Prachi Desai (born September 12, 1988) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films and on television.
Prachi Desai — Key Facts & Archival Overview
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Prachi Desai (born September 12, 1988) is an Indian actress who appears in Hindi films and on television. She began her television career as the lead in the popular Zee TV show Kasam Se. In the 2008 film Rock On!!, she made her Bollywood debut. Life Partner (2009), Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai (2010), Bol Bachchan (2012), and I, Me, Aur Main (2013) are among her other famous flicks. She is also the face of Goa Tourism and Neutrogena goods in India, as well as an endorser, spokeswoman, and brand ambassador. Desai is also a Lux Lyra brand ambassador. In an April 2021 interview, she discussed her casting couch experience for a major picture.
Background and early life
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Desai was born to Niranjan and Ameeta Desai in Surat, Gujarat. Esha Desai is her only sibling.
Desai attended St. Joseph Convent School in Panchgani and finished her education in Surat through the ninth grade. She finished her higher education from Sinhagad College in Pune.
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Career
Career and breakthrough in television (2006-2008)
Desai was cast as the lead in Ekta Kapoor's television show Kasamh Se in 2006. She was cast in the role of Bani, alongside TV actor Ram Kapoor. It was her first time on the big screen.She won multiple prizes for the show, including the Indian Telly Award for Best Actress in a Lead Role.
Desai then competed in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, the Indian equivalent of BBC Strictly Come Dancing, with choreographer Deepak Singh on September 7, 2007. Desai was eliminated on November 10, 2007, but returned as a wildcard entry and eventually won the competition. Desai was named Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa's Dancing Star.
Desai also made a guest appearance in two episodes of the Star Plus television serial Kasauti Zindagi Ki. She took on the role of a student at Prerna's school.
(2008-2016) Film debut and success
Desai then moved on to the film industry in 2008. Her first film was Rock On!! (2008), directed by Abhishek Kapoor, in which she played Farhan Akhtar's wife. Desai had to quit Kasamh Se in order to appear in Rock On.
Life Partner (2009) starred Tushhar Kapoor, Genelia D'Souza, Fardeen Khan, Govinda, and Amrita Rao.
She co-starred in Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai opposite Ajay Devgan, Emraan Hashmi, and Kangana Ranaut in July 2010.
She shot with Rajeev Khandelwal in 2010 for Vikram Tuli's film Main Jokerr, which was supposed to be released in 2011 but was never released due to title issues.
She made a cameo appearance in Teri Meri Kahaani in 2012. Desai was then cast as the major role of Bol Bachchan alongside Abhishek Bachchan, Ajay Devgn, and Asin. The film was Desai's biggest box office hit to date.
Desai's next film appearance was in I, Me, Aur Main (2013), alongside John Abraham and Chitrangada Singh. She appeared in another film, Policegiri, alongside Sanjay Dutt.
In 2014, she sang "Awari" in an item number for Ek Villain.
Desai portrayed Mohammad Azharuddin's wife, Naureen, in his biography film, Azhar, starring Emraan Hashmi in 2016. She reprised her role as Farhan Akhtar's wife in Rock On 2, the sequel to Rock On!!. The movie was released on November 11, 2016
Desai returned to the silver screen after nearly 4 years with the Zee 5 film 'Silence...Can You Hear It?' released on March 26, 2021, also starring Manoj Bajpai, Arjun Mathur, Sahil Vaid, Vaquar Sheikh, and Barkha Singh.
She also appeared in the song video Rihaee, which was directed by Mr. World 2016 Rohit Khandelwal and will be published on June 22, 2021. Singer Yaseer Desai sang the song. The audience enjoyed the song very well.
On June 24, 2022, she appeared in the Hindi film Forensic, a remake of a Malayalam film co-starring Vikrant Massey and Radhika Apte, as Dr.Ranjana.
Desai will make her Telugu debut with the spooky web series Dhootha, starring Naga Chaitanya and Parvathy, at the Amazon Prime Meeting in 2022.
She has even agreed to play the lead in the dark fantasy film Kosha, directed by Amman Advaita and produced by Abhay Raj Kanwar.
Filmography
 | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
Films
| Years | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Rock On!! | Sakshi Shroff | |
| 2009 | Life Partner | Prachi Jadeja / Prachi Bhavesh Patel | |
| 2010 | Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai | Mumtaaz | |
| 2012 | Teri Meri Kahaani | Radhika Desai | |
| Bol Bachchan | Radhika Raghuvanshi | ||
| 2013 | I, Me Aur Main | Gauri Dandekar | |
| Policegiri | Sehar Al Ameri | ||
| 2014 | Ek Villain | Dancer | Special appearance in song "Awari" |
| 2016 | Azhar | Naureen Azhar | |
| Rock On 2 | Sakshi Shroff | ||
| 2017 | Carbon | Pari | Short film |
| 2021 | Silence... Can You Hear It? | Inspector Sanjana Bhatia | |
| 2022 | Forensic | Dr. Ranjana Gupta/Shashi | |
| 2023 | Kosha | Sonia Sawant | Post-production |
Television
| Years | Title | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006–2008 | Kasamh Se | Bani Dixit Walia/Durga Dasgupta/Maithili Mitra/Anamika Dasgupta | |
| 2007 | Kasautii Zindagii Kay | Prachi Chauhan | Extended cameo |
| 2007 | Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 2 | Contestant | Winner |
| 2010 | C.I.D. | Herself | Guest |
| 2012 | Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah | Herself | Guest |
| 2016 | Naagin | Herself | Guest |
| 2023 | Dhootha | TBA | Telugu Web Series |
Music videos
| Year | Title | Singer(s) | Role |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Rihaee | Yasser Desai | Preeti |
Awards and nominations
| Year | Award | Category | Film / TV Series | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | Indian Telly Awards | Best Fresh New Face (Female) | Kasamh Se | Won |
| Best Onscreen Couple (Shared with Ram Kapoor) | Won | |||
| 2007 | Best Actress in a Lead Role | Won | ||
| 2008 | Special Recommendation | Won | ||
| 2009 | Screen Awards | Most Promising Newcomer – Female | Rock On!! | Nominated |
| Stardust Awards | Superstar of Tomorrow – Female | Nominated | ||
| International Indian Film Academy Awards | Star Debut of the Year – Female | Nominated | ||
| Anandalok Puraskar Awards | Best Actress (Hindi) | Won | ||
| Filmfare Awards | Best Female Debut | Nominated | ||
| 2011 | Best Supporting Actress | Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai | Nominated | |
| International Indian Film Academy Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Won | ||
| Producers Guild Film Awards | Best Actress in a Supporting Role | Won | ||
| Screen Awards | Best Supporting Actress | Nominated | ||
| Zee Cine Awards | Best Actor in a Supporting Role – Female | Won | ||
| Stardust Awards | Best Actress in an Ensemble Cast | Won | ||
| 2013 | Best Breakthrough Performance – Female | Bol Bachchan | Nominated |
| Bio | |
|---|---|
| Real Name | Prachi Desai |
| Nickname | OTA (one-take artiste) |
| Profession | Actress |
| Physical Stats & More | |
| Height | in centimeters- 163 cm in meters- 1.63 m in Feet Inches- 5' 4” |
| Weight | in Kilograms- 53 kg in Pounds- 117 lbs |
| Figure Measurements | 34-26-35 |
| Eye Colour | Dark Brown |
| Hair Colour | Black |
| Personal Life | |
| Date of Birth | 12 September 1988 |
| Age (as in 2022) | 34 Years |
| Birth Place | Surat, Gujarat, India |
| Zodiac sign/Sun sign | Virgo |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Hometown | Panchgani, Maharashtra, India |
| School | St. Joseph Convent, Panchgani, Maharashtra |
| College | Sinhagad College, Pune |
| Educational Qualifications | College dropout (B.A. in Psychology course) |
| Debut | Film Debut: Rock On!! (2008) TV Debut: Kasamh Se (2006) |
| Family | Father- Niranjan Desai (Professor) Mother- Ameeta Desai Brother- N/A Sister- Esha Desai |
| Religion | Hindu |
| Hobbies | Reading, yoga, dancing and sketching |
| Controversies | She was upset with the makers of the film Rock On 2 for neglecting her role, which was why she was absent from the Rock On 2 concert. |
| Favourite Things | |
| Favourite Food | Pizza, Cheese Risotto, Chocolate Mud Cake, Lemon & Arugula Rigatoni |
| Favourite Actor | Ryan Gosling, Shahid Kapoor and Arjun Rampal |
| Favourite Actress | Kangana Ranaut, Julia Roberts, Audrey Hepburn, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley |
| Favourite Film | Bollywood: Dil Chahta Hai, Jab We Met, Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar, Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin, Kapoor & Sons and Queen Hollywood: Pretty Woman |
| Favourite TV Show | Hot in Cleveland, Tyrant |
| Favourite Color | White, Pink and Blue |
| Favourite Book | Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts, and Scion of Ikshvaku by Amish Tripathi |
| Favourite Perfume | Gucci Envy, Chloe and Carolina Harrera 212 |
| Favourite Restaurant | Indigo Deli, Cafe Zoe and Out of the Blue in Mumbai |
| Favourite Destination | Gstaad in Switzerland, New York and Milan |
| Boys, Affairs and More | |
| Marital Status | Unmarried |
| Husband | N/A |
| Money Factor | |
| Salary | 1 crore/film (INR) |
| Net Worth | Not Known |
Some Lesser Known Facts About Prachi Desai
- Does Prachi Desai smoke? : No
- Does Prachi Desai drink alcohol? : Yes
- Prachi won many prizes for her active participation in dancing and acting competitions, during her studies.
- During her graduation in Pune, she started her modelling, during which she sent her pictures to Balaji Telefilms who called her for an audition.
- She left her Arts course mid-way when she was selected for TV serial Kasamh Se opposite Ram Kapoor.
- If not an actress, she would have been a counselor.
- She has won 8 television awards for Kasamh Se.
- While shooting for Kasamh Se, she got a call from the director of the film Rock On!! (2008) to meet him in his studio. She never imagined that she was being called in for auditioning for a role opposite Farhan Akthar and that she was going to make her debut into Bollywood with that call.
- Due to her prior commitment to Kasamh Se, she used to work for both Rock On!! and Kasamh Se at a time.
- She is very close to Ekta Kapoor and her family.
- In 2007, she entered Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 2, but got eliminated. However, she entered the contest again as a wild-card entry and eventually won the competition.
- She considers yesteryear American actress Grace Kelly as her fashion icon.
- She is a chocoholic.
- Her favourite fashion brand is Michael Kors.
