The Filmfare Award for Best Actress is given by Filmfare as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Hindi films, to recognise a female actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role. The award was first given in 1954.

Superlatives[link]

Nutan and Kajol, with five wins each, have more Best Actress wins than any other actress. Two actresses: Meena Kumari and Madhuri Dixit, have four wins. Vyjayanthimala, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi have three wins. Eight actresses have won the award twice; in chronological order, they are Waheeda Rehman, Dimple Kapadia, Rekha, Sridevi, Karisma Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai, Rani Mukerji and Vidya Balan.

Four actresses have won the award in consecutive years; in chronological order, they are Meena Kumari (1954–55), Jaya Bachchan (1974–75), Shabana Azmi (1984–85), and Rani Mukerji (2005–06).

Actresses who have won both Best Actress and Best Supporting Actress awards include Vyjayanthimala, Raakhee, Padmini Kolhapure, Nutan, Dimple Kapadia, Rekha, Karisma Kapoor, Jaya Bachchan, Madhuri Dixit, Rani Mukerji and Kareena Kapoor. Rani Mukerji is the first and only actress to win both these awards in the same year. Two actresses were nominated for both these awards for the same performance: Nutan for Saudagar (1974) and for Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki (1979) and Raakhee for Doosra Aadmi (1978).

Apart from being a record holder in this category, Nutan, who has won 6 Filmfare awards (5 for Best Actress and 1 for Best Supporting Actress), is the overall most-awarded performer in the female acting categories along with Jaya Bachchan, who has won 3 awards from each category.

There has been only one tie in the history of this category. This occurred in 1974 when Jaya Bachchan and Dimple Kapadia were both given the award.

Madhuri Dixit, holds the record for most nominations in the Best Actress category, with 13, followed by Meena Kumari (12), Hema Malini (11), Kajol (10) and Shabana Azmi / Aishwarya Rai (9). Raakhee is the overall most-nominated performer in the female acting categories, with 16 nominations (8 for Best Actress and 8 for Best Supporting Actress), followed by Madhuri Dixit, who has 15 nominations overall. Madhuri Dixit also holds the record for most consecutive year nominations with 8 between 1989 and 1996 winning thrice in 1991, 1993 and 1995.

In 1963, Meena Kumari achieved an unusual feat by garnering all the three nominations of this category. She was nominated for Aarti, Main Chup Rahungi and Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (for which she eventually won).

Shabana Azmi, who received four out of the five nominations of this category in 1984 (and eventually won for Arth), holds the record for the highest number of Best Actress nominations in a single year.

Only once have siblings been nominated for the Best Actress Award during the same year: Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor in 2002.

Multiple nominees[link]

• 13 Nominations : Madhuri Dixit
• 12 Nominations : Meena Kumari
• 11 Nominations : Hema Malini
• 10 Nominations : Kajol
• 9 Nominations : Aishwarya Rai, Shabana Azmi
• 8 Nominations : Jaya Bachchan, Raakhee, Sridevi
• 7 Nominations : Nutan, Rekha, Rani Mukerji
• 6 Nominations : Juhi Chawla, Kareena Kapoor, Vidya Balan
• 5 Nominations : Karisma Kapoor, Preity Zinta, Tabu, Vyjayanthimala, Waheeda Rehman
• 4 Nominations : Dimple Kapadia, Mala Sinha, Manisha Koirala, Saira Banu, Sharmila Tagore, Smita Patil, Urmila Matondkar
• 3 Nominations : Jaya Prada, Priyanka Chopra
• 2 Nominations : Ameesha Patel, Anushka Sharma, Asha Parekh, Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone, Katrina Kaif, Meenakshi Seshadri, Nargis, Padmini Kolhapure, Rati Agnihotri, Reena Roy, Sadhana Shivdasani, Suchitra Sen, Zeenat Aman

List of winners[link]

1950s[link]

• 1954 Meena Kumari – Baiju Bawra as Gauri

• 1955 Meena Kumari – Parineeta as Lolita

• 1956 Kamini Kaushal – Biraj Bahu as Biraj Chakravorty
  • Geeta Bali – Vachan as Kamla
  • Meena Kumari – Azaad as Shobha

• 1957 Nutan – Seema as Gauri

• 1958 Nargis – Mother India as Radha

• 1959 Vyjayanthimala – Sadhna as Champabai / Rajani
  • Meena Kumari – Sahara as Leela
  • Vyjayanthimala – Madhumati as Madhumati / Madhavi / Radha

1960s[link]

• 1960 Nutan – Sujata as Sujata
  • Mala Sinha – Dhool Ka Phool as Meena Khosla
  • Meena Kumari – Chirag Kahan Roshni Kahan as Ratna

• 1961 Bina Rai – Ghunghat as Parvati / Jamuna
  • Madhubala – Mughal-e-Azam as Anarkali
  • Nutan – Chhalia as Shanti

• 1962 Vyjayanthimala – Gunga Jumna as Dhanno
  • Padmini – Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai as Kammo
  • Saira Banu – Junglee as Rajkumari 'Raj'

• 1963 Meena Kumari – Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam as Chhoti Bahu
  • Meena Kumari – Aarti as Aarti Gupta
  • Meena Kumari – Main Chup Rahungi as Gayetri

• 1964 Nutan – Bandini as Kalyani
  • Mala Sinha – Bahurani as Padma
  • Meena Kumari – Dil Ek Mandir as Sita

• 1965 Vyjayanthimala – Sangam as Radha
  • Mala Sinha – Jahan Ara as Jahanara Begum Sahib
  • Sadhana – Woh Kaun Thi? as Sandhya

• 1966 Meena Kumari – Kaajal as Madhavi
  • Mala Sinha – Himalaya Ki Godmein as Phoolwa
  • Sadhana – Waqt as Meena Mittal

• 1967 Waheeda Rehman – Guide as Rosie Marco
  • Meena Kumari – Phool Aur Patthar as Shanti Devi
  • Suchitra Sen – Mamta as Devyani (Pannabai) / Suparna

• 1968 Nutan – Milan as Radha R. Rai
  • Saira Banu – Shagird as Poonam
  • Waheeda Rehman – Ram Aur Shyam as Anjana

• 1969 Waheeda Rehman – Neel Kamal as Rajkumari Neel Kamal / Sita Raichand
  • Nargis – Raat Aur Din as Mrs. Varuna Verma / Peggy
  • Saira Banu – Diwana as Kamini Gupta

1970s[link]

• 1970 Sharmila Tagore – Aradhana as Vandhana Tripathi
  • Asha Parekh – Chirag as Asha Chibber
  • Nanda – Ittefaq as Rekha

• 1971 Mumtaz – Khilona as Chand
  • Sharmila Tagore – Safar as Mrs. Neela Shekhar Kapoor
  • Waheeda Rehman – Khamoshi as Radha

• 1972 Asha Parekh – Kati Patang as Madhavi "Madhu"
  • Jaya Bachchan – Guddi as Kusum "Guddi"
  • Jaya Bachchan – Uphaar as Minoo

• 1973 Hema Malini – Seeta Aur Geeta as Seeta / Geeta
  • Meena Kumari – Pakeezah as Nargis / Sahibjaan (posthumous nomination)
  • Raakhee – Aankhon Aankhon Mein as Parvati

• 1974 Dimple Kapadia – Bobby as Bobby J. Braganza (tied with) Jaya Bachchan – Abhimaan as Uma Kumar
  • Jaya Bachchan – Koshish as Aarti Mathur
  • Moushumi Chatterjee – Anuraag as Shivani
  • Nutan – Saudagar as Mahjubhi

• 1975 Jaya Bachchan – Kora Kagaz as Archana Gupta
  • Hema Malini – Amir Garib as Sunita "Soni"
  • Hema Malini – Prem Nagar as Lata
  • Saira Banu – Sagina as Lalita
  • Shabana Azmi – Ankur as Laxmi

• 1976 Lakshmi – Julie as Julie
  • Hema Malini – Khushboo as Kusum
  • Hema Malini – Sanyasi as Champa
  • Jaya Bachchan – Mili as Mili Khanna
  • Suchitra Sen – Aandhi as Aarti Devi

• 1977 Raakhee – Tapasya as Indrani "Indu" Sinha
  • Hema Malini – Mehbooba as Ratna / Jhumri
  • Raakhee – Kabhi Kabhie as Pooja Khanna
  • Reena Roy – Nagin as Nagin
  • Sharmila Tagore – Mausam as Chanda Thapa / Kajli Thapa

• 1978 Shabana Azmi – Swami as Saudamini "Mini"'
  • Hema Malini – Kinara as Aarti Sanyal
  • Raakhee – Doosra Aadmi as Nisha
  • Smita Patil – Bhumika as Usha (Urvashi) Dalvi
  • Zarina Wahab – Gharaonda as Chaya

• 1979 Nutan – Main Tulsi Tere Aangan Ki as Sanjukta Chouhan
  • Raakhee – Trishna as Mrs. Aarti Gupta
  • Ranjeeta – Ankhiyon Ke Jharokhon Se as Lily Fernandes
  • Rekha – Ghar as Aarti Chandra
  • Zeenat Aman – Satyam Shivam Sundaram as Rupa

1980s[link]

• 1980 Jaya Bachchan – Nauker as Geeta
  • Hema Malini – Meera as Meera Rathod
  • Jaya Prada – Sargam as Hema Pradhan
  • Poonam Dhillon – Noorie as Noorie Nabi
  • Raakhee – Jurmana as Rama Sharma

• 1981 Rekha – Khubsoorat as Manju Dayal
  • Reena Roy – Aasha as Asha
  • Rekha – Judaai as Gauri Singh Verma
  • Shabana Azmi – Thodisi Bewafaii as Nima Choudhary
  • Zeenat Aman – Insaaf Ka Tarazu as Bharti Saxena

• 1982 Smita Patil – Chakra as Amma
  • Hema Malini – Naseeb as Asha
  • Jaya Bachchan – Silsila as Shobha Malhotra
  • Raakhee – Baseraa as Sharda Balraj Kohli
  • Rati Agnihotri – Ek Duuje Ke Liye as Sapna
  • Rekha – Umrao Jaan as Umrao Jaan

• 1983 Padmini Kolhapure – Prem Rog as Manorama "Rama"
  • Raakhee – Shakti as Sheetal
  • Rekha – Jeevan Dhaara as Sangeeta Shrivastav
  • Salma Agha – Nikaah as Niloufer Bano / Habiba Shabnam Rehmani
  • Smita Patil – Bazaar as Najma

• 1984 Shabana Azmi – Arth as Mrs. Pooja Inder Malhotra
  • Shabana Azmi – Avtaar as Radha Krishen
  • Shabana Azmi – Mandi as Rukmini Bai
  • Shabana Azmi – Masoom as Indu D. Malhotra
  • Sridevi – Sadma as Nehalata Malhotra

• 1985 Shabana Azmi – Bhavna as Bhavna Saxena
  • Jaya Prada – Sharaabi as Meena
  • Rohini Hattangadi – Saaransh as Parvati Pradhan
  • Shabana Azmi – Sparsh as Kavita
  • Smita Patil – Aaj Ki Awaaz as Rajni V. Deshmukh

• 1986 Dimple Kapadia – Saagar as Mona D'Silva
  • Jaya Prada – Sanjog as Yashoda / Asha
  • Mandakini – Ram Teri Ganga Maili as Ganga Singh
  • Padmini Kolhapure – Pyaar Jhukta Nahin as Preeti B. Pratap
  • Rati Agnihotri – Tawaif as Sultana

• 1987 No award

• 1988 No award

• 1989 Rekha – Khoon Bhari Maang as Aarti Verma
  • Juhi Chawla – Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak Rashmi
  • Madhuri Dixit – Tezaab as Mohini

1990s[link]

• 1990 Sridevi – ChaalBaaz as Anju Das / Manju Das
  • Bhagyashree – Maine Pyar Kiya as Suman
  • Madhuri Dixit – Prem Pratigya as Laxmi M. Rao
  • Sridevi – Chandni as Chandni Mathur
  • Vijayashanti – Eeshwar as Lalita

• 1991 Madhuri Dixit – Dil as Madhu Mehra
  • Hema Malini – Rihaee as Taku
  • Juhi Chawla – Pratibandh as Shanti
  • Meenakshi Seshadri – Jurm as Meena S. Varma

• 1992 Sridevi – Lamhe as Pallavi / Pooja Bhatnagar
  • Dimple Kapadia – Lekin... as Reva
  • Madhuri Dixit – Saajan as Pooja Saxena
  • Rekha – Phool Bane Angaray as Namrita Singh
  • Zeba Bakhtiar – Henna as Henna

• 1993 Madhuri Dixit – Beta as Saraswati
  • Juhi Chawla – Bol Radha Bol as Radha / Rita
  • Sridevi – Khuda Gawah as Benazir / Mehndi

• 1994 Juhi Chawla – Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke as Vaijanti Iyer
  • Dimple Kapadia – Rudaali as Shanichari
  • Madhuri Dixit – Khalnayak as Gangotri "Ganga" Devi
  • Meenakshi Seshadri – Damini as Damini Gupta
  • Sridevi – Gumrah as Roshni Chadha

• 1995 Madhuri Dixit – Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! as Nisha Choudhury
  • Kajol – Yeh Dillagi as Sapna
  • Madhuri Dixit – Anjaam as Shivani Chopra
  • Manisha Koirala – 1942: A Love Story as Rajeshwari "Rajjo" Pathak
  • Sridevi – Laadla as Sheetal Jetley

• 1996 Kajol – Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge as Simran Singh
  • Madhuri Dixit – Raja as Madhu Garewal
  • Madhuri Dixit – Yaraana as Lalita
  • Manisha Koirala – Akele Hum Akele Tum as Kiran Kumar
  • Urmila Matondkar – Rangeela as Mili Joshi

• 1997 Karisma Kapoor – Raja Hindustani as Aarti Sehgal
  • Juhi Chawla – Daraar as Priya Bhatia
  • Manisha Koirala – Khamoshi: The Musical as Annie J. Braganza
  • Seema Biswas – Bandit Queen as Phoolan Devi
  • Tabu – Maachis as Virender "Veeru" Kaur

• 1998 Madhuri Dixit – Dil To Pagal Hai as Pooja
  • Juhi Chawla – Yes Boss as Seema Kapoor
  • Mahima Chaudhry – Pardes as Kusum Ganga
  • Sridevi – Judaai as Kaajal Verma
  • Tabu – Virasat as Gehna

• 1999 Kajol – Kuch Kuch Hota Hai as Anjali Sharma
  • Kajol – Dushman as Sonia / Naina Saigal
  • Kajol – Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha as Sanjana
  • Manisha Koirala – Dil Se.. as Meghna
  • Urmila Matondkar – Satya as Vidya

2000s[link]

• 2000 Aishwarya Rai – Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam as Nandini
  • Aishwarya Rai – Taal as Mansi
  • Kajol – Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain as Megha
  • Karisma Kapoor – Biwi No.1 as Pooja Mehra
  • Tabu – Hu Tu Tu as Panna

• 2001 Karisma Kapoor – Fiza as Fiza Ikramullah
  • Aishwarya Rai – Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai as Preeti Vyas
  • Madhuri Dixit – Pukar as Anjali
  • Preity Zinta – Kya Kehna as Priya Baxi
  • Tabu – Astitva as Aditi Pandit

• 2002 Kajol – Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... as Anjali Sharma
  • Ameesha Patel – Gadar: Ek Prem Katha as Sakina
  • Kareena Kapoor – Asoka as Kaurwaki
  • Karisma Kapoor – Zubeidaa as Zubeida Begum
  • Tabu – Chandni Bar as Mumtaz Ali Ansari

• 2003 Aishwarya Rai – Devdas as Parvati "Paro" Chakraborty
  • Ameesha Patel – Humraaz as Priya
  • Bipasha Basu – Raaz as Sanjana Dhanraj
  • Karisma Kapoor – Shakti: The Power as Nandini
  • Rani Mukerji – Saathiya as Suhani Sharma

• 2004 Preity Zinta – Kal Ho Naa Ho as Naina Catherine Kapur
  • Bhumika Chawla – Tere Naam as Nirjala Bharadwaj
  • Hema Malini – Baghban as Pooja Malhotra
  • Preity Zinta – Koi... Mil Gaya as Nisha
  • Rani Mukerji – Chalte Chalte as Priya Chopra
  • Urmila Matondkar – Bhoot as Swati

• 2005 Rani Mukerji – Hum Tum as Rhea Prakash
  • Aishwarya Rai – Raincoat as Neerja "Neeru"
  • Preity Zinta – Veer-Zaara as Zaara Hayaat Khan
  • Shilpa Shetty – Phir Milenge as Tamanna Sahni
  • Urmila Matondkar – Ek Hasina Thi as Sarika Vartak

• 2006 Rani Mukerji – Black as Michelle McNally
  • Preity Zinta – Salaam Namaste as Ambar "Ambi" Malhotra
  • Rani Mukerji – Bunty Aur Babli as Vimmi "Babli" Saluja
  • Sharmila Tagore – Viruddh... Family Comes First as Sumitra V. Patwardhan
  • Vidya Balan – Parineeta as Lalita

• 2007 Kajol – Fanaa as Zooni Ali Beg
  • Aishwarya Rai – Dhoom 2 as Sunehri
  • Bipasha Basu – Corporate as Nishiganda Dasgupta
  • Kareena Kapoor – Omkara as Dolly Mishra
  • Rani Mukerji – Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna as Maya Talwar

• 2008 Kareena Kapoor – Jab We Met as Geet Dhillon
  • Aishwarya Rai – Guru as Sujata Desai
  • Deepika Padukone – Om Shanti Om as Shantipriya/Sandhya (Sandy)
  • Madhuri Dixit – Aaja Nachle as Dia Srivastav
  • Rani Mukerji – Laaga Chunari Mein Daag as Vibhavari "Badki" S. Sahay
  • Vidya Balan – Bhool Bhulaiyaa as Avni S. Chaturvedi

• 2009 Priyanka Chopra – Fashion as Meghna Mathur
  • Aishwarya Rai – Jodhaa Akbar as Jodhaa Bai
  • Anushka Sharma – Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi as Taani
  • Asin – Ghajini as Kalpana Shetty
  • Kajol – U Me Aur Hum as Piya

2010s[link]

• 2010 Vidya Balan – Paa as Vidya
  • Deepika Padukone – Love Aaj Kal as Meera Pandit
  • Kareena Kapoor – 3 Idiots as Pia Sahastrabuddhe
  • Kareena Kapoor – Kurbaan as Avantika Ahuja/Khan
  • Katrina Kaif – New York as Maya
  • Priyanka Chopra – Kaminey as Sweety Shekhar Bhope

• 2011 Kajol – My Name Is Khan as Mandira Khan
  • Aishwarya Rai – Guzaarish as Sofia D'Souza
  • Anushka Sharma – Band Baaja Baaraat as Shruti Kakkar
  • Kareena Kapoor – Golmaal 3 as Daboo
  • Vidya Balan – Ishqiya as Krishna Verma

• 2012 Vidya Balan – The Dirty Picture as Reshma/Silk
  • Katrina Kaif – Mere Brother Ki Dulhan as Dimple Dixit
  • Mahi Gill – Saheb, Biwi Aur Gangster as Madhavi
  • Priyanka Chopra – 7 Khoon Maaf as Susanna Anna-Marie Johannes
  • Vidya Balan – No One Killed Jessica as Sabrina Lal

See also[link]

• Filmfare Awards
• Filmfare Best Actor Award

External links[link]

• Filmfare Nominees and Winners
• Official site

The Best Actress Award (French: Prix d'interprétation féminine) is an award presented at the Cannes Film Festival. It is chosen by the jury from the 'official section' of films at the festival. It was first awarded in 1946.

Award Winners[link]

Year	Film	Actress
1946	La Symphonie Pastorale	Michèle Morgan
1947	no award this year
1948	festival not held
1949	The Walls of Malapaga	Isa Miranda
1950	festival not held
1951	All About Eve	Bette Davis
1952	Detective Story	Lee Grant
1953	Come Back, Little Sheba	Shirley Booth
1954	no award this year
1955	Bolshaya Semya	whole cast[1]
1956	I'll Cry Tomorrow	Susan Hayward[2]
1957	Nights of Cabiria	Giulietta Masina
1958	Brink of Life	Bibi Andersson, Eva Dahlbeck, Barbro Hiort af Ornäs and Ingrid Thulin
1959	Room at the Top	Simone Signoret
1960	Never on Sunday	22x20px Melina Mercouri
	Moderato Cantabile	Jeanne Moreau
1961	Two Women	Sophia Loren
1962	Long Day's Journey into Night	Katharine Hepburn
	A Taste of Honey	Rita Tushingham
1963	The Conjugal Bed (L'Ape Regina)	Marina Vlady
1964	The Pumpkin Eater	Anne Bancroft
	One Potato, Two Potato	Barbara Barrie
1965	The Collector	Samantha Eggar
1966	Morgan!	Vanessa Redgrave
1967	Elvira Madigan	Pia Degermark
1968	festival not held
1969	Isadora	Vanessa Redgrave
1970	Metello	Ottavia Piccolo
1971	The Panic in Needle Park	Kitty Winn
1972	Images	Susannah York
1973	The Effect of Gamma Rays on Man-in-the-Moon Marigolds	Joanne Woodward
1974	Les violons du bal	Marie-José Nat
1975	Lenny	Valérie Perrine
1976	L'eredità Ferramonti	Dominique Sanda
	A lőcsei fehér asszony	Mari Törőcsik
1977	3 Women	Shelley Duvall
	J.A. Martin Photographe	Monique Mercure
1978	An Unmarried Woman	Jill Clayburgh
	Violette Nozière	Isabelle Huppert
1979	Norma Rae	Sally Field
1980	A Leap in the Dark	Anouk Aimée
1981	Quartet	Isabelle Adjani
	Possession
1982	Another Way	Jadwiga Jankowska-Cieślak
1983	Storia di Piera	Hanna Schygulla
1984	Cal	Helen Mirren
1985	The Official Story	Norma Aleandro
	Mask	Cher
1986	Rosa Luxemburg	Barbara Sukowa
	Eu Sei Que Vou Te Amar	Fernanda Torres
1987	Shy People	Barbara Hershey
1988	A World Apart	Barbara Hershey, Jodhi May and Linda Mvusi
1989	A Cry in the Dark	Meryl Streep
1990	Przesłuchanie	Krystyna Janda
1991	The Double Life of Véronique	Irène Jacob
1992	The Best Intentions	Pernilla August
1993	The Piano	Holly Hunter
1994	La Reine Margot	Virna Lisi
1995	The Madness of King George	Helen Mirren
1996	Secrets & Lies	Brenda Blethyn
1997	Nil by Mouth	Kathy Burke
1998	The Dreamlife of Angels	Élodie Bouchez and Natacha Régnier
1999	Humanité	Séverine Caneele
	Rosetta	Émilie Dequenne
2000	Dancer in the Dark	Björk
2001	The Piano Teacher	Isabelle Huppert
2002	The Man Without a Past	Kati Outinen
2003	The Barbarian Invasions	Marie-Josée Croze
2004	Clean	Maggie Cheung
2005	Free Zone	Hanna Laslo
2006	Volver	Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas, Chus Lampreave, Blanca Portillo and Yohana Cobo
2007	Secret Sunshine	Jeon Do-yeon
2008	Linha de Passe	Sandra Corveloni
2009	Antichrist	Charlotte Gainsbourg
2010	Certified Copy	Juliette Binoche
2011	Melancholia	Kirsten Dunst
2012	Beyond the Hills	Cristina Flutur and Cosmina Stratan

Notes[link]

External links[link]

• Cannes Film Festival official website
• Cannes Film Festival at IMDb.

Kareena Kapoor
Kapoor at the launch of Gitanjali Group's jewellery collection, "Parineeta", June 2010
Born	(1980-09-21) 21 September 1980 (age 31) Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
Occupation	Film actress, Model
Years active	2000–present
Partner	Saif Ali Khan (2007–present)
Signature
Website
www.kareenakapoor.me

Kareena Kapoor (pronounced [kəˈriːnaː kəˈpuːr]; born on 21 September 1980),^[1] often informally referred to as Bebo,^[2] is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. During her career, Kapoor has been noted for her performances in a range of film genres; these include her work from contemporary romantic dramas to comedies, period films to major Bollywood productions, as well as less publicised independent films.^[3][4]

Born into a family where her parents, Randhir Kapoor and Babita, and elder sister Karisma were actors, Kapoor faced the media spotlight from a very young age, but did not make her acting debut until the 2000 film Refugee. Her melodrama Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... became India's highest-grossing film in the overseas market in 2001, and is one of her biggest commercial successes to date.^[5] After receiving negative reviews for a series of repetitive roles, Kapoor accepted more demanding parts in order to avoid being typecast,^[6] and was consequently recognized by critics for displaying greater versatility as an actress.^[7][8] Her portrayal of a sex worker in Chameli (2004) proved to be the turning point in her career and she was later noted for her performances in the critically acclaimed projects Dev (2004) and Omkara (2006).^[6] She went on to play the lead female role in the Imtiaz Ali-directed romantic comedy Jab We Met (2007), for which she received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress, and the drama 3 Idiots (2009), which became the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time.^[9]

Inspired by Bollywood actresses like Nargis and Meena Kumari, as well as her sister Karisma, Kapoor is well-recognized for her fashion style and her film roles, both of which have contributed in making her a style icon for young girls and women.^[10] Her contributions to the film industry have garnered her numerous achievements including six Filmfare Awards, among nine nominations,^[11] making her a leading actress of Hindi cinema.^[3][8] In addition to film acting, Kapoor is a regular stage performer and has launched her own clothing line in association with being the former brand ambassador for the retail chain Globus. Her off-screen life, including her relationship with actor Saif Ali Khan, is the subject of wide media coverage in India.^[7][12]

Early life and background[link]

Born in Mumbai, India, on 21 September 1980, into the Kapoor film family, Kapoor is the younger daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita (née Shivdasani); her elder sister Karisma, is also an actress. Often informally referred to as Bebo,^[2] she is the granddaughter of actor and filmmaker Raj Kapoor and niece of actor Rishi Kapoor.^[1] According to Kapoor, the name "Kareena" was derived from the book Anna Karenina, which her mother read while she was pregnant with her.^[13] She is of Punjabi descent from her father's side^[14] and on her mother's side she is Sindhi.^[15]

As a child, she had strong aspirations to become an actress, and was particularly inspired by watching the films of Bollywood actresses Nargis and Meena Kumari.^[16] Kapoor, who describes herself as a "very naughty [and] spoilt child", would regularly dress up in her mother's clothes and perform in front of the mirror.^[17] Despite her family background, her father disapproved of women entering the acting profession because he believed it conflicted with the traditional maternal duties and responsibility of women in the family.^[10] This led to a conflict between her parents and resulted in Kapoor's mother leaving the house with her daughters.^[18] After her parents' separation, she was raised in Lokhandwala by her mother, who worked several jobs to support her daughters until Karisma debuted as an actress in 1991.^[19] In an interview with Vir Sanghvi, Kapoor said that growing up in a household filled with women helped her become strong and independent.^[17] Following her parents' reconciliation in October 2007,^[18] Kapoor explained that they "were never officially divorced ... [but] ... liv[ed] separately."^[19] Asked about the relationship she shared with her father, Kapoor remarked, "My father is ... an important factor in my life. [Al]though we did not see him often in our initial years, we are a family now."^[19]

Kapoor attended Jamnabai Narsee School in Mumbai before progressing to Welham Girls Boarding School in Dehradun.^[16] She later recalled, "I learnt so much from being at Welham", and described her experience there as "one of the finest parts of my life".^[17] According to Kapoor, she was a good student and received first-class honours in all subjects except mathematics.^[17] Upon graduating from the boarding school, she studied commerce for two years at Mithibai College in Vile Parle, Mumbai, but later confessed that she only studied there because she was close to her family.^[16] Kapoor then registered for a three-month summer course in microcomputers at Harvard University in the United States.^[16] She later developed an interest in law and enrolled at the Government Law College in Churchgate; during this period she became immersed in law books and developed a long-lasting passion for reading.^[16] However, after completing one year at Churchgate, Kapoor realized that she was not inclined towards academics and returned to her initial plan to become an actress.^[17][20] She began training at an acting institute in Andheri, mentored by Kishore Namit Kapoor, a member of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).^[21]

Acting career[link]

2000–03: Debut and breakthrough[link]

Kapoor was initially scheduled to make her debut in Rakesh Roshan's Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), opposite the director's son Hrithik Roshan.^[16] Several days into the filming, however, she abandoned the project and later explained that, "it was probably destined that I was not to be in the film. After all, it was a launch for his son. The whole focus was on the boy. Now I am glad I did not do the movie."^[16]

She made her debut later that year in J.P. Dutta's war drama Refugee, alongside Abhishek Bachchan. Set during the Indo-Pakistani war of 1971, the film centers on a man known simply as "Refugee", who illegally transports civilians back and forth across the Indo-Pakistani border. Kapoor portrayed Naaz, a Bangladeshi girl who falls in love with Refugee while illegally migrating to Pakistan with her family. Her performance was acclaimed by critics; Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama wrote that Kapoor "has a magnetic personality, which will make the viewer fall in love with her instantly. What surprises you is the ease with which she emotes the most difficult of scenes [...] There is no denying the fact that she is a natural performer who is very camera friendly."^[22] On the experience of making her first film, she described it as "...tough ... [but] also a great learning experience."^[16] Refugee became the fifth highest-grossing film in India in 2000,^[23] and Kapoor's performance earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut.^[11]

In 2001, Kapoor appeared opposite Tusshar Kapoor in the romantic drama Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai, which became one of the highest earners of the year.^[24] A review in The Hindu, in regards to her performance, noted that she was "definitely the actress to watch out for, if her debut with Abhishek in Refugee and now Mujhe Kucch Kehna Hai are any indication [...] Kareena shines throughout the flick, with the grace of a seasoned sizzler already."^[25] She next starred in Subhash Ghai's family drama Yaadein alongside Jackie Shroff and Hrithik Roshan. The drama centers on the character of Raj Singh Puri, a middle-class man, and his daughters' marriages. Kapoor played the part of the youngest daughter and Roshan's love interest, Isha Singh Puri. The film was met with negative reactions from reviewers and garnered poor box office returns.^[24] Kapoor then appeared in the Abbas-Mustan thriller Ajnabee. The feature was adapted from the 1992 American thriller film Consenting Adults,^[26] and was a moderate box office success in India.^[24]

Later in the year, she played the female lead in Santosh Sivan's period epic Asoka, a partly fictionalized account of the life of Ashoka the Great. It was widely screened across the United Kingdom and North America, and was also selected for screening at the Venice Film Festival and the 2001 Toronto International Film Festival.^[27] Featured opposite Shahrukh Khan who played Ashoka, Kapoor portrayed the character of Kaurwaki—a princess of Kalinga with whom Ashoka falls in love—and received her first Filmfare Best Actress nomination.^[11] While the film received generally positive reviews, Kapoor's performance received a mixed reaction from critics. Rediff.com concluded that "while a large portion of the first half is focused on the emerging romance between the runaway prince and herself and to their credit they do manage to whip up some on-screen chemistry, I am still unsure as to her acting abilities."^[28] Meanwhile, David Rooney from Variety wrote, "Kapoor plays ornately tattooed Kaurwaki as a lively mix of flirtatious coquette and feisty warrior woman, kind of like J.Lo meets Michelle Yeoh."^[29]

Her final release of 2001 was Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham..., a melodrama, in which she featured as part of an ensemble cast that included Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Kajol and Hrithik Roshan. Directed by Karan Johar, the film was a major financial success and became India's second highest-grossing film of the year, as well as Kapoor's highest-grossing film up until then. It also performed well internationally and became one of the biggest Bollywood success of all time in the overseas market, earning over 1,000 million (US$19.95 million) worldwide.^[30] Kapoor's performance as "Poo", a good-natured but superficial girl, was described as "one of the main ... highlights of the film",^[31] and her portrayal earned her a Filmfare Best Supporting Actress nomination.^[11]

During 2002 and 2003, Kapoor experienced a setback in her career. She was in six films—Mujhse Dosti Karoge!, Jeena Sirf Merre Liye, Talaash: The Hunt Begins..., Khushi, Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon, and the four-hour war epic LOC Kargil—all of which proved critically and commercially unsuccessful in India.^[32][33] Kapoor's performances were often identified by critics as unoriginal and repetitive, with little inspiration.^[1] They expressed concern that she was becoming typecast, but these negative reviews were fundamental in motivating her to improve her integrity as an actress in subsequent years by accepting more demanding roles.^[6][34]

2004–06: Critical acclaim[link]

Following the negative period in Kapoor's career, 2004 marked the beginning of her work in more serious films, most of which would bring her critical acclaim rather than commercial success.^[6] Under the direction of Sudhir Mishra, Kapoor portrayed the role of a prostitute in Chameli. The film relates the story of a young prostitute who meets with a widowed investment banker (played by Rahul Bose), and follows the development of their relationship as they share their devastating life experiences. When Kapoor was initially offered the film, she refused it, stating that she wouldn't be comfortable playing the role.^[34] However, when the director again approached her a year later, she agreed to do the film and viewed it as an opportunity to show the range of her acting skills.^[34] To prepare for the role, she visited several of Mumbai's red-light areas at night to study the dress and mannerisms of sex workers.^[34] Upon release, the film and Kapoor's performance opened to predominantly positive reviews by critics, with the Indiatimes praising her "intuitive brilliance" and stating that she had exceeded all expectations.^[35] Another reviewer, however expressed concern that they found her portrayal unconvincing and excessively stereotypical, describing her as "sounding more like a teenager playacting than a brash, hardened streetwalker", and likening her mannerisms to that of a caricature.^[36] Nonetheless, Kapoor's portrayal of Chameli garnered her the Filmfare Special Performance Award^[11] and the film marked a significant turning point in her career as an actress.^[6]