Meghna Naidu

Meghna Naidu
Naidu at the press conference of Rivaaz
Born (1980-09-19) 19 September 1980 (age 44)
OccupationActress
Years active1999—2019
Spouse
Luis Miguel Reis
(m. 2016)

Meghna Naidu (born 19 September 1980) is an Indian actress who has starred primarily in Hindi films. She has also appeared in Telugu, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi and Bengali films.

Biography

Naidu's first major appearance was in the music video for UMI10's "Kaliyon Ka Chaman" (2002),[1][2] an official remix of Lata Mangeshkar's 1981 song "Thoda Resham Lagta Hai" (in turn, the 2002 song "Addictive" by Truth Hurts was inspired by the remix). She was also featured in Saru Maini's video "Dil De Diya Tha (Sutta Mix)"[citation needed] before starting to work in Indian films.

Early life

Naidu was born on 19 September 1980[3] in Vijayawada, Andhra Pradesh, India.[4] Her father Ethiraj works for Air India and was a tennis coach and her mother Purnima,[5] was a school teacher.[6] She has one younger sister, Sona.[7] She told that she requested her mother to quit her job and accompany her to shooting locations, after her sister who used to travel with her got a job abroad.[4] She grew up in Mumbai, Maharashtra, and considers herself "more of a Mumbaiite".[4] She studied at Bhavan's College, Andheri, Mumbai,[8][9] and graduated with a B.Com degree.[5] She trained in classical bharatanatyam for seven years.[6] She stated that she also was coaching tennis in the US for four years.[8]

Career

At the age of 18, she met a model co-ordinator at the wedding of her cousin in Chennai, who called her for a screen test for a feature film.[10][11] She secured a role in the Telugu film Prema Sakshi (1999), following which she appeared in one more Telugu and two Kannada films.[10] She then appeared in UMI10's music video "Kaliyon Ka Chaman", directed by Radhika Rao and Vinay Sapru, which she says happened by accident.[4][11] She was accompanying her friend to the audition for the video, when she was approached by the team. She was asked to send in her photographs and within few days, she was selected for the video. "Kaliyon Ka Chaman" became a grand success and gained her recognition. She subsequently went on to do many stage performances in and outside of India.[4][10]

She made her Bollywood debut with the B-grade film Hawas (2004),[12] which dealt with extramarital affair. It was followed by lead roles in Classic Dance of Love (2005), which featured her as a dancer, and Rain: The Terror Within... (2005), in which she played a blind author.[11] In Mashooka, she played a character with negative shades. In her latter career, she mostly made special appearances in item numbers in South Indian films.[13][14]

She also participated in the television shows Fear Factor - Khatron Ke Khiladi and Dancing Queen.[12] She played the role of Benazir in the TV series, Jodha Akbar.[15]

Personal life

Naidu started a relationship with tennis player Luis Miguel Reis in 2011 and married him on 12 December 2016. They live in Dubai, and she travels to India for work.[16][17]

Filmography

Year Title Role Language Other notes
1999 Prema Sakshi Telugu Debut
2002 Prudhvi Narayana Telugu
Vendi Mabbulu Shanaya Sardesai Telugu
2003 Katthegalu Saar Katthegalu Kannada Debut
Don Jhansi a.k.a. Kaveri Kannada
2004 Hawas Sapna R. Mittal Hindi Debut
AK-47 Hindi Special appearance
Coolie Bengali Debut
Satruvu Club Dancer in Dubai Telugu
2005 Jackpot – The Money Game Gauri Hindi
Classic Dance of Love Doli Hindi
Mashooka Sanjana Hindi
Bhama Kalapam Anjali Telugu
Rain: The Terror Within... Sandhya Bhatnagar Hindi
Bad Friend Sargam Hindi
2006 Saravana Sathya Tamil Debut
Eight: The Power of Shani Sapna Hindi
Vikramarkudu Dancer Chameli Telugu Special appearance
Jambhavan Anu Tamil
Bada Dosth Malayalam Debut Special appearance
2007 Aadavari Matalaku Ardhalu Verule Herself Telugu Special appearance
Veerasamy Tamil
2008 Vaitheeswaran Roopa Tamil
Pandurangadu Telugu Special appearance
Pandhayam Herself Tamil Cameo appearance
2010 Kutty Dancer on the train Tamil Special appearance
2011 Siruthai Item girl Tamil Special appearance
100% Love Herself Telugu Special appearance
Rivaaz Chanda Hindi
Puli Vesham Tamil Special appearance
Vellore Maavattam Tamil Special appearance
Pilla Zamindar Herself Telugu Special appearance
2012 Love at First Sight Hindi
Ishq Deewana Hindi
2013 Parari Kannada Special appearance
Election Kannada Special appearance
2014 Ranathantra Kannada Special appearance[14]
Dhamak Marathi Debut

S Special appearance[18]

2016 Kya Kool Hain Hum 3 Maasi Hindi
Ilamai Oonjal Tamil
2019 Dharmaprabhu Tamil
Sitara Bengali
2024 Sur Lagu De Marathi
Television shows

References

  1. ^ "Meghna: Blast from the past". The Times of India. 9 August 2009. Archived from the original on 8 March 2012. Retrieved 1 March 2011.
  2. ^ "Meghna Naidu: I can act well too!". Rediff Movies. 29 September 2005. Archived from the original on 4 June 2011. Retrieved 1 March 2011.
  3. ^ "I'm already booked: Meghna Naidu". Rediff. 27 July 2005. Archived from the original on 16 September 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Meghana Naidu – Telugu Cinema interview – Telugu film & Bollywood Heroine". Idlebrain.com. Archived from the original on 28 July 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  5. ^ a b "I'm already booked: Meghna Naidu". Rediff.com. 28 July 2005. Archived from the original on 23 August 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  6. ^ a b "Meghna Naidu". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 13 March 2007. Retrieved 14 October 2011.
  7. ^ "Celebrity News – Interviews – Meghna Naidu". Shaaditimes.com. 17 October 2008. Archived from the original on 22 December 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  8. ^ a b "'It's embarrassing doing bold scenes'". Rediff.com. 29 July 2005. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  9. ^ "The kaliyon ka chaman girl – The Times of India". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 18 November 2011. Retrieved 14 October 2011.
  10. ^ a b c "News". Deccan Herald. 7 September 2003. Archived from the original on 21 July 2015. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  11. ^ a b c "'They won't ban skin show'". Rediff.com. 4 August 2005. Archived from the original on 9 March 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  12. ^ a b "'I'm non-controversial, so I don't get any offers'". Rediff.com. 24 August 2011. Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 17 August 2013.
  13. ^ L, Shruti I (31 October 2012). "It is cool to do item songs: Meghna Naidu". Daily News and Analysis. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  14. ^ a b Joy, Prathibha (22 April 2004). "Meghna Naidu in yet another Kannada item number". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  15. ^ "Meghna Naidu to enter 'Jodha Akbar'". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 28 December 2013. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
  16. ^ "In pictures: Celebs and their foreign attractions". Mid Day. Archived from the original on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 26 May 2016.
  17. ^ Maheshwri, Neha (17 October 2011). "Luis is a complete romantic, says Meghna Naidu". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 12 May 2016. Retrieved 27 May 2016.
  18. ^ "Umesh gets paid in full". The Times of India. 10 April 2014. Archived from the original on 19 May 2017. Retrieved 27 May 2016.