Shriya Saran

Biography

Shriya Saran Bhatnagar (born 11 September 1982) is an Indian actress who primarily works in Telugu, Tamil, and Hindi films. Although Saran aspired to become a well-known dancer, she became an actress and made her film debut with the Telugu film Ishtam (2001). 

Saran had her first commercial success with Santosham (2002). She is a recipient of one South Indian International Movie Award along with four Filmfare Awards South nominations.

Saran subsequently appeared in several successful Telugu films such as Nenunnanu (2004) and Chatrapathi (2005), alongside Hindi and Tamil films. After marking her Hindi debut with Tujhe Meri Kasam (2003), she gained critical acclaim for her role in Awarapan (2007). 

Saran marked her Tamil debut with Enakku 20 Unakku 18 (2003) and starred in Sivaji (2007), the highest-grossing Tamil film at that time. In 2008, Saran played the lead role in her first English film, The Other End of the Line. 

Her following projects included popular films such as Kanthaswamy (2009) in Tamil and Pokkiri Raja (2010) in Malayalam—roles that established her as one of the leading actresses in the South Indian film industries. 

In 2012, Saran starred in Midnight's Children, an English adaptation of a novel of the same name, for which she received international critical acclaim.

Saran achieved further commercial success by starring in films such as Pavitra (2013) and Chandra (2013). In 2014, Saran starred in the critically acclaimed Telugu film Manam, which brought her accolades for her performance. 

Saran has since been part of critical and commercial successes such as Drishyam (2015), Gautamiputra Satakarni (2017), RRR, and Drishyam 2 (2022). Saran received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu nomination for her performance in Santosham, Nenunnanu, and Chatrapathi.

In addition to her work in films, Saran has been a brand ambassador for brands across India, endorsing beauty and health products. Among other philanthropic activities, she has volunteered for charity organizations. In 2011 she opened a spa employing exclusively visually challenged people.