Sonam Kapoor

Sonam Kapoor
Kapoor inaugurates IIJW 2013
Born	(1985-06-09) 9 June 1985 Chembur, Mumbai, India
Occupation	Actress, Model
Years active	2007– present
Parents	Anil Kapoor and Sunita Kapoor
Relatives	Rhea Kapoor (sister) Harshvardhan (brother) Surinder Kapoor (grandfather) Boney Kapoor (uncle) Sanjay Kapoor (uncle) Arjun Kapoor (cousin) Ranveer Singh (second cousin) Sridevi (aunt)

Sonam Kapoor (born 9 June 1985) is an Indian actress and a former model. She appears in Bollywood films. She is the daughter of Indian film actor Anil Kapoor. Kapoor is perhaps internationally best known as a spokesperson for the French beauty brand L'Oréal. She endorses the brand in India and represents the brand at the Cannes Film Festival alongside with Aishwarya Rai and Freida Pinto.

Kapoor made her acting debut in 2007 in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Saawariya opposite Ranbir Kapoor and subsequently featured in the offbeat drama Delhi-6 (2009). She earned her first commercial success with the romantic comedy I Hate Luv Storys (2010) and followed with such films as Aisha (2010) and Thank You (2011). Also, Kapoor has received critical success for her performances in films such as Delhi 6 (2009) and Mausam (2011).

She is known as a fashionista; she has been getting various accolades for her unique sense of style rather than her films.

Early life

Kapoor was born in the suburb of Chembur, Maharashtra, in Mumbai on 9 June 1986. She is the daughter of actor Anil Kapoor and ex-model Sunita Kapoor and the granddaughter of filmmaker Surinder Kapoor. The family moved to a house in the suburb of Juhu, where her parents still reside, when she was one month old. Kapoor is the eldest of three children; the others are sister Rhea Kapoor and brother Harshvardhan. She is the niece of producer Boney Kapoor, actor Sanjay Kapoor and producer Sandeep Marwah. She is also the first cousin of actor, Arjun Kapoor and Anushala Kapoor. Furthermore she is the second cousin of actor Ranveer Singh from her mothers side.

She attended the Arya Vidya Mandir school in Juhu and then enrolled in the United World College of South East Asia, boarding school in Singapore, to do her International Baccalaureate. She studied theatre and arts in Singapore for 2 years. She also studied Political Science and Economics from University of East London. She speaks English, Hindi, Punjabi and Marathi and is a well trained classical dancer.

Career

Early work (2004–05)

Before starting her career off as an actress, Sonam and Ranbir Kapoor worked as assistant directors under Sanjay Leela Bhansali in 2004, and assisted him during the making of his film, Black which was released in early 2005.

Film debut & breakthrough (2007–09)

Sonam Kapoor (R) with Sanjay Leela Bhansali (L) and Ranbir Kapoor (C) on the sets of Saawariya.

She made her acting debut alongside newcomer, Ranbir Kapoor in Bhansali's Saawariya (2007), which failed to do well at the box office, but her performance opened to mixed to good reviews by critics. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama commented saying, "Sonam Kapoor is an average actor. However, her role doesn't give her the opportunity to display histrionics. She looks gorgeous at places, but plain ordinary at times." GlamSham.com wrote, "As for Sonam, she matches Ranbir, step for step. A gorgeous looker, she carries off her role with aplomb as the one who is looking for her love to return. Her huge eyes portray her emotions and her confidence is personified in every frame; whether she is playfully fooling around with Ranbir or anxiously looking out for her Imaan (Salman Khan) to return. It looks like these two were born to act. The chemistry between the two is awesome." Naresh K. D. of apunkachoice.com said, "Sonam, though undoubtedly gorgeous, seems ill at ease with her part. In one close-up shot just after her introduction, her face - supposed to express sadness - is completely bereft of emotion. In the second half, however, she manages to sink her teeth better into her character." Sonam had no release in 2008, although, was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut, though lost out to actress Deepika Padukone for Om Shanti Om, which, coincidentally was released alongside Saawariya. In 2009, Kapoor appeared in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Delhi-6, opposite Abhishek Bachchan. The film flopped at the box office and received mixed critical reviews, but her performance was praised. Critic Rajeev Masand commented, "Sonam Kapoor is the revelation in Delhi 6. She's a firecracker, instinctive and uninhibited in what isn't even a conventional female lead". Sonia Chopra, film criric from Rediff commented, "Sonam Kapoor is an earnest and effortless performer so she does make you like the character somewhat, despite the typical Delhi-girl recipe".

Initial success (2010–present)

Kapoor promoting I Hate Luv Storys

In 2010, she appeared in Punit Malhotra's I Hate Luv Storys opposite Imran Khan. The film went on to become her first box office success, collecting over 40 crore (US$6.9 million) at the domestic box office. Kapoor also garnered positive reviews for her performance as film critic Taran Adarsh from Bollywood Hungama commented saying, "Sonam is a revelation. From salwars [Saawariya, Delhi 6] to skirts in I Hate Luv Storys, Sonam finally gets a role that does justice to her as an actress. The ease and class with which she carries off the glam look is fantastic. She's like a whiff of fresh air and you actually wonder, is she the same girl from Saawariya and Delhi 6? In fact, I Hate Luv Storys will only multiply Imran and Sonam's fan base manifold." She also appeared in the romantic comedy, Aisha, opposite Abhay Deol, which was only an average performer at the box office.

Kapoor at Cannes

Sonam's first release in 2011, Thank You was a critical failure, although the film was a moderate success at the box office, as its collections surpassed the 45 crore (US$7.7 million) mark. Despite the positive box office response, Kapoor's performance garnered mainly negative reviews from top critics, as entertainment site One India wrote, "Sonam Kapoor looks terribly out of sync in the film. Her make up in Thank You is just not right at all, she sometimes looks glamorous and sometime pale on-screen." The same year, she made an appearance at the 64th Cannes Film Festival representing L'Oréal, the brand she endorses in India. Her second film of the year was the romance film Mausam, in which she and co-star Shahid Kapoor had four different looks representing each of the four seasons. The film received mixed reviews and was a failure at the box office. However, Kapoor's performance was appreciated by most prominent critics. Taran Adarsh commented, "For Sonam, Mausam will prove to be a turning point in her career. Astonishing — that would be the right word to describe her work this time around. The confidence with which she handles the distinct characterization speaks volumes". Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV commented, "Sonam Kapoor may still have some way to go as an actress, but she conveys the essential vulnerability of a girl forever under duress, bringing out just the right mix of feminine fragility and native resolve."

Her first release of 2012 is Players, a remake of The Italian Job, alongside Abhishek Bachchan, Bipasha Basu and Neil Nitin Mukesh. The film received mixed to negative reviews and didn't do well at the box office. Her performance received mainly mixed reviews from top critics. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama stated that, "It's an image transformation for Sonam in PLAYERS. She has never done a full-on glamorous role before and Players should change the perception. However, the rawness, as an actor, shows in a variety of scenes." However, Martin D'Souza, of glamsham.com said, "But it is Sonam Kapoor who disappoints. I get the feeling that the poor girl is trying too hard to play this 'oomphy' character. She is either overawed by Bipasha or is rattled by the recent spate of her flops." Later that year, Kapoor made her second appearance at the Cannes Film Festival.

She has recently wrapped up the shooting of Anand L. Rai's Raanjhnaa alongside Dhanush and is currently shooting for Bhaag Milkha Bhaag with Farhan Akhtar. Kapoor also began shooting for Yash Raj Film's next co-starring Ayushmann Khurrana which is to be directed by Nupur Asthana (of Mujhse Fraaandship Karoge fame) on 5 February 2013. and is slated for a September/October release. Kapoor is also currently attending the Cannes Film Festival.

Other work

Philanthropy

Kapoor at Ave 29 Gallery Opening

In 2009, Kapoor participated in the International Indian Film Academy Awards, also known as "IIFA" charity fashion show. In 2012, Kapoor asked for fans to donate to the Ogaan Cancer Foundation for her birthday. They also collaborated to create an awareness for breast cancer.

In the media

In November 2010, Kapoor appeared on Koffee With Karan, a popular chat show along with actress Deepika Padukone. Her comments on her rumoured ex-boyfriend Ranbir Kapoor led to a lot of controversy among Bollywood inner-circles. During an interview in June 2012, Kapoor made seemingly negative remarks on fellow actress Katrina Kaif, as she stated, "I don’t know how she does it. You need a certain kind of commitment and a certain kind of shamelessness to do certain things and you get that may be with stardom, with confidence in your talent, with who you are as a person, and I need to develop that before I do that kind of films — over the top films. I need to learn how to do it as I was terrible in those movies." Although, Kapoor later stated that the media misinterpreted her on these comments, as she was only trying to compliment Kaif.

Personal life

Kapoor prefers to keep her personal life away from media attention. There have been numerous reports regarding her dating life, however, she has never confirmed these.

During the filming of Kapoor's debut film, Saawariya it was widely speculated that she was in a romantic relationship with co-star, Ranbir Kapoor. However, it was denied by both the actors. Later, it was reported that she is in a relationship with her I Hate Luv Storys director, Punit Malhotra, although, despite the fact that this was also denied by both, it was continued to be reported.

Filmography

Year	Film	Role	Notes
2007	Saawariya	Sakina	Nominated–Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut
2009	Delhi-6	Bittu Sharma
2010	I Hate Luv Storys	Simran Sharma
2010	Aisha	Aisha Kapoor
2011	Thank You	Sanjana
2011	Mausam	Aayat Rasool
2012	Players	Naina
2013	Bombay Talkies	Herself	Special appearance in song "Apna Bombay Talkies"
2013	Raanjhanaa	Zoya Haidar	Releasing June 21, 2013
2013	Bhaag Milkha Bhaag	Nirmal Kaur	Releasing July 12, 2013
2013	Nupur Asthana's Untitled Next	Mayera Sehgal	Filming

Awards

Year	Award	Category	Film	Result
2008	Filmfare Awards	Best Female Debut	Saawariya	Nominated
2008	Screen Awards	Most Promising Newcomer	Saawariya	Nominated
2008	Screen Awards	Jodi No. 1 With Ranbir Kapoor	Saawariya	Nominated
2008	Zee Cine Awards	Best Female Debut	Saawariya	Nominated
2008	Stardust Awards	Superstar of Tomorrow – Female	Saawariya	Won
2008	IIFA Awards	Star Debut of the Year – Female	Saawariya	Nominated
2010	Asian Film Awards	Best Debutante - Female	Delhi-6	Nominated
2012	Stardust Awards	Best Comedy/Romance Actress	Thank You	Nominated
2012	Zee Cine Awards	International Icon - Female		Nominated

Honors & Achievements

Year	Awards Event	Award	Show	Result
2008	Head & Shoulders	Sony Fresh Face Of The Year	Saawariya	Won
2011	NDTV	Brand Ambassador Of The Year
2011	Hello! Hall Of Fame Awards	Face Of The Year - Female
2012	Cosmopolitan Awards	Fun Fearless Female Best Dressed
2013	Hindustan Times	Timeless Style Icon Award

See also

• List of Indian film actresses

External links

• Sonam Kapoor at the Internet Movie Database