Preeti Desai
 | This article is an autobiography or has been extensively edited by the subject or by someone connected to the subject. (November 2010) |
Preeti Desai | |
|---|---|
| Born | Preeti Desai 29 September |
| Occupation(s) | Model and actress |
| Years active | 2008-present |
Preeti Desai (born 29 September) is a model and actress, and was Miss Great Britain 2006
A British Indian, she made history by becoming the first woman of colour to ever win the title.[1]
She speaks English, Gujarati and Hindi, and is based in London, England and Mumbai, India.
Early life and background
Preeti Desai was born in Middlesbrough, North Yorkshire England.[2] The daughter of Jitendra and Hemlata who have a pyrotechnics company called G2 Fireworks. She has a younger sister Anjlee who is a singer/songwriter. She attended St Augustine Roman Catholic primary school in Coulby Newham, then Nunthorpe Secondary School. After leaving school she did a three-year course in hair and beauty therapy at Middlesbrough College. After graduating as a fully qualified beauty therapist, Desai worked in and managed a salon for a number of years.
Career
Following the dismissal of the original winner Danielle Lloyd over allegations of impropriety, Desai, who had originally placed fifth in the competition[3] was elected Miss Great Britain 2006 by the British public in a poll of readers of The Sun newspaper[4], and moved to London. During the time she had the title Miss Great Britain she used her popularity to help charity organisations like Carers Week[5].
Modelling
 |
After Desai passed on the Miss Great Britain title to Gemma Garrett in May 2007, she went on to be a professional model, and walks for fashion weeks, couture week]]s and top designers. She has been on the covers of Cosmopolitan, L’Officiel, Grazia, and G2.
Desai was on both the cover and as February and September model in the Kingfisher Swimsuit Special Calendar 2008, and was also invited by Vijay Mallya as ambassador of Kingfisher to the Formula 1 world tour in 2008. She has done television commercials and print ads for brands like Cadbury plc, LG Corp., Hero Honda, Citibank and Nokia.
In October 2009 she was announced as the new face of the retail apparel company Provogue, along with Indian actor Hrithik Roshan.[citation needed] She shoots with Italian designer Leonardo Ferragamo of Salvatore Ferragamo Italia S.p.A. for L'Officiel magazine, and she walked for fashion designer Christopher Kane in Fashion Week March 2010.
Film work
Desai will make her film debut in a feature film Noise (Shor), due to release in 2011, directed by Raj Nidimoru and DK Krishna, and produced by Balaji Films Ekta Kappor.[6] Desai plays the role of the female protagonist Shalmili, opposite American actor Sendhil Ramamurthy.[7] The film is a thriller drama, set in contemporary Mumbai, with three separate but interrelated story-lines, of which one is in English and two in Hindi.
Personal life
Desai is in a relationship with Actor Abhay Deol.[8]
References
- ^ "First Miss Great Britain of Indian origin". Sepia Mutiny. 2006-12-05.
- ^ "How an Asian immigrant grew up to be Miss Great Britain". The Independent. 2006-11-25.
- ^ "Danielle Lloyd Replaced As Miss Great Britain". Entertainment Wise.
- ^ "Miss Great Britain is so Preeti". The Sun (United Kingdom). 2006-11-14.
- ^ "MP and beauty queen back carers week". Rutland and Stamford Mercury. 2007-06-15.
- ^ "NOISE (SHOR) Directed by Raj Nidimoru & Krishna DK". Mahindra Indo-American Arts Council Film Festival. 2010.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|month=ignored (help) - ^ Preeti Desai at IMDb
- ^ "Abhay Deol-Abhay with girlfriend Preeti Desai". The Times of India. 2010-01-14.