Kareena Kapoor Detailed Biography ~ BOLLYWOOD STARS BIOGRAPHIES

This blog post is about Kareena Kapoor Detailed Biography.

Kareena was born to Sindhi-speaking Babita (nee Shivdasani) and Punjabi-speaking Randhir Kapoor on September 21, 1977 in Bombay, India. She has an elder sister, Karisma.

She is born in a family that have been actors for generations, including her paternal great-grandfather, Prithviraj Kapoor; her grandfather, Raj Kapoor; her paternal uncles, Shammi, Shashi, Rishi, and Rajiv; as well as aunt, Neetu Singh, & Jennifer Kendall, the wives of Rishi and Shashi respectively. On her maternal side, her grandfather, Hari Shivdasani, and aunt, Sadhana, have been actors in their own rights.

As a child she studied in Jamnabai Narsee School in Juhu, Bombay, and thereafter was enrolled in Dehra Dun's prestigious Welham Girls' Boarding School. Then she re-located to Harvard for approximately 3 months to take a course in Information Technology and Microcomputers. Upon her return to India, she joined the Government Law College in Churchgate, Bombay, but left it after one year, to enroll in the Kishore Namit Kapoor Acting School.

Her dad, Randhir is very protective towards his daughters and wanted both of them to keep away from acting, get married, and settle down, as per the Kapoor family tradition. This led to irreconcilable differences between her parents, ultimately leading to a divorce, with both sisters leaving their dad to live with their mom.

Her film debut was in the year 2000 with 'Refugee' along with the debut of Amitabh Bachchan's son, Abhishek. She went on to appear in 31 other Hindi movies, and has thus far won four awards for her performances in 'Refugee', 'Chameli', 'Dev', and 'Omkara'.

She is one of the most sought-after actresses in Bollywood, considered bankable, with an enviable A-listing and as of June 2007 is to appear in 'Tashan', 'Lajjo', 'Kismat Talkies' amongst others.

Born in Mumbai, India, on September 21, 1980, into the Kapoor film family, Kapoor is the youngest daughter of actors Randhir Kapoor and Babita (née Shivdasani); her elder sister Karisma Kapoor, is also an actress. She is the granddaughter of actor and filmmaker Raj Kapoor, great-granddaughter of actor Prithviraj Kapoor, and niece of actor Rishi Kapoor.According to Kapoor, the name "Kareena" was derived from the book Anna Karenina, which her mother read while she was pregnant with her.Often informally referred to as Bebo,she is of Punjabi Khatri descent from her father's side,and on her mother's side she is Sindhi.

As a child, she had strong aspirations to become an actress, and was particularly inspired by watching the films of Bollywood actresses Nargis and Meena Kumari.Kapoor, who describes herself as a "very naughty and spoilt child", would regularly dress up in her mother's clothes and perform in front of the mirror.Despite her family background, her father disapproved of women entering the acting profession because he believed it conflicted with the traditional maternal duties and responsibility of women in the family. This led to a conflict between her parents and resulted in Kapoor's mother leaving the house with her two daughters.After her parents' separation, she was raised in Lokhandwala by her mother, who worked several jobs to support her daughters until Karisma debuted as an actress in 1991.In an interview with Vir Sanghvi, Kapoor said that growing up in a household filled with women helped her become strong and independent.Following her parents' reconciliation in October 2007, Kapoor explained that they "were never officially divorced ...but... liv[ed] separately." Asked about the relationship she shared with her father, Kapoor remarked, "My father is ... an important factor in my life.Although we did not see him often in our initial years, we are a family now."

Kapoor attended Jamnabai Narsee School in Mumbai before progressing to Welham Girls Boarding School in Dehradun.She later recalled, "I learnt so much from being at Welham", and described her experience there as "one of the finest parts of my life".According to Kapoor, she was a good student and received first-class honours in all subjects except mathematics.Upon graduating from the boarding school, she studied commerce for two years at Mithibai College in Vile Parle, Mumbai, but later confessed that she only studied there because she was close to her family.Kapoor then registered for a three-month summer course in microcomputers at Harvard University in the United States.She later developed an interest in law and enrolled at the Government Law College in Churchgate; during this period she became immersed in law books and developed a long-lasting passion for reading.However, after completing one year at Churchgate, Kapoor realized that she was not inclined towards academics and returned to her initial plan to become an actress.She began training at an acting institute in Andheri, mentored by Kishore Namit Kapoor, a member of the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII).

From Pooh to Pia

Kaho Na Pyaar Hai was supposed to be her debut but she walked out of it and instead starred with Abhishek Bachchan in J.P.Datta’s Refugee in 2000, in which she played Naaz, a Bangladeshi girl who falls in love with Refugee. This won her the Filmfare Best Debut Award. In 2001, she worked with Tusshar Kapoor in Mujhe Kuch Kehna Hai which was one of the successes of the year. Yaadein did not do well. Her fiery Kaurwaki act in the epic Asoka with Shahrukh Khan won her a nomination for the Filmfare Best Actress Award. Her fourth film was the multi-starrer Kabhie Khushi Kabhie Gham in which she played the part of the haughty yet adorable Pooh. The film was her biggest commercial success. The next two years saw her in a few films like Mujhse Dosti Karoge, Khushi, and Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon which ranged from flops to moderate successes.

Just when you thought Pooh was as far as she could go, she started experimenting by portraying different characters in her films that released in 2004 and it paid off. She stepped into the shoes of a sex worker in Chameli with Rahul Bose, earning a Filmfare Special Performance Award. The other critically acclaimed film was Dev with Amitabh Bachchan, in which she played Aaliya, a victim in the communal riots in Gujarat. She won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance. She played the villainous Neha Mehra in Fida. She had three releases in 2005: Bewafa, Kyun Ki, and Dosti: Friends Forever, of which the latter did well in the United Kingdom.

The year 2006 saw her in a thriller 36 China Town and a comedy Chup Chup Ke which were average performers at the box office. It was her role as Dolly in Omkara that clinched the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance. The film was an adaptation of Shakespeare’s Othello and Dolly was based on Desdemona. She also appeared in an item number in Farhan Akhtar’s Don, which was originally done by Helen.

Imtiaz Ali’s romcom Jab We Met with Shahid Kapoor was a runaway hit in 2007. Her portrayal of the spontaneous and fun-loving Geet was applauded. She won the Filmfare Best Actress Award for that role. In 2008, she came out with Tashan with her new boyfriend Saif Ali Khan and her size zero figure, but that failed to live up to the hype. She lent her voice to Laila in the animation flick Roadside Romeo and was part of Golmaal Returns, a sequel to the comedy hit Golmaal.

In 2009, Kareena was seen in a guest appearance in Luck by Chance and an item number in Billu. After her role as a super model in Kambakkht Ishq she became a style icon though the movie was trashed by critics. Main Aur Mrs Khanna also did not score well. Kurbaan with Saif Ali Khan did a decent job while her role as Pia in 3 Idiots made sure she ended the year on a high note.