Shilpa Shetty is one of the most admired and popular actresses of India who has proved her versatility through the portrayal of varied roles in different films. She has acted in movies of multiple languages dealing with diverse subjects. A perfect combination of charismatic persona, gorgeous looks and commendable acting skills, Shilpa has successfully established herself among the leading actresses of Bollywood. Her ventures in the acting world not only garnered her popularity but also a number of esteemed accolades. With the expertise of speaking in more than 10 Indian languages, Shilpa Shetty is a celebrity with beauty and brains.

Early Life of Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty was born on 8th June 1975 in Karnataka. She belongs to a traditional close-knit family in Mangalore and hails from Bunt community. She is the elder daughter (her younger sister is Shamita Shetty) of Surendra and Sunanda Shetty, manufacturers of tamper-proof caps for the pharmaceutical industry. She did her schooling from St. Anthony Girls` High School in Chembur and later completed her higher education from Podar College of commerce and economics in Matunga. She can speak Kannada, Marathi Gujarati, Telugu, English and many other languages. Her extra curricular activities also involve her expertise in the field of Martial Arts like Karate. Being a black belt, she has kept her body as fit and flexible. A trained Bharatnatyam dancer; Shilpa is an individual with multitude of talents. With a height of 5 ft 10 inches she is one of the tallest silver screen actresses in Bollywood.

Career of Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty started her career by modelling for Limca in the year 1991 at the age of just 16. She stepped into the film arena in the year 1993 with the movie Baazigar in which she appeared alongside Shahrukh Khan and Kajol. With her extraordinary performance in the debut film she was nominated for the Best Supporting Actress Award in Filmfare. She got her first major role with the film Aag in 1994 which received moderate responses at the box office. Her first major box-office hit in a leading role came with the movie Main Khiladi Tu Anari in the same year where she was starred opposite Akshay Kumar. In the following years she appeared in a number of films including Hathkadi, Auzaar etc. She received critical acclaim for the movie Pardesi Babu. In the year 2000 her work in the movie Dhadkan, opposite Akshay Kumar and Suniel Shetty, was also widely acclaimed. Her classic comic performance in Rishtey, as a fisher-woman, received commercial as well as critical appreciations. Her portrayal of a successful city girl who gets affected by HIV in the movie Phir Milenge was much praised by the critics. Her performance in the movie Dus where she assayed a role opposite Sanjay Dutt, enhanced her acting prowess greatly. In 2005 she starred in the movie Fareb along with her sister Shamita Shetty. In the year 2007 she again delighted the audiences with her performances in the Bollywood chartbusters Life In A Metro and Apne. She had done cameo appearances in Om Shanti Om and Dostana. Her other popular movies include Cash, Shaadi Karke Phas Gaya Yaar, Garv, Darna Mana Hai, Badhaai Ho Badhaai and many more. Shilpa Shetty has done many movies in other regional languages too. She made her debut in Tamil film industry with the movie Mr. Romeo. She has also acted in Telugu and Kannada films.

Other Ventures of Shilpa Shetty
One of the most significant and notable achievements of Shilpa Shetty has been her victory in British Celebrity show Big Brother on January 2007 with 63 percent of votes being showered on her. As a result it brought an international stardom in her career. With lots of racial controversy she still emerged as victorious. She has also been the subject of The Real Shilpa Shetty, a documentary produced by British television production company Twofour. She has done modelling for the Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week. Shilpa Shetty has anchored the second season of Bigg Boss in 2008 and in the following year she, along with her husband, owned the Indian Premier League franchise cricket team Rajasthan Royals. She has also judged reality shows like Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa and Nach Baliye. She has also performed in Mani Ratnam`s stage show, Netru, Indru, Naalai.

Shilpa Shetty has also lent her support to various charitable organizations. She supported BBC World Service Trust television show which was designed for managing the problem of AIDS in India. In 2006 she joined PETA as part of an advertising campaign which protested against the use of wild animals in circuses. She has also launched her own Yoga CDs.

Achievements of Shilpa Shetty
In the year 1999 Shilpa Shetty received Bollywood Movie Award for Best Supporting Actress for the movie Pardesi Babu. In 2008 she won Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role - Female for her appealing portrayal in the movie Life in a...Metro. In the same year she won Indian Television Academy Awards for The GR8!Achiever Laurel for the show Celebrity Big Brother 2007 and Bigg Boss 2 and in the following year New Talent Awards for Best New Host (Female) for anchoring the show Bigg Boss 2. She also won Rajiv Gandhi National Quality Award in 2007. Apart from these Shilpa has also won a number of other accolades.

Personal Life of Shilpa Shetty
Shilpa Shetty is married to Raj Kundra, a businessman, since 22nd November 2009. Shilpa gave birth to their first child, Viaan Raj Kundra, on 21 May 2012.

Filmography of Shilpa Shetty