Before 'Om Shanti Om' happened, Deepika Padukone had appeared in a music video, which became incredibly popular.
It's a well-known fact that Deepika Padukone made her Bollywood debut with 'Om Shanti Om'. But not many know that it wasn't really the beginning of her career. Even before the Farah Khan directorial, she had made her acting debut with a Kannada film, titled 'Aishwarya'. And as far as the Hindi industry is concerned, she had her first break in a Himesh Reshammiya music video. Yes, you read it right!
The celebrated actress turns 39 today. On this occasion, let's travel down memory lane and learn about her first break.
During the mid-2000s, before the theatrical release of 'Om Shanti Om', Deepika Padukone appeared in Himesh Reshammiya's music video "Naam Hai Tere Tera".
The video became hugely popular. Although there were several actresses in it, Deepika stole the spotlight and emerged as a favorite of everyone. Later, in 2020, while promoting her film 'Chhapaak', the actress shared on the sets of 'Indian Idol 11', "I knew nothing about shooting when I was shortlisted for the music video. I never went to a film set or knew how music videos are shot. Whatever I am doing today, I have learned it while filming the music video. Thank you, Sir (Reshammiya), for giving me this opportunity. You had faith in me when nobody else did."
(Credit: realhimesh)
Reshammiya, who was present as a judge on the show, said, "I want to make one thing clear. There were other girls who featured in the music video and later got launched in the industry. However, not everyone turned out to be Deepika Padukone."
Directed by Indrajit Lankesh, the 2006 film 'Aishwarya' stars Deepika Padukone and Upendra as the lead. The film is an official remake of the 2002 Telugu film 'Manmadhudu' with the flashback portion inspired by the 2005 Tamil film 'Ghajini'.
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In 2006, Deepika Padukone made her acting debut with the Kannada film Aishwarya, where she played the lead character. pic.twitter.com/X3w4XCN4uO
(Credit: Sarathy)
The film was a massive commercial success, breaking several records at the Kannada box office. It grossed a total of Rs 50 million in its entire run of 100 days, becoming one of the highest-grossing films of the year.
The story behind Deepika becoming the ethereal Shanti Priya in 'Om Shanti Om' is quite interesting. Well, it was Malaika Arora who helped her in securing the role.
During the mid-2000s, Farah Khan, the director of 'Om Shanti Om', was looking for a new face for the female lead in her film. She requested Malaika to suggest a new model, who in turn approached her fashion designer friend Wendell Rodricks for the same. Around the same time, Deepika participated in the Lakme Fashion Week for Rodricks.
Well, it seems destiny had it all planned. Rodricks showed Malaika a few photos of Deepika, and Malaika then conveyed the same to Farah. Everything fell into place, leading Deepika to 'Om Shanti Om'.
(Credit: K.K.)
As Deepika later shared in an interview, "Farah Khan, who is the director I debuted with, saw this photoshoot and took it to Shah Rukh Khan. He was doing a film called 'Chak De! India' in Australia. Farah took these photos and showed them to Shah Rukh and told him, 'She is the face. I found the face.' They were looking to cast a new face and mind you, a double role of one character who is like the old-world Bollywood heroine Hema Malini or Wahida Rehman, and the other role was this young Indian modern woman. Without auditioning me or without having ever me, she took the pictures to Shah Rukh Khan."
Happy Birthday, Deepika. Best Wishes For All Your Upcoming Endeavors!
