Sameera Reddy (born 14 December 1978) is a former Indian actress who primarily worked in Hindi films, in addition to Tamil and Telugu language films. Reddy made her film debut with the 2002 film Maine Dil Tujhko Diya.[1] She is best known for starring in films such as Darna Mana Hai (2003), Musafir (2004), Jai Chiranjeeva (2005), Taxi Number 9211 (2006), Ashok (2006), Race (2008), Varanam Aayiram (2008), De Dana Dan (2009), Aakrosh (2010), Vettai (2012) and Tezz (2012).

Sameera Reddy
Reddy in 2017
Born (1978-12-14) 14 December 1978 (age 45)
Alma materSydenham College
OccupationActress
Years active2002–2013
Height170 cm (5 ft 7 in)
Spouse
Akshai Varde
(m. 2014)
Children2
RelativesSushama Reddy (sister) Meghna Reddy (Sister)

Early life

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Sameera Reddy was born on 14 December 1978 in Bombay (present day Mumbai), Maharashtra[2] to a Telugu father and a Mangalorean Konkani mother.[3][4] Her mother Nakshatra,[5] referred to as Niki by her daughters and the media, was a microbiologist and worked with an NGO.[6][7] She has two siblings, Meghna Reddy, a former VJ and supermodel,[8] and Sushama Reddy, a Bollywood actress and model,[9] both elder to her.[10] She did her schooling at Bombay Scottish School in Mahim, Mumbai and graduated from Sydenham College.

Reddy described herself as a "tomboy" and "the ugly duckling in the family", while citing: "I was plump, had glasses and my glam quotient was rather low till I was 19."[10]

Career

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Reddy in 2015

Reddy first appeared in ghazal singer Pankaj Udhas's "Aur Aahista" music video in 1997.[11] She was meant to make her debut as an actress in Saravana Subbiah's Tamil film Citizen, during the early 2000s, but eventually did not feature.[12] She caught the attention of Bollywood and was cast in a pivotal role in the 2002 Hindi film Maine Dil Tujhko Diya. In 2004, she appeared in Musafir, opposite Anil Kapoor, Aditya Pancholi and Koena Mitra.

Reddy had a huge fan base in south India after her debut in Varanam Aayiram. Reddy is also the first Indian actress to have her own video game, Sameera the Street Fighter.[13] Reddy was a judge for the Miss Sri Lanka Online contest in 2012.[14]

Personal life

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Reddy married Akshai Varde, an entrepreneur, on 21 January 2014, in a traditional Maharashtrian ceremony.[15][16] They have a son and daughter.[17][18]

Being a fan of American talk show hostess Oprah Winfrey, Reddy met and presented a saree to Winfrey during her visit to India.[19]

Filmography

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Films

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Year Title Role(s) Language Notes Ref.
2002 Maine Dil Tujhko Diya Ayesha Verma Hindi
2003 Darna Mana Hai Shruti Hindi
2004 Plan Sapna Hindi
Musafir Sam Hindi
2005 Narasimhudu Palakad Papa Telugu
Casualty Anita English BBC Medical drama [20]
Jai Chiranjeeva Sailaja Telugu
No Entry (Beach Girl) Hindi cameo appearance
2006 Taxi Number 9211 Rupali Hindi
Ashok Anjali Telugu
Naksha Riya Hindi
2007 Migration Divya Hindi Short film
Fool & Final Payal Khanna Hindi
Ami, Yasin Ar Amar Madhubala Rekha Bengali
2008 Race Mini Hindi
One Two Three Laila Hindi
Kaalpurush Supriya Bengali
Vaaranam Aayiram Meghna Tamil Nominated, Vijay Award for Best Debut Actress
2009 De Dana Dan Manpreet Hindi
2010 Aasal Sarah Tamil
Oru Naal Varum Meera Malayalam
Red Alert: The War Within Lakshmi Hindi
Aakrosh  ———  Hindi Special appearance in song Isak Se Meetha
2011 Nadunisi Naaygal Sukanya Tamil
Vedi Parvathi Paaru Tamil
2012 Vettai Vasanthi Tamil
Tezz Megha Hindi
Chakravyuh  ———  Hindi Special appearance in the song "Kunda Khola" [21]
Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum  ———  Telugu Special appearance in the song "Sai Andri Nanu" [22]
2013 Varadhanayaka Lakshmi Kannada
2024 Naam  ———  Hindi [23]

Music videos

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Title Year Role Performer(s) Album Ref(s)
Ahista 1998 Pankaj Udhas Stolen Moments [24]
Tere Aane Ki Jab Khabar Mehke 2000 Jagjit Singh Saher

Video games

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Title Year Role Notes Ref.
Sameera:The Street Fighter 2006 Ancient Warrior Princess [25][26]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Sameera Reddy Reveals A Secret About Her Casting In Pankaj Udhas' 1998 Song Aur Ahista". NDTV.com. 25 April 2019. Retrieved 17 May 2020.
  2. ^ "Watch: Sameera Reddy is turning 42 and her message for women is inspiring". The News Minute. 10 December 2020.
  3. ^ "Spicing it up". 21 October 2011.
  4. ^ "Reddy-made memories, Lifestyle — Leisure — Pune Mirror, Pune Mirror". Punemirror.in. Archived from the original on 19 March 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  5. ^ "Haute and spicy". MiD DAY. 15 September 2002. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  6. ^ Basu, Arundhati (10 December 2005). "The Telegraph — Calcutta : Weekend". The Telegraph (India). Calcutta, India. Archived from the original on 3 February 2013. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  7. ^ "Girl interrupted". MiD DAY. 17 February 2006. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  8. ^ "Mumbai (Bombay), India, Sari and Catsuit, 1999, Photo of the Day, Picture, Photography, Wallpapers". National Geographic. 25 June 2001. Archived from the original on 24 March 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  9. ^ Barkha MathurBarkha Mathur, TNN (9 February 2008). "Why star siblings don't make it big — The Times of India". Timesofindia.indiatimes.comTimes of India. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  10. ^ a b "Metro Plus Kochi / Cinema : Reddy reckoner". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 11 March 2010. Archived from the original on 10 November 2012. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  11. ^ "I love the bombshell tag: Sameera Reddy — Entertainment — DNA". Daily News and Analysis. 28 February 2010. Retrieved 16 September 2011.
  12. ^ "Tamil Movies Online ::::: News". Archived from the original on 11 October 2008. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
  13. ^ "Ahead of her game". The Telegraph (India). Retrieved 27 May 2020.
  14. ^ "Maria Alkasas Wins First Ever Online Beauty Pageant". AdaDerana.lk. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  15. ^ "Sameera Reddy ties the knot today". The Times of India. 21 January 2014. Retrieved 21 January 2014.
  16. ^ "Sameera Reddy and Akshai Varde to marry in April 2014". Biharprabha News. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
  17. ^ ""Motherhood is very humbling" - Sameera Reddy"
  18. ^ "Sameera Reddy shares pic with daughter asks 'how in our country the girl child was considered a burden'". Hindustan Times. 17 November 2019. Retrieved 19 April 2021.
  19. ^ Hungama, Bollywood (19 January 2012). "Sameera Reddy gifts saree to Oprah Winfrey : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 29 January 2024.
  20. ^ "Sameera "Reddy" for Casualty experience". Biz Asia. 14 March 2005. Retrieved 19 July 2021.
  21. ^ "Sameera Reddy - Chakravyuh"
  22. ^ "Sameera Reddy|Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum"
  23. ^ "AJAY DEVGN - ANEES BAZMEE: 'NAAM' TRAILER OUT NOW... 22 NOV RELEASE... (Taran Adarsh)". X (formerly Twitter). Retrieved 8 November 2024.
  24. ^ "Aur Aahista Kijiye Baatein Lyrics - Stolen Moments (1998)". LyricsBogie. Archived from the original on 24 February 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  25. ^ "Sameera turns Street Fighter". Bollywood Hungama. 31 August 2006. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
  26. ^ "Sameera: Warrior princess". Rediff.com. Retrieved 2 November 2019.
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