Pooja Gandhi
Born	(1983-10-07)7 October 1983 (age 42) Meerut,Uttar Pradesh, India
Occupations	Actress politician
Years active	2001–present
Known for	Mungaru Male andDandupalya
Political party	Janata Dal (Secular)(2013) Badavara Shramikara Raitara Congress(2013) Karnataka Janata Paksha (2012–13)
Spouse	Vijay Ghorpade ​ (m. 2023)​

Pooja Gandhi is an Indian actress and model who mainly works inKannada-language films.^[1][2] After starring in the commercially successful 2006 filmMungaru Male, Gandhi became one of the most-popular and highest-paid actresses in Kannada-language films and won several awards, including an honorary doctorate.^[3][4][5][6] Gandhi is most-commonly referred to asMale Hudugi (Rain Girl) in the media and theKannada film industry.^[7][8] Gandhi has acted in over five languages and 50 films in a decade.^[9][10][1] TheBangalore Times placed her in its list of "25 Most Desirable Women of 2012".^[11][12][13]

Gandhi made her acting debut in 2001 with the Hindi filmKhatron Ke Khiladi oppositeRaj Babbar.^[14] Since then, she has played lead roles in commercially successful films such asKokki (2006),Mungaru Male (2006),Milana (2007),Krishna (2007),Taj Mahal (2008),Budhivanta (2008),Anu (2009),Gokula (2009),Dandupalya (2012),Dandupalya 2 (2017) andDandupalya 3 (2018).^[15] Following the success of a series of films, Gandhi established herself as one of Kannada cinema's leading actresses.^[16][17]

In 2012, Gandhi joined the political partyJanata Dal (Secular),^[18] before joining the KJP party and later theBSR Congress party. She contested the Karnataka assembly elections in the constituencyRaichur^[19] but failed to win the seat.^[20]

In 2016, Gandhi received an honorary doctorate award from the Governing Council of Confederation of International Accreditation Commission (CIAC) in affiliation withKEISIE International University – South Korea, for her contribution to the Kannada film industry.^[3][21]

Gandhi was born on 7 October 1983^[22] inMeerut,Uttar Pradesh, India,^[23] and was raised inDelhi^[24] in a traditionalPunjabi family. Her father Pawan Gandhi is a businessman and her mother Jyothi Gandhi is a housewife. Pooja studied at Sophia Convent and Dewan Public School in Meerut. Her younger sisters are Radhika Gandhi, who is also an actress in Kannada films, and Suhani Gandhi, a tennis player.^[23][25] Pooja Gandhi started her career as amodel, appearing in advertisements and television series includingAwaz – Dil Se Dil Tak – a Hindi-language remake ofLost – andZameen Se Aassman Tak, which was directed byAruna Irani.^[24]

Gandhi was engaged to the industrialist Anand Gowda in November 2012 and ended the relationship the following month.^[26][27] In 2023, Gandhi married her long-time friend the businessman Vijay Ghorpade in accordance withKuvempu's Mantra Mangalya concept.^[28]

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Pooja Gandhi started her acting career in televisionsoap operas, starting withZameen Se Aassman Tak.^[23] Her film debut, at the age of 18, was theHindi filmKhatron Ke Khiladi (2001). Gandhi later appeared in theBengali filmTomake Salam and in 2003, she moved to the South Indian film industry with theTamil filmKokki (2006), which received moderate reviews and was successful at the box office.^[25]

Gandhi's debut in the Kannada film industry was inMungaru Male,^[29] which became the first film in India in any language to be screened continuously for one year in a multiplex,^[30] and ultimately ran over 865-days^[31] inKarnataka.^[32]Mungaru Male collected over ₹75 crore in its theatrical run at the Indian box office, and became the highest-grossing South Indian film during its time of release.^[33] Gandhi received praise for her performance as aNandini in the film;Indicine.com's critic stated: "Sanjana makes a confident debut".^[34] She then acted inMilana withPuneeth Rajkumar; it was theatrically released on 14 September 2007, gained commercial success and completed a 500-day run in theatres.Milana was dubbed intoMalayalam asIshtam Enikkishtam.^[35] In the same year, Gandhi acted inKrishna with herMungaru Male co-starGanesh, it was a financial hit at the box office, completing 100-days. It marked the second-consecutive hit of the Ganesh and Gandhi pairing afterMungaru Male.^{[citation needed]}Krishna marked Gandhi's hat-trick 100-day film in her Kannada film career.^{[citation needed]}

In 2008, she starred withAjay Rao in the financially successful^{[citation needed]} Kannada-language filmTaj Mahal, which ran over 200 days in two centres in Karnataka.^{[citation needed]} She was nominated for aFilmfare Best Actress Award;Sify's critic wrote: "Pooja Gandhi looks pretty and has done a good job".^[36]Rediff.com editor Vijaysarathy said: "Pooja Gandhi looks stunning and has worked hard to give a strong performance".^[37] Her next movie wasBudhivanta alongsideUpendra; it became the highest-grossing Kannada film of 2008 and completed 100-days in main centres in Karnataka.^[38]

Gandhi appeared in more than 12 films in several languages, including, Kannada, most of them failed at the box office.^[39]

In 2010, Gandhi made herTelugu debut oppositeNandamuri Taraka Ratna andPoorna inMukkanti, which was a financial failure at the box office.^{[citation needed]}

Also in 2010, Gandhi appeared in her thirdHindi filmI Am withJuhi Chawla.I Am received mainly positive reviews from critics and audiences upon the theatrical release.The Times of India called it "an important and intelligent film"^[40] andThe Film Street Journal named it "a must watch".^[41] In 2012,I Am won theNational Award forBest Hindi Film andBest Lyrics.^[42]

In 2012, Gandhi made a comeback in the female-oriented filmDandupalya, which went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of the Kannada industry,^[43] and completed 100-day theatrical runs in Karnataka andAndhra Pradesh.^[44][45][46] It collected over ₹40crore^{[citation needed]} against budget of ₹3 crore.^[47][48] Gandhi receivedFilmfare Award for Best Kannada Actress andSuvarna Fimfare Award for Best Actress for her performance inDandupalya.^[43] The film was dubbed in Telugu and released asDandupalyam, which was well received in Andhra Pradesh.^[49][50][51]

Critics praised Gandhi for her performance;Rediff.com said she "walks away with acting honours", and called her "a stunner with her vain looks sans makeup throughout the movie and she has lived her role exceptionally well".^[52]DNA's critic wrote: "viewers should not miss out on Pooja's performance".^[53]Business Standard's critic stated:

Pooja Gandhi as the leader of the gang is brilliant and extremely confident in her role. While some may typecast her performance as cheap and unwelcoming, I believe it takes guts for a regular heroine to shed her image and agree to play such a gritty part. She definitely deserves special mention for proving cliches wrong.^[54]

The Times of India's critic stated: "Pooja Gandhi walks away with full honours".^[55]

In 2013, Gandhi made herMalayalam film debut inMaad Dad (2013) withLal andMeghana Raj.^[56] Then she became an Item number in the Kannada filmDirector's Special (2013). According to sources, Gandhi rejected a request to perform a special song forDevarane but she later accepted this offer because the directorGuruprasad wrote this song with her in mind. She appears in the song as Chanchal Champakali.^{[57][citation needed]} In 2015, she starred in and producedAbhinetri.^[58]

In 2017, she starred in theDandupalya 2,^[59] which is the sequel toDandupalya. In 2018, her next film wasDandupalya 3,which was simultaneously released in Kannada and Telugu,^[60][61] along with almost same cast and crew.^[62] Gandhi received acclaim from critics and audiences for her performance in the film. The writer Sunayana Suresh ofThe Times of India stated: "Pooja Gandhi in her uninhibited avatar is another person who deserves applause".^[63] The writer Sharadha ofNew Indian Express stated: "Pooja Gandhi wins over the audience with her powerful performance".^[64]

On 18 January 2012, Pooja Gandhi joined the political partyJanata Dal (Secular) (JDS).^[65] She then briefly was a member of theKarnataka Janata Paksha (KJP) but she contested the 2013Karnataka Legislative Assembly elections in the seat ofRaichur as a candidate forBadavara Shramikara Raitara Congress (BSR Congress) but she failed to win the seat.^[66]

Pooja Gandhi and the filmDandupalya were criticised by the social groupBahujan Samaj Horata Samiti for a scene, which they said is offensive. After the movie's release,Ambedkar Kranthi Sena activists demonstrated inBengaluru against the film's "glorification of anti-social activities".^[67] Pooja countered this claim, saying: "According to the dictionary, nudity means that you are not covered with a single item of clothing from head to toe. But in this scene, I have worn a sari and I am trying to cover my body, except for my back".^[68]

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• Living people
• 21st-century Indian actresses
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• Actresses in Hindi cinema
• Indian film actresses
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• Janata Dal (Secular) politicians
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