Before bagging the lead role opposite superstar Salman Khan in ‘Jai Ho’ (2014), Daisy Shah was an assistant choreographer to noted film choreographer Ganesh Acharya. She worked with him for 10 long years before entering movies as an actress. Before she played Salman Khan’s leading lady in ‘Jai Ho’, she was seen as a background dancer in many popular songs, including a song in Khan’s blockbuster film ‘Tere Naam’. Daisy Shah made her acting debut with the 2010 bilingual action-thriller ‘Vandae Maatharam’. She was seen in a special guest appearance in the movie. However, her breakout performance came when she was cast as the female lead in the 2011 Kannada film ‘Bodyguard’.
Many people had thought that making her Bollywood debut with superstar Salman Khan in ‘Jai Ho’ would smooth the way for her career in Hindi films. However, that did not happen. Despite earning over Rs. 100 crores, ‘Jai Ho’ was an average grosser at the box office. The choreographer-turned-actress did not have many films coming her way after her Hindi film debut. After ‘Jai Ho’, Daisy was next seen in Vishal Panday’s erotic thriller Hate Story 3 (2015), which was the third instalment of the popular Hindi film franchise, Hate Story. Daisy is currently shooting for her next film, Race 3, with Salman Khan. We hope the film helps her cement her position in the industry.
TRIVIA: Interestingly, before ‘Jai Ho’, Daisy was offered Salman Khan’s ‘Bodyguard’ (2011). However, she turned down the offer and the role then went to Hazel Keech, a British model turned actress who is now Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh’s wife.
3 Anushka Sharma
There is a long list of actors who did a series of odd jobs before getting their first Bollywood break. One of the professions, which many consider a stepping stone to Bollywood, is modelling. Think of top actors from the current crop, and chances are there that at least a few of them would be a model before turning to acting and making a name for themselves. Anushka Sharma is one of them. Sharma made her successful acting debut with Aditya Chopra’s ‘Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi’ (2008) and paved her way to superstardom. Today, she is one of the highest paid actresses in Bollywood and has won many awards and accolades. But if you think that it was a cakewalk for the actress, then think again, because, like any other newcomer aspiring to join movies, Anushka had to work immensely hard to acquire the position which she enjoys currently in Bollywood.
Before making her debut opposite Shah Rukh Khan in ‘Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi’, Anushka was into modelling. She appeared in a number of advertisements, a few of them for some popular brands also. In one of her old advertisements, which features Anjana Sukhani in the lead, we can see Anushka Sharma as one of the four background models. If you have not seen the advertisement as yet, find it on YouTube and watch. You will respect Anushka more after knowing how far she has come in Bollywood, that too without having any godfather. On the work front, Anushka is gearing up for the release of her upcoming production ‘Pari’ (2018). She is also doing a film with Shah Rukh Khan called ‘Zero’ (2018).
TRIVIA: Anushka Sharma admits that she is an attention-seeker. However, she defended herself by saying that every actor and actress is an attention-seeker.