Sushmita Sen (born 19 November 1975)[1][2] is an Indian actress and winner of the
Miss Universe 1994 pageant, after previously winning
Femina Miss India at age 18. Since her pageant wins, she has worked as an actress.[3]
Sen made her acting debut playing a fictionalised version of herself in the thriller Dastak (1996). She won the
Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as the girlfriend of a married man in the comedy film Biwi No.1 (1999), and was also nominated in the category for her roles in the dramas Sirf Tum (1999) and Filhaal... (2002). Her other commercially successful films were Aankhen (2002), Main Hoon Na (2004), and Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya? (2005).[4] After a career downturn and hiatus, Sen starred in the drama series Aarya (2020–2024), winning a
Filmfare OTT Award, and portrayed transgender activist
Shreegauri Sawant in the miniseries Taali (2023).
In 1994, at the age of 18 Sen entered and won the title
Femina Miss India, earning the right to compete at the
Miss Universe 1994 contest.[12][13]
At the Miss Universe contest, Sen ranked third overall in the preliminaries, behind Miss Colombia
Carolina Gómez and Miss Venezuela
Minorka Mercado. Sen went on to place second, fifth and third in the subsequent rounds and finally won the title and crown of Miss Universe 1994.[14][15]
After the
Times Group relinquished the rights to choose the Indian representative to Miss Universe, Sen's project,
I Am She – Miss Universe India, took over, running it for three years (2010–2012). This was followed by
Femina taking over.[16][17]
After her reign as Miss Universe, Sen ventured into the Hindi film industry. Her first film was in 1996, the thriller Dastak, in which she played the victim of a stalker, played by
Sharad Kapoor.[20] She then starred in the 1997 Tamil action film Ratchagan, opposite
Nagarjuna.[21] It was the most expensive Indian film at the time of its release.[22] In 1998, she played a low-profile reporter opposite
Sunny Deol in Zor, a box office failure.[23]
In 1999, Sen earned wider recognition with her portrayal of Rupali Walia in
David Dhawan's comedy film Biwi No.1, alongside
Salman Khan and
Karisma Kapoor. It received positive reviews from critics and emerged as the second highest-grossing movie of 1999.[24] Syed Firdaus Ashraf of Rediff.com noted, "Sen has tried hard to make a mark in a different role, but her role itself isn't worth remembering." She won the
Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the film.[25] The same year, she recceived a second nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance as Aarti in the romantic drama Sirf Tum. For this performance, Sharmila Taliculam of Rediff.com termed her the, "star of the film".[26] Her last film of the year was Hindustan Ki Kasam opposite
Ajay Devgn. The film was an average grosser, despite taking a bumper opening.[27]
Her only film in 2000, Aaghaaz saw her playing a police officer, opposite
Suniel Shetty. Anjali Abrol of Planet Bollywood stated that Sen did "decently well" in her role.[28]
Sen received critical acclaim for her roles in 2002. Her first film of the year Aankhen saw her play a teacher, opposite
Arjun Rampal and
Akshay Kumar, was a critical success and the second-highest-grossing film of 2002.[31][32] Priya Ganapati of Rediff.com noted, "Sushmita Sen's role of Neha deserves an extra round of applause. Neha doesn't need a man to exist. She is intelligent and capable, even during the climax."[33] She next appeared in the action thriller Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge opposite Salman Khan.[34] In her final film of the year, Sen portrayed a surrogate mother in the romantic film Filhaal..., opposite
Palash Sen. Radhika Rajamani of Idlebrain opined, "The sterling performance (best up to date) of Sushmita Sen endears." BBC noted, "Sushmita Sen, is the sparkling character of the film. She adds the lighter moments with sheer panache. In my books, she is a real gem!"[35][36] Her performance in the film earned her a third nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress.
Sen had three films in 2004. She first appeared in Vaastu Shastra, as a doctor opposite
J. D. Chakravarthi.[39] Her career's biggest success came with the action masala film Main Hoon Na, in which she played the role of a chemistry teacher opposite
Shah Rukh Khan. The film grossed a total of ₹ 330,000,000 and was the second highest-grossing film of that year.[40][41]Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama noted, "Sushmita Sen looks like a million bucks and her on-screen chemistry with SRK is fantastic. Her role doesn't really demand histrionics, but she carries it off stylishly."[42] In her last film of the year, she appeared alongside
Manisha Koirala in Paisa Vasool.[43]
Sen received further success with her two films of 2005. She first portrayed a dutiful nurse in her third film with Salman Khan, the romantic comedy Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?. It emerged as the fifth-highest-grossing film of the year.[44]Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com stated, "Sen as Naina looks hot, talks sense and acts super. Her intelligence doesn't interfere with the absurdity of her surroundings. It only makes it more convincing."[45] Later the year, she portrayed a lawyer in Main Aisa Hi Hoon opposite Ajay Devgan. BBC said that Sen "shines" in her performances as innocent client and well-meaning lawyer.[46]
Career fluctuations (2006–2011)
Sen had two releases in 2006. She first played a prostitute with a child in Chingaari opposite
Anuj Sawhney. Priyanka Jain of Rediff.com noted, "Sushmita puts in a mind-blowing performance. It's her film through and through. She is the only possible reason to watch this film."[47] She then played a rockstar Kriya in the musical film Zindaggi Rocks, opposite
Shiney Ahuja.[48]
Sen had two releases in 2010. She first appeared as a successful supermodel in the romantic comedy Dulha Mil Gaya, opposite Shah Rukh Khan and
Fardeen Khan. The film was a moderate success that year.[53] Sen then appeared in the action-comedy film
No Problem, the same year.[54][55]
Hiatus and expansion (2015–present)
Sen did not have any releases for five years. In 2015, she starred in a Bengali
drama film titled Nirbaak, marking her comeback opposite
Anjan Dutt.[56] In Sen's career, this was her first film in Bengali language.[57] Shomini Sen of News18 wrote, "Sushmita Sen is good but there is so much more that could be done to tap from her talent."[58]
Post a hiatus of five years, Sen made her web debut in 2020 with
Disney+ Hotstar's crime thriller Aarya. She played a mafia queen opposite
Chandrachur Singh.[59][60] Udita Jhunjhunwala of Firstpost noted, "Sen holds the series together. As the unsuspecting inheritor of a shady consignment, she literally and figuratively towers over everyone else. This meaty role allows her space to express herself." Sen received the award for Best Actress – Female, at the
2020 Filmfare OTT Awards.[61] Sen then reprised her role in the second season of the series in 2022.[62][63]Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV noted, "Sushmita Sen carries on from where she left off in Season 1. With nary a false step, she delivers another exceptional performance packed with power."[64]
Personal life
Sen is the mother of two adopted daughters. At the age of 24 years old she adopted her first daughter Renee Sen in 2000 while her second daughter Alisah joined the family in 2010.[5][65]
Health
Sen was diagnosed in 2014
Addison's disease and was told she would requires lifelong steroid drugs to manage the illness.[66][67] After being rushed to hospital in 2019 doctors confirmed Sen no longer had to take steroids. "I healed in time, my adrenal glands woke up, no more steroids, no withdrawals and no auto-immune condition as of 2019," Sen stated.[68]
Relationships
Sen was in a relationship with actor
Randeep Hooda from 2004 to 2006.[69][70] Sen then dated model Rohman Shawl from 2018 to 2021.[71][72] In July 2022, it was reported that she is dating businessman and cricket administrator
Lalit Modi.[73]