subject: Bipasha Basu, Often Referred To As Bips Hot Indian Actress [print this page] Bipasha Basu, often referred to as Bips, is a supermodel turned leading Bollywood actress. She is known for: playing bold roles in films like AJNABEE (2001), JISM (2003), for her glamorous roles in DHOOM 2 (2006), RACE (2008), BACHNA AE HASEENO (2008), for her unconventional yet mature roles in films like RAAZ (2002), CORPORATE (2006) or also for her significant roles in comic capers like NO ENTRY (2005), PHIR HERA PHERI (2006), ALL THE BEST (2009).
Name: Bipasha Basu
Born: 7th January, 1979
Occupation: Actress, Model
Years Active: 2001- Present
Partner: John Abraham
Early Life
If you had asked Bipasha that what she had aspired to be, quick would have come the reply: a doctor. But her aversion to dissecting animals made her opt for a career in chartered accountancy.
Born in Delhi in 1979, Bipasha's family relocated to Kolkata while she was young. She is the second of three sisters, the other two being Bidisha, the elder and Bijoyita, the younger.
Bipasha studied science till the 12th grade and later took up commerce. She was planning to do chartered accountancy, but fate had something else in store for her.
She bumped into supermodel Mehr Jessia (now wife of Arjun Rampal) in a hotel in Kolkata and it was Mehr who suggested Bipasha to take part in the Godrej Cinthol Supermodel Contest, 1996. And she did. Not in her wildest dreams, Bipasha had imagined of winning the contest, that too at a very young age of 17.
And thus, a successful stint in modeling followed, as Bipasha bagged prestigious advertising campaigns like Close up, Calida, Mazaa and Thumps Up.Bipasha, besides, cat-walked for many top Indian designers, and also featured in Sonu Nigam's music video,Tu, from his album, Kismat.
The same year, 1996, Bipasha proceeded to participate in the Ford International Contest in Florida. She managed to come third. Actor Vinod Khanna, who was one of the judges at the contest, asked her if she was interested in films, in Bollywood. Vinod Khanna was planning to launch his son Akshaye Khanna with Himalayaputraat that time, but Bipasha wasn't really interested to enter the film industry as she was too young to handle the pressure.
After a short stint in the U.S. and France, Bipasha returned to India. At that point of time, Jaya Bachchan (who was also a judge at the contest) informed Bipasha that her son's (Abhishek) launch was to happen with Aakhri Mughal and that director J. P. Dutta was on the lookout for a dusky girl to play the part of a village girl. Jaya had convinced Bipasha that she would be appropriate for the role of the village girl.
Career
The makers went ahead with it. But soon they started having second thoughts about the film. They had felt that Aakhri Mughal been a period drama might not have worked as the launching pad for Abhishek Bachchan. So, the whole scripting, characterization changed to: REFUGEE's. Bipasha refused to be a part of it.
2001
But soon, Bipasha was signed for the Abbas-Mustan thriller AJNABEE (2001). Loosely based on the 1992 Hollywood film Consenting Adults, AJNABEE tackled a bold theme - wife-swapping. Cast opposite Akshay Kumar, and alongside Bobby Deol and Kareena Kapoor, Bipasha's role was more on the negative side for which she was awarded with the Filmfare Best Female Debut Award. The film performed decently at the Box-Office. Bipasha came to the limelight with her bold-negative performance.
2002
Bipasha's next release was RAAZ (2002). Produced by Vishesh Films and directed by Vikram Bhatt, RAAZ was a supernatural horror-thriller based on the 2000 Hollywood film WHAT LIES BENEATH. Bipasha was the central character in this film where she was cast opposite Dino Morea. RAAZ became one of the top grossing films in 2002 and received generally positive reviews. Bipasha Basu went on to be praised for her role in the film. She was nominated for the Filmfare Best Actress Award. She quickly rose to the top with this film.
However, her subsequent releases in 2002, MERE YAAR KI SHAADI HAI (2002), CHOR MACHAYE SHOR (2002) and GUNAAH (2002), failed to create similar magic.
2003
Bipasha soon struck back with the extremely bold film JISM (2003). Sharing the screen with debutant John Abraham, Bipasha broke the conventions of the traditional 'Indian' actress entirely. Bipasha played a negative role with bold shades. She extended the 'sex' appeal of a typical Bollywood actress by a huge margin with this film. The film fared decently at the ticket window and earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Best Villain Award. JISM, along with RAAZ, is the most defining film in Bipasha's career till date.
Other releases in FOOTPATH (2003) and ZAMEEN (2003) were Box-Office duds.
2004-2005
Bipasha was then seen in movies like Aetbaar (2004), Rudraksh (2004), Rakht (2004), MADHOSHI (2004), BARSAAT (2005), APAHARAN (2005), SHIKHAR (2005); all failed to do well, but Bipasha tried out new genres and characters with each of these films.
Also, she played a significant role as a call girl in Anees Bazmee's blockbuster multi-starrer comedy NO ENTRY (2005). For her glamorous role in the film, Bipasha earned a nomination for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award.
2006
The year 2006 belonged to Bipasha as she starred in super-hit films like PHIR HERA PHERI (2006) and DHOOM 2 (2006), though her roles were short, they were significant in the film. But with Madhur Bhandarkar's CORPORATE (2006), where Bipasha played the central role, she got immense acclaim for her performance and was nominated at several prestigious award ceremonies for the best actress award. She also made a special appearance, in Vishal Bhardwaj's OMKARA where she grooved to the song Beedi which became an extremely huge rage.
2007-2008
2007 was very mild for Bipasha where she tasted a below average success in DHAN DHANA DHAN GOAL (2007) opposite her beau John Abraham. In 2008, Bipasha starred in the super-hit Abbas-Mustan thriller RACE (2008) alongside Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Anil Kapoor, Katrina Kaif and Sameera Reddy, and in the averagely successful romantic-drama BACHNA AE HASEENO (2008) alongside Ranbir Kapoor, Deepika Padukone and Minissha Lamba.
2009-Present
2009 began with the thriller AA DEKHEN ZARA opposite Neil Nitin Mukesh which failed to do well. Her next release was Ajay Devgn's comedy ALL THE BEST (2009), directed by Rohit Shetty, which worked well enough at the Box-Office.
Her subsequent releases PANKH (2010) and Rahul Dholakia's LAMHAA (2010) failed miserably.
Upcoming Films
Her upcoming films include Priyadarshan's AAKROSH, alongside Ajay Devgn and Akshaye Khanna, which would release on 15th October, 2010. Next in line would be Anees Bazmee's multi-starrer comedy, NO PROBLEM, which is slated to release on December 3, 2010.
Personal Life
This dusky Bengali beauty is currently dating Bollywood hunk John Abraham. The couple has been together since late 2002 and has been in the limelight very often; covered very much by the media about their link-up and break-up speculations. They are amongst the most celebrated couples in Bollywood. Bipasha previously dated fellow model turned Bollywood actor Dino Morea.
Bipasha recently launched her own line of videos on fitness training under the tag 'Bipasha Basu - Love Yourself'.
Bipasha has often been listed among the top in many esteemed polls of the sexiest woman in India and Asia.
