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Women have been known for their multi-tasking abilities and our leading ladies are no exception. They not only have been conquering the marquee with their acting skills but also chalking up identities in other fields as well. Shilpa Shetty and Preity Zinta have been part of IPL franchises. Madhuri Dixit runs a successful edtech business, Malaika Arora has a popular yoga studio. Even earlier, Hema Malini and Reena Roy were successful producers and so were pioneers like Shobana Samarth and Devika Rani. Our contemporary actresses have not just been venturing into film productions but have been funding startups as well. They’re investing in everything from clothing lines, beauty products, alternate energy to yoghurt. They’re not afraid to take risks and are empowering others by their example.
Here’s looking at some of the leading actresses of today who are having the best of the both worlds…
ANUSHKA SHARMA
Anushka Sharma made her debut alongside Shah Rukh Khan in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008). She launched her production house called Clean Slate Filmz in 2013, which is now being managed solely by Karan Sharma as Anushka wants to primarily focus on her acting career. The actress was a hands-on producer and was involved in every aspect of the filmmaking process, be it casting, screenplay or music. She produced critically acclaimed films like the thriller NH10 (2015) that featured herself in the lead. Other films like Phillauri (2017) and Pari (2018), which were a ghost story and a horror film respectively, followed. Her tryst with horror continued with the production of Bulbbul (2020) for OTT. Paatal Lok (2020), an OTT series, which was part police procedural and part political satire, won her several plaudits, including the Best Series Award, at the Filmfare OTT Awards. In 2017, she also started her own clothing brand called Nush, which was aimed at providing comfortable yet chic options for women. She appeared in Forbes Asia’s 30 Under 30 in 2018 and on Fortune India’s 50 Most Powerful Women in Business both in 2018 and 2019.
Alia Bhatt
Alia Bhatt is said to be the brightest shining star currently in the pantheon of Bollywood gods and goddesses. She made her debut with Student Of The Year (2012), where she radiated oomph, and followed it up with Highway (2014), where she showed the world her inner steel as an actor. Branded as a natural actor, she proved to be a natural investor as well. She launched Ed-a-Mamma, a sustainable clothing brand, in November 2020. The clothing brand aimed at children became a 150 crore venture in the last quarter of 2021. She also invested in beauty e-tailer Nykaa, and saw her investment soar when the brand went public. She’d also invested in the startup Style Cracker in 2017, which is a personal styling platform. Her latest investment is said to be in Phool.co, an incense brand which makes incense sticks through leftover flowers offered at temples.
Priyanka Chopra
After winning the Miss World Crown in 2000, Priyanka Chopra made her Bollywood debut in The Hero: Love Story Of A Spy (2003). She established herself as an actor with Aitraaz (2004), where she played a grey-shaded character and never looked back. In 2015, she and her mother launched Purple Pebble Pictures, a film and TV studio primarily aimed at making regional films. Her first Marathi film, the 2016 comedy-drama Ventilator, was a box office success. Pahuna: The Little Visitors (2018), the Nepali language film produced by her, got critical acclaim. In 2018, she made her first big investment in Bumble, a dating app, following up with an investment in Holberton School for software engineering—a coding education startup. In 2021, she invested in US-based rental marketplace Apartment List; and in Genies, a virtual avatar firm, along with Camila Cabello and Paris Hilton. Her most talked about investment remains a restaurant called Sona, based in New York, which is generating rave reviews from food writers. She also invested in hair care and came up with her own line of sustainable hair care products called Anomaly.
Katrina Kaif
Katrina Kaif started her career with Kaizad Gustad’s Boom (2003), though the film didn’t create any waves for her. She bounced back with back-to-back hits like Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya? (2005) and Namastey London (2007) and has been ruling the marquee ever since. Being a beauty icon, we weren’t surprised when she launched a beauty products brand called Kay Beauty which espouses inclusivity as its core. She also invested with Nykaa and her investment soared 10-fold when the brand came out with an IPO. She recently won an award for her entrepreneur skills.
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone made her debut opposite Shah Rukh Khan in Om Shanti Om (2007) and soon established herself as an established actress. Being from Bangalore, she’s in tune with the changes in the technology space and hence has also invested with Bellatrix Aerospace which is a private aerospace manufacturer and satellite company based in Bangalore. She’s also invested in Blu Smart, an electric taxi startup. She’s known to be a foodie and has invested in yoghurt brand Epigamia’s parent company Drum Foods International. As a brand initiative, the company markets spreads especially curated by her. She’s also interested in education, and has invested into edtech with FrontRow, which is a celebrity-taught learning platform, offering lessons in creative arts like music, acting, cricket etc. Being a fashionista, it was expected of her to come up with a clothing line, which is called All About You. She’s also said to have invested with Furlenco, a furniture rental platform.
Sonam Kapoor Ahuja
Sonam Kapoor made her acting debut in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s romantic drama Saawariya (2007), which didn’t fare well at the box office and had her first commercial success with the romantic comedy I Hate Luv Storys (2010). She’s been called the numero uno fashionista by the press and it was obvious that she’ll venture out in the clothes retail space. In 2017, Sonam and her sister Rhea launched the high-street fashion brand Rheson, known for its affordable prices and chic styling. Sonam recently invested in the blockchain-based game MechaFightClub (MFC). “I’ve grown up playing video games and love everything about them. The art, the storytelling, the creativity that goes into developing a game that is exciting today and also stands the test of time is something that’s always intrigued me,” she said on Twitter.
Shraddha Kapoor
Shraddha Kapoor began her acting career with a brief role in Teen Patti (2010), and followed it with her first leading role in the teen drama Luv Ka The End (2011). She met commercial success while playing a singer in the romantic musical Aashiqui 2 (2013). She’s one of the most highly followed stars from Bollywood. Shraddha expanded her blueprint by investing in the beverage brand Shunya last year. Shraddha said the brand resonated with her personal beliefs when it comes to nutrition. “The values of Shunya completely align with who I am. My journey with health, fitness, self love all started from there. I am super excited to be associated with Shunya,” she’d said while talking about her partnership. She also put in money in the D2C clothing brand MyGlamm in 2021, becoming both an investor and brand ambassador for the popular fashion brand.
Sara Ali Khan
Sara Ali Khan made her acting debut in 2018 with Abhishek Kapoor’s romantic film Kedarnath, in which she was paired opposite Sushant Singh Rajput. She was praised for the natural ease she displayed in front of the camera and won the Filmfare Award for Best Debut for it. She’s just 26 but decided to turn a businesswoman this march. She became an equity partner with the Mumbai-based casual wear and pop-culture D2C startup, The Souled Store. Sara put up an undisclosed amount in the D2C startup. The Souled Store has more than 180 licences from brands such as Disney, Warner Bros, WWE, IPL, and Viacom18. Taking to her social media, the actress shared a post about her turning entrepreneur. “Today’s the day! I have been waiting so long to make this announcement I am very proud to let you all know that I’ve invested in the souled store It’s the first of its kind investment for me.”
Kangana Ranaut
Kangana Ranaut made her debut in the 2006 thriller Gangster, for which she was awarded the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut. Known for her sharp portrayals on screen, the actress co-directed the National Award-winning film Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi (2019). She wanted to expand her horizons further and started her production house Manikarnika Films in 2021. Her first independent production is Tiku Weds Sheru, a rom com starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Singh, which will have a direct to OTT release. She also ventured into the food and beverage business last year by opening a cafe and restaurant in her hometown Manali.
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
Aishwarya Rai has been named as one of the most beautiful women in the world ever since she was crowned Miss World in 1994. She immediately started getting film offers and made her debut with Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar in 1997. Her first Hindi film was Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, released the same year. Aishwarya is said to have keen business acumen. She’s said to have invested in wind power generation more than a decade ago and set up plants in Rajasthan and Maharashtra. In 2019, she became an angel investor along with her mother Brinda Rai for the environmental startup Ambee, which uses data to measure metrics like air quality. She also invested in the nutrition-based healthcare startup called Possible last year. The company offers research driven nutrition service and healthy food products through its website for maintaining sustainable health, wealth loss and living with lifestyle diseases.
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