Check'', at award ceremonies and concerts on the television channel. Khan then entered the modeling world. Her modeling career was equally successful. She appeared in many advertisements as well as cameos for song and item numbers in Bollywood films such as "Chaiyya Chaiyya" in the film ''Dil Se..''.

In 2005, she did another item number, "Kaal Dhamaal" in the film, ''Kaal''. She also did an item number in Mahesh Babu's Telugu film ''Athidhi''. In 2007, she did a title song in ''Heyy Babyy'' directed by Sajid Khan and another popular song for ''Om Shanti Om'' whose director is the sister of Sajid, Farah Khan. She also did an item number in the film, ''Welcome'' with Nana Patekar and Anil Kapoor. In 2009 she was a Rishton Ke Parkhi in the Star Plus reality show called ''Lux Perfect Bride'' with Shekhar Suman and Amrita Rao.

In 2010, she featured in the superhit item song "Munni Badnaam" in the film ''Dabangg'', which was produced by her husband Arbaaz Khan. On March 12th, 2011, she led a successful world record attempt in Melbourne, Australia, as part of the Indian Film Festival - Bollywood & Beyond. 1235 participants performed a choreographed dance to "Munni Badnaam" with Malaika leading them from the stage.

Television

Arora Khan appeared in the television show ''Nach Baliye'' as one of the three judges. The show was aired on STAR One in mid-2005. She continued as a judge in ''Nach Baliye 2'' that started airing in the last quarter of 2006. In this show, she performed many item numbers as an example for all contestants. She highly criticized Bakhtiyaar Irani for being arrogant in the show. She strongly mentioned that he should do a crash course on humility to improve his behaviour.

Khan appeared in the show ''Zara Nachke Dikha'' as a judge with the Indian actor Chunky Pandey on Star One.

Khan was seen as judge in the show ''Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa'' in 2010 with actress Madhuri Dixit and choreographer Remo D'Souza.

Personal life

Khan is married to Bollywood actor-director-producer Arbaaz Khan whom she met during a coffee ad shoot. Together they have a son, Arhaan. Her sister is actress Amrita Arora, and her brothers-in-law are Bollywood actor Salman Khan and Bollywood actor-director-producer Sohail Khan. Her father-in-law is the famous scriptwriter Salim Khan.

Filmography

''Dil Se..'' ''Bichhoo'' ''Indian (2001 film) ''Maa Tujhhe Salaam (film) ''Kaante'' ''The Hero: Love Story of a Spy ''Kaal'' ''Hey Baby (film) ''Athidhi'' ''Om Shanti Om'' ''Welcome (2007 film) ''EMI (film) ''Helloo India'' ''Prem Kaa Game'' ''Housefull (2010 film) ''Dabangg'' ''Gabbar Singh (film) ''Housefull 2''

Year	! Film	! Role	! Notes
1993	''Aaja Meri Jaan''
1998	|		Special appearance in song "Chaiyya Chaiyya"
2000	|	Kiran	Cameo appearance
2001	Indian'' ||		Cameo appearance
2002	Maa Tujhhe Salaam'' ||		Cameo appearance
2002	|	Lisa
2003	The Hero'' ||	Reshma's Mother
2005	|		Special appearance in song "Kaal Dhamaal"
2007	Heyy Babyy'' ||		Special appearance in song "Heyy Babyy"
2007	|		Special appearance in song "Rathraina"
2007	|		Special appearance in song "Deewangi Deewangi"
2007	Welcome'' ||		Special appearance in song "Hoth Rasiley"
2008	EMI'' ||	Nancy
2009	|		Cameo appearance
2010	|	The Dream Girl	Special appearance in song "I Wanna Fall Fall in Love"
2010	Housefull''||	Pooja	Cameo appearance
2010	|	Munni	Special appearance in song "Munni Badnaam Hui"
2012	Gabbar Singh'' ||	Rathalu	Special appearance in song "Kevvu Keka"
2012	|	Sarla/Hetal/Anarkali	Special appearance in song "Anarkali Disco Chali" and also in a cameo appearance.

References

External links

Category:1973 births Khan Arora Malaika Khan Arora Malaika Category:VJs (media personalities) Category:Malayali people Category:Punjabi people Category:Living people Category:Indian Roman Catholics Khan Arora Malaika Category:Indian television presenters Category:Hindi film actors Category:People from Mumbai

ar:ماليكا أرورا خان bn:মালাইকা অরোরা খান de:Malaika Arora Khan el:Μαλάικα Αρόρα fr:Malaika Arora Khan it:Malaika Arora ml:മലൈക അറോറ mr:मलाइका अरोडा खान fi:Malaika Arora

Name	Eesha Koppikar
Yearsactive	1998–present
Birth date	September 19, 1976
Birth place	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Occupation	Actress, Model
Birthname	Isha Koppikar
Othername	Isha NarangEesha Koppikhar NarangEesha NarangIshaa Koppikar
Spouse	Timmy Narang (2009–present ) }}

Eesha Koppikhar (Konkanii: ईशा कोप्पीकर) (born 19 September 1976), born Isha Koppikar, is an Indian actress and model who has appeared in Kannada, Telugu, Tamil and Hindi films. Koppikhar married her boyfriend Timmy Narang on 29 November 2009.

Background

Koppikhar was born in Mumbai, India, hailing from the Konkani speaking Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmin community. She has one younger brother. Eesha graduated in Life Sciences at Ramnarain Ruia College in Mumbai. It was during her time at college that she appeared in a photoshoot for Indian photographer Gautam Rajadhyaksha. The shoot led to work in advertising as a model, notably for ''L'Oréal'', ''Rexona'', ''Camay'', ''Tips & Toes'' and ''Coca-Cola''. Eesha contested the 1995 Miss India contest, winning the Miss Talent Crown. Her modelling work gave her an introduction to the film industry and to her first film appearance in the Tamil movie ''Kaadhal Kavithai'' in 1998. Since then, Eesha has made over forty films and has several Hindi films in production or due for release in 2010. She continues to model for fashion designers Anita Dongre and Pria Kataria Puri, and is currently the Indian representative of the Italian fashion company ''Police Watches and Jewellery''. Outside her work in film, music and television, Eesha is a spokesperson for the animal rights organisation PETA and received the 10th Anniversary Huminatarian Award in December 2009. She has a black-belt in Taekwondo. She recently showcased her Taekwondo skills in front of her master where she demonstrated self defence skills.

Film career

South India

The 1997 Hindi film ''Ek Tha Dil Ek Thi Dhadhkan'', directed by Shahrukh Sultan, is often quoted as being Koppikhar's first film, but there is no evidence the project was ever released. Her career must therefore be said to have begun with the 1998 Tamil film ''Kaadhal Kavithai'', co-starring alongside Prashanth, and directed by Agathiyan, with music by Maestro Ilaiyaraaja. She was awarded the Filmfare Best Female Debut Award. Continuing her Tamil film career, Koppikhar's second movie was ''En Swasa Kaatre'' in 1998, opposite Arvind Swamy, directed by K. S. Ravi, with music by renowned music director A. R. Rahman. 1998 saw a third film, this time a cameo appearance in Praveen Kanth's ''Jodi'', starring Prashanth and Simran Bagga.

In 1999, Koppikhar alternated between appearances in the Telugu comedy ''Chandralekha'', co-starring Nagarjuna and Ramya Krishnan, directed by Krishna Vamshi; and the Tamil gangland movie ''Nenjinile'', starring Vijay and directed by S. A. Chandrasekhar.

By 2000, Koppikhar's sights were on Bollywood, but this did not stop her appearing in four Kannada films: ''Hoo Anthiya Uhoo Anthiya'' with Ramesh and directed by Praveen Naik, with music by Karthik Raja; ''Nuvvu Vasthavani'', starring and directed by Ravichandran; alongside actor-director Ravichandran again in ''O Nanna Nalle''; and finally ''Surya Vamsha'', directed by S Narayan and starring Vishnuvardhan in a double role as father and son.

After four films in 2000, and a detour to Mumbai for a brief appearance in ''Fiza'' and an item number in ''Rahul'', Koppikhar returned to the south in 2001 for Sundar C's Tamil project ''Kaathal Solla Vanthen''. This was another film never to leave the development stage although a soundtrack of the same name was made available. However, the Telugu comedy ''Prematho Raa'', starring Venkatesh and Simran Bagga, and directed by Uday Shankar, saw Koppikhar's penultimate South Indian role. She signed off her South Indian career in the Tamil action film ''Narassima'', directed by Tirupathisamy and starring Vijayakanth.

Bollywood 2000–2002

Taking time out from four Kannada films in 2000, Koppikhar appeared alongside Karisma Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan in Khalid Mohamed's ''Fiza''. An item number appearance in Prakash Jha's ''Rahul'' completed Koppikhar's introduction to Hindi film. Brief returns to South India in 2001 were coupled with two more Bollywood films: ''Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat'', directed by Rajiv Rai and starring Sunil Shetty alongside a young Arjun Rampal; and K. Raghavendra Rao's urban comedy ''Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa'', opposite Govinda, Juhi Chawla and Johnny Lever.

By 2002, Koppikhar appeared to be consigned to support roles until she was asked by Ram Gopal Varma to appear in an item number for his underworld movie ''Company'' starring Ajay Devgan, Vivek Oberoi and Manisha Koirala. The number in question was ''Khallas'', choreographed by Ganesh Hegde and the effect on cinema audiences and critics was to leave her with the enduring nickname ''Khallas Girl''. A second notable item number, ''Ishq Samundar'', in Sanjay Gupta's ''Reservoir Dogs'' remake ''Kaante'', starring Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt and Sunil Shetty, was enough to raise her profile and in the following year she took the Stardust Award for ''Most Exciting New Face'' for ''Khallas''.

Bollywood 2003–2007

Koppikhar's career produced five films in 2003. In ''Dil Ka Rishta'', directed by Naresh Malhotra, she played opposite Aishwarya Rai and Arjun Rampal. Prawaal Raman's portmanteau film ''Darna Mana Hai'' saw her alongside college whipping boy Aftab Shivdasani. Dr Chandrakprakash Dwivedi cast her in the role of Urmila Matondkar's sister in the sectarian film ''Pinjar'', also starring Manoj Bajpai. A brief appearance in J. P. Dutta's war movie ''LOC Kargil'' paired her opposite Sunil Shetty again. And in Harry Baweja's ''Qayamat: City Under Threat'', she played one of three terrorists fighting off co-stars Ajay Devgan and Sunil Shetty; a role which would bring her a Filmfare nomination in the ''Best Villain'' category.

In 2004, Koppikhar's films were releasing on average every two months. Both Mani Shankar's science fantasy ''Rudraksh'' and Kundan Shah's madcap comedy ''Ek Se Bhadkhar Ek'' teamed her next to perennial acting partner Sunil Shetty. In ''Krishna Cottage'', she was cast opposite Sohail Khan for Santram Verma's creepy ghost story. ''Inteqam'', directed by Pankaj Parashar and co-starring Manoj Bajpai, saw her revive the role played by Sharon Stone in the original Hollywood version: ''Basic Instinct''. Another cameo appearance in Kunal Kohli's ''Hum Tum'' with Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukerji could have left a comedy taste to 2004, but this would be the year of street protests following Karan Razdan's controversial ''Girlfriend'', co-starring Amrita Arora and Aashish Chaudhary caught in a lesbian love triangle. The film provoked public poster burning and calls for the film to be banned.

In 2005, she eased up somewhat only releasing four films. Sangeeth Sivan's bawdy comedy ''Kyaa Kool Hai Hum'', with Anupam Kher, Ritesh Deshmukh and Tusshar Kapoor saw her nominated in three separate award ceremonies (IIFA, Zee Cine Award and Star Screen Awards) for best comedy role. Two more comedies saw her make guest appearances: David Dhawan's Salman Khan vehicle ''Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?'', and Abbas-Mustan's whodunit, ''36 China Town'' with Akshaye Khanna and Kareena Kapoor. A return to Ram Gopal Varma's Factory saw her alongside Chunky Pandey in Vishram Sawant's gangster flick ''D: Underworld Badhshah'', starring Randeep Hooda.

Farhan Akhtar directed a 2006 remake of the Amitabh Bachchan hit ''Don: The Chase Begins Again'', this time with Shahrukh Khan in the lead. Koppikhar was cast as Khan's moll ''Anita''. By now the success of ''Don'' was in contrast to her stuttering career with a string of films stuck in production or abandoned. Vicky Ranawat's ''Haseena Smart Sexy and Dangerous'' crept out towards the end of 2006, Jagdish A Sharma's murder mystery ''Garhee'' appeared on DVD, Hansel Mehta's ''Raakh'' was dropped, whilst Koppikhar's highest profile film of 2007, Nikhil Advani's multi starrer ''Salaam-e-Ishq'', saw her sharing limited screen time with Sohail Khan. Ram Gopal Varma's much discussed ''Shabri'', directed by Lalit Marathe -a role which led to her being unrecognised in character and barred from the film set by security men- has yet to attract a distributor. Later in the year came the haunted love triangle of Ram Gopal Varma's ''Darling'', with Fardeen Khan and Esha Deol.

Bollywood 2008–present

Koppikhar's first film release of 2008 was Atul Agnihotri's ''Hello'', based on the novel ''One Night in a Call Centre'' by Chetan Bhagat. This was followed within weeks by ''Ek Vivaah... Aisa Bhi'', a Rajshri Production directed by Khashik Ghatak and co-starring Sonu Sood. She has had three films released in 2010, Jahnu Barua's ''Har Pal'', ''Right Yaaa Wrong'' by Neeraj Pathak and Manoj Tiwari's ''Hello Darling''.

Her latest release is ''Shabri'' (2011) directed by Lalit Marathe where she plays a women gangster of Mumbai.

Outside Bollywood

Between filming Koppikhar, like many Bollywood actors, performs in stage music shows. In addition to this she has appeared in two music videos: ''Patli Kamar'' by KK for a private album commissioned by Sony in 2001/2002; and Bandish Projekt's ''Bhor (Satyam Shivam Sundaram)'' in 2004, choreographed by Bosco-Caesar. In 2006 she appeared onstage in the Indian Idol Grand Final to dance with the two finalists, and 2007 saw her as one of three judges in the celebrity dance competition ''Nach Baliye''3, alongside director David Dhawan and Vaibhavi Merchant. She served as a judge in the Miss Universe 2008 contest, held on 14 July in Vietnam alongside, amongst others, fashion designer Roberto Cavalli and former winner in 2004 Jennifer Hawkins.

In 2008, prior to her taking on her married name, she adopted a second spelling change to her name from Ishaa Koppikar to Eesha Koppikhar, following the advice of numerologist Niraj Mancchanda.

In August 2009, Koppikhar presented the new Colors wrestling show ''100% De Dhana Dhan.'',

Filmography

Jothi Madhu ''Jodi (film) Lekha Nisha ''Surya Vamsha'' Rangu Gitanjali ''Prematho Raa'' Vanmathi Rubaina Anjali ''Company (film) ''Pinjar (film) Anita Laila Abhilasha Santho ''Rudraksh (film) Disha Diana Fernandez Tanya Tracy/Shalini Mathur Avantika Suryavansh/Pinky ''Kyaa Kool Hai Hum'' Gunjan Vicky's Girlfriend ''Darna Zaroori Hai'' Sonia Chang Anita Haseena ''Gahraee'' Phoolwati Ashwini ''Hello (2008 film) Chandini Shrivastava ''Right Yaaa Wrong'' Satvati ''Shabri'' Shweta Nandini

Year !! Film !! Role !! Language !! Notes
rowspan="2"	1998	''Kaadhal Kavithai''	|	Tamil language>Tamil	Won, Filmfare Best Female Debut (Tamil)
''En Swasa Kaatre''	|	Tamil
rowspan="3"	1999	Jodi'' ||	''	Tamil	Cameo appearance
''Chandralekha (1998 film)	Chandralekha''	|	Telugu language>Telugu
''Nenjinile''	|	Tamil
rowspan="5"	2000	|	Padma	Kannada
''Hoo Anthiya Uhoo Anthiya''	|	Kannada
''Nuvvu Vasthavani''	|	Telugu
''O Nanna Nalle''	|	Kannada
''Fiza''	|	Hindi
rowspan="5"	2001	|	Shweta	Telugu
''Narasimha (2001 film)	Narasimha''	|	Tamil
''Rahul (film)	Rahul''	|	Hindi	Special appearance
''Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat''	|	Hindi
''Aamdani Atthani Kharcha Rupaiyaa''	|	Hindi
rowspan="2"	2002	Company'' ||		Hindi	Special appearance
''Kaante''	|	Hindi	Special appearance
rowspan="5"	2003	Pinjar'' ||	Rajjo	Hindi
''Dil Ka Rishta''	|	Hindi
''Qayamat: City Under Threat''	|	Hindi
''Darna Mana Hai''	|	Hindi
''LOC Kargil''	|	Hindi
rowspan="6"	2004	Rudraksh'' ||	Lali	Hindi
''Krishna Cottage''	|	Hindi
''Hum Tum''	|	Hindi	Special Appearance
''Girlfriend (2004 film)	Girlfriend''	|	Hindi
''Ek Se Badhkar Ek (2004 film)	Ek Se Badhkar Ek''	|	Hindi
''Inteqam: The Perfect Game''	|	Hindi
rowspan="3"	2005	|	Urmila Martodkar	Hindi
''D (film)	D''	|	Hindi
''Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?''	|	Hindi
rowspan="4"	2006	|		Hindi	appears in a Darna Mana Hai flashback
''36 China Town''	|	Hindi
''Don: The Chase Begins Again''	|	Hindi
''Haseena Smart, Sexy, Dangerous''	|	Hindi
rowspan="3"	2007	|	Nishi	Hindi
''Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute to Love''	|	Hindi
''Darling (2007 Hindi film)	Darling''	|	Hindi
rowspan="2"	2008	Hello'' ||	Esha	Hindi
''Ek Vivaah... Aisa Bhi''	|	Hindi
rowspan="2"	2010	|	Anshita	Hindi
''Hello Darling''	|	Hindi
rowspan="3"	2011	|	Shabri	Hindi
''Har Pal''	|	Hindi
''Raakh''	|	Hindi

References

External links

Category:1976 births Category:Living people Category:Indian actors Category:Indian film actors Category:Indian Hindus Category:Indian female models Category:People from Mumbai Category:Hindi film actors Category:Konkani people Category:Filmfare Awards South winners

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