Pooja Kumar
Pooja Kumar | |
|---|---|
_(cropped).jpg) Pooja Kumar, 2013 | |
| Born | 4 February 1977 St. Louis, Missouri, U.S |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupations | |
| Years active | 1997–present |
| Spouse | kamal haasan |
Pooja Kumar is an Indian–American actress known for her work in Indian films. After winning the title of Miss India USA, she started her career as an actress, producer, and model. Indian actor Amitabh Bachchan picked her as a bright new star in a contest involving 60,000 entrants competing for that recognition.
She has appeared in a number of American films and shows, including Man on a Ledge, Brawl in Cell Block 99, Bollywood Hero, Flavors, Hiding Divya, Park Sharks, Bollywood Beats, Night of Henna, Anything for You, Drawing with Chalk, and Knots Urbane. Her international projects includeVishwaroopam, and Vishwaroopam 2 opposite actor Kamal Haasan, and Uttama Villain. These were shot simultaneously in Hindi and Tamil. She made her Tollywood debut with PSV Garuda Vega, starring Rajasekhar.
Early life
Kumar was born into a Mathur family in St. Louis, Missouri.[1] Her parents are immigrants from India: her father is from Dehradun and her mother from Lucknow.[1] She attended Washington University, where she graduated with degrees in political science and finance.[1] She is also trained in the Bharatanatyam, Kuchipudi, and Kathak forms of Indian classical dance.[1] Kumar was crowned Miss India USA in 1995.[2][3]
Career
Pooja Kumar first signed on to appear in director Kothanda Ramaiah's Tamil film Kadhal Rojave in 1997, but the film's production delays meant that it was only released in 2000 and her stint as an actress in the Tamil film industry went unnoticed.[4] She was earlier signed and then left out of the 1997 film V. I. P, while she had also signed to appear alongside Karthik in Chithra Lakshmanan's Chinna Raja, but was eventually dropped from the project.[5]
She produced the short film 1001 Auditions, which was shown at various festivals and was nominated for Best Short at the Stuttgart Film Festival in Germany.[6] She has also produced a short film called Shoot My Life. Kumar has also been seen in national TV commercials for Bombay Dreams, Verizon, Dodge, Pearle Vision, New York Lottery, Tata True Roots, AOL Time Warner, and Outback Steakhouse.[7]
In 2003, she received the Screen Actors Guild Emerging Actress Award for Flavors. In 2008, she hosted a late-night live quiz show on Zee TV in India, known as Jaago Aur Jeeto. She appeared in the musical comedy miniseries Bollywood Hero on IFC in 2008. She starred opposite Saturday Night Live comedian Chris Kattan in the three-part series. In the late 2000s, she appeared in the Pakistani drama serial Ishq Junoon Deewangi on Hum TV. After a long gap, she reappeared onscreen in the film Viswaroopam.[8][7]
Filmography
| Year | Film | Role | Language | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | Kadhal Rojavae | Pooja | Tamil | |
| 2003 | Magic Magic 3D | Deepti | Malayalam | |
| 2004 | Flavors | Rachana | English | |
| 2005 | Night of Henna | Hava | ||
| 2006 | Hiding Divya | Palini Shah | ||
| 2009 | Bollywood Beats | Laxmi | ||
| Knots Urbane | Rachna | |||
| Park Sharks | Pri | |||
| 2010 | Anything For You | Uma Krishnan | ||
| Anjaana Anjaani | Peshto | Hindi | ||
| Drawing With Chalk | Jasmine | English | ||
| 2012 | Man on a Ledge | Nina | ||
| 2013 | Vishwaroopam | Dr. Nirupama Viswanath/Nirupama wisam | Tamil | |
| Vishwaroop | Hindi | |||
| 2015 | Uthama Villain | Karpagavalli | Tamil | |
| 2016 | Meen Kuzhambum Mann Paanaiyum | Mala | ||
| 2017 | PSV Garuda Vega | Swathi | Telugu | |
| Brawl In Cell Block 99 | Denise Pawther | English | ||
| 2018 | Sivaranjiniyum Innum Sila Pengalum | Tamil | ||
| Vishwaroopam II | Dr. Nirupama Viswanath | |||
| Vishwaroop II | Hindi | |||
| TBA | The Invisible Mask |
References
- ^ a b c d "Conversations with American Indian Actor Pooja Kumar", South Asian Insider, n.d.
- ^ Girn, Raj. "Open Chest/Cover Story: Pooja Kumar" Archived 4 March 2016 at the Wayback Machine, Anokhi, Fall 2009
- ^ "Miss India USA", WorldwidePageants.com
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 16 February 2012.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 28 January 2015. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) - ^ "1001 Auditions" Archived 1 July 2007 at the Wayback Machine (official site)
- ^ a b Poooja Kumar: Resume Archived 15 July 2011 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 10 May 2015. Retrieved 15 May 2015.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
External links
- Pooja Kumar at IMDb
- "Pooja Kumar the face of Bombay Dreams" Rediff – 10 February 2004
- Rohit, Parimal M. "Pooja Kumar – The New Heroine: Rising Star Ready for Primetime with 'Bollywood Hero'", Bollywood Buzzine July 2009
- 1977 births
- Living people
- 21st-century Indian actresses
- Actresses from St. Louis
- Actresses from Uttar Pradesh
- Actresses in Hindi cinema
- Actresses in Tamil cinema
- American actresses of Indian descent
- American female models of Indian descent
- American people of Indian descent
- Female models from Missouri
- Indian film actresses
- People from Ballwin, Missouri
- People from Mathura
- People from St. Louis County, Missouri
- People from St. Louis
- Indian VJs (media personalities)