Kareena Kapoor

Date of Birth

21 September 1980

Nickname

Bebo 

Height

5' 5" (1.65 m)

Kareena Kapoor born on September 21, 1980, often informally referred to as Bebo, is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. During her career, Kapoor has received six Filmfare Awards, among nine nominations, and 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.

Early life and background:
Born in Mumbai, India, on September 21, 1980, into the Kapoor film family, Kapoor is the younger daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita  her elder sister Karisma Kapoor, is also an actress. She is the granddaughter of actor and filmmaker Raj Kapoor, great-granddaughter of actor Prithviraj Kapoor, and niece of actor Rishi Kapoor. According to Kapoor, the name "Kareena" was derived from the book Anna Karenina, which her mother read while she was pregnant with her. Often informally referred to as Bebo, she is of Punjabi Khatri descent from her father's side, and on her mother's side she is Sindhi.
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. 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. 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. This led to a conflict between her parents and resulted in Kapoor's mother leaving the house with her daughters. 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. In an interview with Vir Sanghvi, Kapoor said that growing up in a household filled with women helped her become strong and independent. Following her parents' reconciliation in October 2007, Kapoor explained that they "were never officially divorced but liv[ed] separately." Asked about the relationship she shared with her father, Kapoor remarked, "My father is ... an important factor in my life.though we did not see him often in our initial years, we are a family now."



Kapoor attended Jamnabai Narsee School in Mumbai before progressing to Welham Girls Boarding School in Dehradun. 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". According to Kapoor, she was a good student and received first-class honours in all subjects except mathematics. 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. Kapoor then registered for a three-month summer course in microcomputers at Harvard University in the United States. 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. 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. 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).
Career:
Kapoor was initially scheduled to make her debut in Rakesh Roshan's Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), opposite the director's son Hrithik Roshan. 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."


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".


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.


 She next starred in Subhash Ghai's family drama Yaadein alongside Jackie Shroff and Hrithik Roshan.


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.


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 movie was a major financial success and became India's second highest-grossing film of the year, as well as Kapoor's highest-grossing movie 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$22.3 million) worldwide.


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.


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. 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.


She next co-starred in Mani Ratnam's bilingual project Yuva alongside Ajay Devgn, Abhishek Bachchan, Vivek Oberoi, Rani Mukerji and Esha Deol.


She then appeared alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Fardeen Khan in Govind Nihalani's critically acclaimed film Dev, which revolved around the 2002 Hindu-Muslim riots in the Indian state of Gujarat.


Shortly afterwards, she was cast for the first time as a villain in the thriller Fida. The film follows the story of an on-line robbery and the Mumbai underworld with which her character Neha Mehra becomes involved. During the filming of Fida, Kapoor entered into a relationship with actor Shahid Kapoor, whom she later described as having "a major positive influence in my life." Although the film did not succeed at the box office, Kapoor garnered positive reviews for her performance, with some critics noting a distinct progression from her earlier roles. Her subsequent releases that year included Abbas-Mustan's thriller Aitraaz and Priyadarshan's comedy Hulchul, both of which did well at the Indian box office. Following the success of her last two releases, she was cast as the protagonist in the 2005 drama Bewafaa. 


She then starred in Priyadarshan's romantic drama Kyon Ki, a film that relates the love story of a mentally ill patient, played by Salman Khan, and his physician, played by Kapoor. 


In 2006, Kapoor appeared in three films. She first starred in the thriller 36 China Town followed by the comedy Chup Chup Ke; both films performed reasonably well. She next portrayed the Shakespearean character of Desdemona in Omkara, the Hindi adaptation of William Shakespeare's Othello. Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, the film is a tragedy of sexual jealousy set against the backdrop of the political system in Uttar Pradesh.


Kapoor returned to film as the female protagonist Geet Dhillon, a vivacious Sikh girl with a strong zest for life, in the Imtiaz Ali directed romantic comedy Jab We Met (2007)


While shooting for Jab We Met, Kapoor and Shahid ended their three-year relationship. Asked in Mumbai Mirror about their well-publicized break-up, she stated that "I hold him in utmost regard, and I hope one day we could be good friends. He is a great guy." During this period, speculation began to surface that she was dating actor Saif Ali Khan, her co-star in the film Tashan (2008). On October 18, 2007, during Manish Malhotra's grand finale show at the Lakme Fashion Week, Khan confirmed their relationship to the media.


 Kapoor then appeared in Rohit Shetty's comedy Golmaal Returns, the sequel to the 2006 film Golmaal. A part of an ensemble cast that included Ajay Devgn, Arshad Warsi and Tusshar Kapoor, Kapoor played a distrustful wife who believed her husband to be unfaithful. 


In 2009, Kapoor was cast as Simrita Rai opposite Akshay Kumar in Sabbir Khan's battle of the sexes comedy Kambakkht Ishq. 


She next played the leading female role in the dramatic thriller Kurbaan, alongside Saif Ali Khan and Vivek Oberoi.


Her final release of the year was Rajkumar Hirani's drama 3 Idiots, a film loosely based on the novel Five Point Someone by Chetan Bhagat.


In 2010, she appeared in the romantic comedy Milenge Milenge, a production that had been delayed since 2005. The feature garnered negative reviews and poor box office returns. Kapoor's role was small and was not well-received. She next took the supporting role of the career-oriented Shreya Arora in We Are Family, the Hindi adaptation of the 1998 Hollywood release Stepmom.


At the end of the year, Kapoor reunited with director Rohit Shetty for his sequel to the 2008 release Golmaal Returns. Like its predecessor, the project was met with mixed reactions from reviewers, though became the most successful entry in the Golmaal film series Golmaal 3, earning more than 1,000 million (US$22.3 million) domestically.


By April 2011, Kapoor completed shooting for Anubhav Sinha's science fiction Ra.One. She is scheduled to appear in a leading role in the Hindi remake of the 2010 Malayalam film Bodyguard, as well as Dharma Productions' untitled venture alongside Imran Khan. Principal photography for both these projects commenced in late 2010 with a scheduled release of spring 2011. She is also set to star opposite Saif Ali Khan in Sriram Raghavan's action-thriller Agent Vinod.

Humanitarian work:
During her years in the film industry, Kapoor has also been involved with various humanitarian causes. In November 2003, Kapoor performed at the Marco Ricci Each One Reach One Benefit Concert, a fundraiser for the World Youth Peace Summit, while in 2005, along with other Bollywood stars, she took part in the HELP! Telethon Concert, to help raise money for the victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake. Later that year, she visited the desert heartland of Rajasthan to boost the morale of the jawan troops for a special Holi weekend episode on the NDTV show, Jai Jawan. The show consists of entertainers and stars visiting Indian troops in isolated regions along with the NDTV team. In April 2007, Kapoor donated her winnings of 2,500,000 (US$55,750) from Kaun Banega Crorepati (India's version of Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?) to St. Anthony's Old Age Home and Mount Mary Bandra. She subsequently went on to donate her winnings from Kya Aap Paanchvi Pass Se Tez Hain? and 10 Ka Dum to the old age home in 2008 and 2009 respectively.

Awards of the International Indian Film Academy
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2009	Nominated	Popular Award	Female Star of the Decade for: Jab We Met (2007).
2008	Won	Popular Award	Best Actress in a Leading Role for: Jab We Met (2007).
2007	Nominated	Popular Award	Best Actress in a Leading Role for: Omkara (2006).
2005	Nominated	Popular Award	Best Actress in a Leading Role for: Aitraaz (2004).
2004	Won	Special Award	Style Diva of the Year
2003	Nominated	Popular Award	Best Supporting Actress for: Mujhse Dosti Karoge! (2002).
2002	Nominated	Popular Award	Actress in a Supporting Role for: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001).
Filmfare Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2008	Won	Filmfare Award	Best Actress for: Jab We Met (2007).
2007	Won	Filmfare Award	Best Actress - Critics for: Omkara (2006).
	Nominated	Filmfare Award	Best Actress for: Omkara (2006).
2005	Won	Filmfare Award	Best Actress - Critics for: Dev (2004).
2004	Won	Special Award	for: Chameli (2003). For her performance.
2002	Nominated	Filmfare Award	Best Actress for: Ashoka the Great (2001).
			Best Supporting Actress for: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001).
2001	Won	Filmfare Award	Best Newcomer - Female for: Refugee (2000).
Screen Weekly Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2008	Won	Screen	Best Actress for: Jab We Met (2007).
2005	Nominated	Screen	Best Actress for: Dev (2004).
			Best Supporting Actress for: Yuva (2004).
		Special Award	Jodi No. 1 Shared with:Shahid Kapoor
2002	Nominated	Screen	Best Supporting Actress for: Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham... (2001).
2001	Nominated	Screen	Most Promising Newcomer - Female for: Refugee (2000).
Zee Cine Awards
Year	Result	Award	Category/Recipient(s)
2005	Nominated	Popular Award	Best Actress for: Dev (2004).
2002	Won	Queen of Hearts Award