Amisha Patel

Amisha Patel - born June 9, 1976, also known as Ameesha Patel is an Indian Bollywood actress. Making her acting debut in the blockbuster Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000), Patel won critical praise for her performance in Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, which became one of the biggest hits in the history of Hindi cinema. She would subsequently star in a number of films, most of which proved unsuccessful at the box office. However, her performance in the 2006 film Ankahee, received critical recognition, and she followed it with a supporting role in the hit Bhool Bhulaiyaa.
Biography
Amisha Patel is the daughter of Amit Patel and Asha Patel, sister of Ashmit Patel and the granddaughter of the famous Indian lawyer Rajni Patel. Her name is a blend of the first three letters of her father's name Amit and the last three letters of her mother's name Asha.

She graduated from Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. She then worked for Morgan Stanley. After returning to India she joined Satyadev Dubey's theatre group and began acting in plays, but only after receiving permission from her conservative parents.

Reportedly, she has broken up with five year long time boyfriend, Vikram Bhatt.

Career
Patel made her acting debut with Rakesh Roshan's Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai. The film was the biggest hit of the year, and made her a star overnight, earning her awards for Best Debut at a number of award ceremonies.[4] She next appeared in the cross-border romance, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, alongside Sunny Deol. The film went on to become the top grossing film of the year, as well as the biggest hit of the 21st century, earning RS 973 million In India.[5] Set during the 1947 Indo-Pakistani conflicts, it featured Patel as Sakina, a Muslim girl who finds refuge in Deol's house during the riots, and subsequently falls for him. Her performance was praised, and won her the Filmfare Special Performance Award.

These successes were followed by a series of films that flopped at the box-office. In Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar (2002), she played the role of a successful singer who was abandoned by her mother at the time of her birth. In Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002), she plays a career-oriented girl who rejects the advances of the hero. In Humraaz (2002) she played the selfish girlfriend of Akshaye Khanna, who marries Bobby Deol to grab his wealth -- but, seeing Bobby's honesty, her character surrendered to him. In 2005 she starred opposite Hollywood actor Tobey Stephens in the historical epic film Mangal Pandey: The Rising where she played the role of a widow who gets rescued from committing Sati by a British man.

After many flop films in 2006, Amisha finally had another hit in October 2007 with the hit movie Bhool Bhulaiyaa where she played the role of a rejected adopted girl.

Amisha's next release is Yash Raj Films' Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic in which she's co-starring Rani Mukerji and Saif Ali Khan. Both Amisha and Rani are playing pivotal roles opposite Saif Ali Khan.

She has also signed onto two big projects, one opposite Govinda titled Do Lucky, and another opposite Bollywood superstar Sanjay Dutt titled Chatur Singh Two Star. Both are comedies.


Awards and nominations
Winner
2000, Kalashree "Sensational Discovery" for Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai
2000, Zee Cine Award Best Female Debut for Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai
2000, Sansui Viewers Choice Award "Best Debut / Face of the Year" for Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai
2001, Filmfare Special Performance Award for Gadar: Ek Prem Katha
2001, 32nd Annual Filmgoers, Best Actress for Gadar: Ek Prem Katha
2002, Sansui Jury Award for Best Actress Gadar: Ek Prem Katha

Nominated
2001, Filmfare Best Actress Award, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha
2002, Filmfare Best Actress Award, Humraaz
2002, Samsung IIFA "Best Actress", Humraaz
2006, Bollywood Movie Award - Best Supporting Actress, Ankahee