Preity Zinta PROFILE
From dancing in the gashing waters for 'Liril' to eating 'Perk' during a hunger strike, Preity Zinta has come a long, long way. A graduate in Psychology, she was first spotted by Mani Ratnam, who saw the potential of this young model and offered her a role in Dil Se opposite Shah Rukh Khan. In spite of being a small role, it proved to be a very big opportunity for her. And with her next venture with Abbas-Mustan's blockbuster Soldier, for which she bagged the Filmfare New Face award, Preity Zinta had arrived. Full of talent and surprises, she astonished everyone with the immediate next two roles that she essayed with Sangharsh and Kya Kehna, two completely serious character roles. She followed her new found success with a string of movies including Dillagi, Farz, Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, Mission Kashmir and Dil Chahta Hai. But she really hit the highway in 2003 with her performances in The Hero – Love Story Of A Spy and with the big hit that Koi... Mil Gaya proved to be. She followed her success with other memorable performances with Kal Ho Na Ho, Lakshya, Veer Zara and the coming of age story with Salaam Namaste. In the year 2006, she had 2 major releases, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and Jaan-E-Mann, both of which did well at the box-office. In 2007, she acted in her first English film, Rituparno Ghosh's 'The Last Lear', as a struggling film actress opposite Amitabh Bachchan. In the same year, she also acted in Shaad Ali's Jhoom Barabar Jhoom, which did not do too well at the box-office. In 2008, her last major release, Heroes released, where she was paired opposite Salman Khan.
Her first international film role was in the Canadian film 'Heaven on Earth', for which she was awarded the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actress at the 2008 Chicago International Film Festival. Subsequently, she made guest appearances in films such as Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Main Aurr Mrs Khanna. She also got busy with managing her cricket team, Kings XI Punjab, for the Indian Premier League in the next few years. She was seen in the stands in almost every match supporting her boys. She also appeared in a few television shows as anchor and presenter.
In the year 2012, she will be seen in Ishkq In Paris, which is also her maiden production venture. In the film, directed by Prem Raj, she will be seen opposite Rhehan Malliek. The film also has guest appearances by filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and legendary French actress Isabelle Adjani.