Richa Gangopadhyay | |
|---|---|
 Gangopadhyay in 2016 | |
| Born | Antara Gangopadhyay (1986-03-20)20 March 1986 (age 39) New Delhi, India |
| Other names | Richa Langella |
| Education | MBA (Washington University in St. Louis) BS, Communications, Theatre Arts minor (Eastern Michigan University) |
| Occupations | Actress,model |
| Years active | 2009–2013 |
| Title | Miss India USA 2007 |
| Spouse | Joe Langella |
| Children | 1 |
Richa Langella (néeAntara Gangopadhyay; born 20 March 1986)[1] is an Indian former actress and model who predominantly appeared inTelugu films. She presently resides atPortland, Oregon.
She was cast along with the prominent actors likeVenkatesh Daggubati,Nagarjuna,Ravi Teja,Prabhas,Rana Daggubati,Dhanush, andSilambarasan.
Her notable films includeLeader (2010) and later worked on several commercially successful Telugu films such asNagavalli (2010),Mirapakaay (2011),Sarocharu (2012), andMirchi (2013).
Richa Gangopadhyay was born on 20 March 1986, to aBengali Brahmin family inNew Delhi. Her family moved to theUnited States when she was only three.[2][3]
Her father works as the Vice President of Netshape Technologies, while her mother works as the Deputy director of the prestigious Institute of Museums and Library Services, having previoudly been nominated byPresident Obama to serve as a member of the IMLS Board. Her parents settled in the U.S. in 1989 after she spent her first year inCoimbatore,Tamil Nadu, and Gangopadhyay was raised inPennsylvania andMichigan
While attendingOkemos High School, as a junior, she was featured in the local media for founding a youth-tutoring program for at-risk children inLansing, which she ran for four years.[4] She went on to major in Dietetics and Health Administration atMichigan State University[5] but graduated with a Bachelor of Science in communications with a minor in Theatre Arts. After completing her undergraduate studies, she completed her master's degree in Business Administration from theOlin Business School atWashington University in St. Louis.
In August 2007, Gangopadhyay won the Miss India Michigan pageant and in December of that year, was crownedMiss India USA 2007 at the 26th annual Miss India USA pageant, held at Royal Albert's Palace inNew Jersey.[6] Gangopadhyay also secured the title of Miss Photogenic. She represented the U.S. in the 17th Annual Miss India Worldwide Pageant held in Johannesburg, and secured a place in the Top 10.[7]
Gangopadhyay left the U.S. in 2008 for Mumbai, India to embark on a career in films. She subsequently graduated with a diploma in acting fromAnupam Kher's acting school, Actor Prepares, and completed her portfolio, earning offers for work in fashion shows and for modeling. In early 2009, Gangopadhyay featured in a commercial for Dabur Vatika Almond Hair Oil alongside Bollywood actressPreity Zinta, while also appearing in several print ads and TV commercials for Peter England People, Pepe Jeans,Malabar Gold and Kalaniketan.[8]
Gangopadhyay debuted withRana Daggubati andPriya Anand in 2010 Telugu filmLeader, produced byAVM Productions and directed bySekhar Kammula.[citation needed] She was recommended to an assistant director ofLeader, who in turn recommended her to Sekhar Kammula. Gangopadhyay went toHyderabad to audition for the film on her birthday. She was selected instantly, and the shooting started 2 days later.[8] In the film, she played the role of Archana, a news reporter, daughter of a politician and love interest of the title character, played by debutantRana Daggubati. The film opened in theatres worldwide to positive reviews and did well commercially, with Gangopadhyay's performance described as "pretty and charming" and "good in a performance oriented role" by critics.[9][10] After the success of the film, directorP. Vasu signed her up to appear inNagavalli, a sequel to his 2005 filmChandramukhi. The film featured an ensemble cast ofVenkatesh,Anushka Shetty,Shraddha Das andPoonam Kaur. The film opened to mixed reviews, with Gangopadhyay's portrayal of a girl psychologically possessed by the ghost of Nagavalli, leading to critics dubbing her as "impressive" and "convincing".[11][12]
Her first release in 2011 was the action filmMirapakaay, starring oppositeRavi Teja for the first time. She was signed after the director of the film,Harish Shankar, who had noticed her at the success party of her previous filmLeader. He initially offered her the role played by Deeksha as she was anNRI, but when they met to review the script, he was convinced that Gangopadhyay would do justice to the character of Vinamra, a traditional Telugu Brahmin girl.[13] The film opened to good reviews with Gangopadhyay's performance being described as "good and just about hold her own in the dance sequences" by critics.[citation needed] Gangopadhyay was next seen in two Tamil films; the first beingMayakkam Enna, a drama film featuringDhanush and directed bySelvaraghavan, which earned her tremendous positive reviews and appreciation from all over. She then appeared alongsideSilambarasan inDharani'sOsthe, the Tamil remake of the 2010 Hindi filmDabangg, winning critical acclaim for her role as Neduvaali. In 2012, she made her debut in Bengali, her mother tongue, through the filmBikram Singha : The Lion Is Back, opposite the prolificProsenjit Chatterjee, a remake of the Telugu filmVikramarkudu.[14] She also featured in the Telugu filmsSarocharu,[citation needed]Mirchi andBhai opposite actorsRavi Teja,Prabhas andNagarjuna, which were released in 2012 and 2013.
In October 2013, she announced that she would leave the film industry and move back to the United States to pursue her MBA and focus on her long-term career ambitions.[15] She completed anMBA degree fromWashington University in St. Louis in May 2017.[16][15]
Gangopadhyay is married to her business school classmate Joe Langella.[17][18] The couple have a son who was born in May 2021.[19]
| Year | Title | Role(s) | Language |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | Leader | Archana | Telugu |
| Nagavalli | Gowri | Telugu | |
| 2011 | Mirapakay | Vinamra | Telugu |
| Mayakkam Enna | Yamini | Tamil | |
| Osthe | Neduvaali Velan | Tamil | |
| 2012 | Bikram Singha | Madhu | Bengali |
| Sarocharu | Vasudha | Telugu | |
| 2013 | Mirchi | Maanasa | Telugu |
| Bhai | Radhika | Telugu |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
