Sonam Kapoor Ahuja is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She has won a National Film Award and a Filmfare Award, and from 2012 to 2016, she appeared in Forbes India's Celebrity 100 list based on her income and popularity.

Kapoor, the daughter of actor Anil Kapoor, began her career as an assistant director on filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 2005 film Black. She made her acting debut in Bhansali's romantic drama Saawariya (2007), a box office flop, and had her first commercial success with the romantic comedy I Hate Luv Storys (2010). This was followed by a series of commercial failures and repetitive roles, which garnered her negative reviews. The 2013 box office hit Raanjhanaa marked a turning point in Kapoor's career, garnering her praise and Best Actress nominations at several award ceremonies.

Kapoor had her biggest commercial successes with supporting roles in the biopics Bhaag Milkha Bhaag (2013) and Sanju (2018), and a leading role in the romance Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (2015); the last two rank among the highest-grossing Bollywood films. Her acclaimed portrayal of Neerja Bhanot in the 2016 biographical thriller Neerja won her the National Film Award – Special Mention and a Filmfare Award for Best Actress (Critics), and she followed it with a starring role in the 2018 female buddy film Veere Di Wedding, both of which rank among the highest-grossing female-led Hindi films. This was followed by two poorly received female-led films and a hiatus.

Kapoor supports the raising awareness of breast cancer and LGBT rights. Known in the media for her outspoken personality, she is frequently credited as one of India's most trendy celebrities. She is married to the businessman Anand Ahuja, with whom she has a son.

Life and career

Early life (1985-2006)

Kapoor was born in the Chembur, Bombay (present-day Mumbai) on 9 June 1985. Her father is actor and producer Anil Kapoor, the son of the late filmmaker Surinder Kapoor and the founder of the Anil Kapoor Films Company. Her mother, Sunita, is a former model and designer. Kapoor has two younger siblings: film producer Rhea and brother Harshvardhan. She is the niece of film producer Boney Kapoor and actor Sanjay Kapoor; actress Sridevi and producer Mona Shourie (Boney's wives) were her aunts. Kapoor's paternal cousins are actors Arjun Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor and Mohit Marwah, and maternal second cousin is actor Ranveer Singh.

The family moved to the suburb of Juhu when Kapoor was one month old. She was educated at the Arya Vidya Mandir school in Juhu, where she confessed to being a "naughty" and "carefree" child who would bully the boys. She excelled at sports such as rugby and basketball, and trained in Kathak, classical music and Latin dance. Kapoor, who practices Hinduism, states that she is "quite religious", and that it is a way of "reminding myself that I need to be thankful for so much".

Kapoor's first job was as a waitress at age 15, although it lasted only a week. As a teenager, she struggled with her weight: “I had every issue related to weight that I could have. I was unhealthy, I had bad skin, and I had hair growing on my face!” Kapoor was diagnosed with insulin resistance and polycystic ovarian disease, and has since begun an initiative to increase awareness of diabetes. Kapoor enrolled at the United World College of South East Asia in Singapore for her pre-university education, where she studied theatre and arts. She has said she later started courses in economics and political science through University of Mumbai correspondence programme, after returning from University of East London where she began her bachelor's degree in the same subjects but returned to Mumbai soon after she began. Actress Rani Mukerji, a family friend, visited her family in Singapore on holiday while working on Black (2005). Kapoor, who had originally wanted to be a director and writer, expressed a desire to work as a crew member on the film. On her father's recommendation to director Sanjay Leela Bhansali, she was appointed as his assistant.

Female-led films, marriage and hitus (2016-present)

Following an appearance in the music video of Coldplay's "Hymn for the Weekend" (featuring Beyoncé), Kapoor starred in Ram Madhvani's biographical thriller Neerja (2016). She was cast as the eponymous air hostess Neerja Bhanot, who died while saving the passengers of the hijacked Pan Am Flight 73 in 1986. Kapoor felt responsible towards the project because it is about real events, and met Bhanot's family as a preparation for her role. The film garnered high critical acclaim, and several commentators considered Kapoor's performance to be her best to date. Raja Sen found her performance to be career-defining, while Hindustan Times' Rohit Vats wrote that “she carries [the film] entirely on her shoulder. She looks earnest, scared, benevolent and bold, all at the same time.” Sen listed Kapoor as the best actress in Hindi cinema in 2016, while Rajeev Masand invited her to his annual best actresses roundtable. In addition to several other accolades, Kapoor won a National Film Award – Special Mention and a Filmfare Best Actress (Critics), in addition to a Filmfare Best Actress nomination. With a worldwide gross over ₹1.35 billion (US$17 million), Neerja emerged as one of the highest-grossing Bollywood films featuring a female protagonist.

After a two-year absence from the screen, Kapoor played a social worker in R. Balki's comedy-drama Pad Man (2018), based on a short story in Twinkle Khanna's book The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad. Co-starring Akshay Kumar and Radhika Apte, the film is inspired by the life of Arunachalam Muruganantham, who campaigned for menstrual hygiene in rural India. Kapoor said that the length of the role is of little importance to her as long as the film has "relevance beyond just having a good time at the movies". She liked featuring in a film that addresses important social issues and is about something more than just entertainment. Although finding her role to be "largely superfluous", Saibal Chatterjee wrote that Kapoor "makes the most of the limited opportunity"; Anna M. M. Vetticad of Firstpost commended her screen presence but disliked a romantic subplot involving her and Kumar, criticising the chemistry and age-gap between them.

In the media

Born into a prominent actor family, Kapoor has appeared in the media from an early age, and is one of the highest-paid actresses in Bollywood. After the success of Raanjhanaa and Bhaag Milkha Bhaag she was cited by Subhash K. Jha as one of the top actresses in India, though a commentator for Rediff.com notes that several of her films have been commercial failures. In 2009 she was the first Indian actress to appear on The Hollywood Reporter's "Next Generation: Asia Class", a list of newcomers in film. Outspoken publicly, Kapoor's comments about contemporaries and others in the Indian film industry have occasionally caused controversy. In a 2015 interview, she acknowledged that her opinions often get her into trouble, but remarked that "I believe it pays to be honest in the longer run".

Kapoor is a popular figure nationally, with a significant following on Twitter and Facebook since 2009. She appeared on The Huffington Post's list of "100 most influential women on Twitter" in 2015. She has been described by the media as a style icon, and featured on Rediff.com's list of "Bollywood's Best Dressed Actresses" in 2012 and 2013. In 2013, the newspaper Hindustan Times and Indian edition of Vogue called her Style Icon (Reader's Choice) and Beauty of the Year, respectively. Though Kapoor has earned praise for her dress sense and style, she has faced some criticism for wearing traditional Indian dresses.

Activism

Kapoor has supported charitable organisations for various causes. In 2009, she participated in the International Indian Film Academy Awards fashion show, which supports widows and orphans of Indian film-industry workers. On behalf of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) she wrote to Maharashtra Home Minister R. R. Patil, protesting against the use of glass-coated manja (used on fighter kites), which kills birds who become entangled in it. In 2018, however, she attracted some controversy when she declared her support for Salman Khan upon his conviction for hunting an endangered blackbuck, despite her previous criticism of trophy hunting.

In 2012, Kapoor asked fans to donate to the Ogaan Cancer Foundation for her birthday, and collaborated with the foundation to increase awareness of breast cancer. She is also the brand ambassador for the Elle Breast Cancer Campaign. Kapoor is vocal in her support for LGBT rights in India. She launched the trailer of the film, Sisak, India's first silent gay love story, through her Twitter account in January 2017.

Kapoor auctioned some of her clothes on stylist Pernia Qureshi's online fashion boutique, Pernia's Pop-Up Shop, in 2012. The proceeds were donated to Smile Foundation, a child-welfare organisation. In 2014, she attended a charitable art exhibition organised by the Rouble Nagi Art Foundation, and donated clothing and accessories to a website raising funds for In Defense of Animals. Kapoor walked the ramp in a 2015 fashion show by Manish Malhotra for the Mijwan Welfare Society, a non-profit organisation dedicated to empowering girls. The same year, she appeared with Hrithik Roshan in the music video for "Dheere Dheere", whose profits were donated to charity. In 2017, she hosted a dinner to raise funds for children suffering from cancer.

Filmography 

Films

Year	Title	Role	Notes
2007	Saawariya	Sakina
2009	Delhi-6	Bittu Sharma
2010	I Hate Luv Storys	Simran
2010	Aisha	Aisha Kapoor
2011	Thank You	Sanjana Malhotra
2011	Mausam	Aayat Rasool
2012	Players	Naina Braganza
2013	Bombay Talkies	Herself	Special appearance in song “Apna Bombay Talkies”
2013	Raanjhanaa	Zoya Haider
2013	Bhaag Milkha Bhaag	Biro
2014	Bewakoofiyaan	Mayera Sehgal
2014	Khoobsurat	Dr. Mrinalini "Milli" Chakravarty
2015	Dolly Ki Doli	Dolly
2015	Prem Ratan Dhan Payo	Rajkumari Maithili Devi
2016	Neerja	Neerja Bhanot
2018	Pad Man	Pari Walia
2018	Veere Di Wedding	Avni Sharma
2018	Sanju	Ruby
2019	Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga	Sweety Chaudhary
2019	The Zoya Factor	Zoya Singh Solanki
2020	AK vs AK	Herself	Cameo
2023	Blind	TBA	Completed

Music Video Appearances

Awards and nominations