Hailing from the city of Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, Shweta Basu Prasad is an Indian actress, who is famous for her work in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and Bengali film industries. She took home a National Film Award for Best Child Actress for her debut film Makdee (2002).
Early Life
Born to a Bihar-based father, Anuj and West Bengal-based mother, Sarmishta, Shweta’s family shifted to Mumbai from Bihar, when she was very young. She completed her studies from R. N. Podar High School, Santacruz, Mumbai and later did her graduation in journalism and mass media.
Movie Career
The actress kick-started her acting career at the young age of 11. Her outstanding portrayal of Chunni and Munni in Vishal Bhardwaj’s horror comedy Makdee (2002), gave her a dream launch in Bollywood. In spite of featuring alongside powerhouse performers like Shabana Azmi, Makarand Deshpande, and Vijay Raaz, Shweta stood out in her role and bagged the Indian National Film Award for Best Child Artist.
She followed this up with another award-winning role in Nagesh Kukunoor’s coming-of-age sports drama film Iqbal. Starring Shreyas Talpade in the titular role, the movie was a huge success, critically and received the National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues. For essaying the character of Khadija, Shweta garnered the Best Supporting Actress Award at the 5th Karachi International Film Festival.
After giving two back-to-back hits, Shweta took a hiatus of a few years to complete her graduation, meanwhile also refusing offers from acclaimed filmmakers. In 2008, she ventured into South Indian industry, with the Telugu film Kotha Bangaru Lokam, which proved to be a super hit, catapulting Shweta to instant stardom. In the years to come, she appeared in a Bengali film Ek Nadir Galpo: Tale of a River (2009), and several Telugu and Tamil films like Ride (2009), Kalavar King (2010), Raa Raa (2011), Chandhamama (2013), and Intelligent Idiots (2015).
Her 2017 release includes the Bollywood film Badrinath Ki Dulhania. Directed by Shashank Khaitan, the rom-com stars Alia Bhatt and Varun Dhawan in lead roles.
She has been a part of TV shows like Kutumb, Kahaani Ghar Ghar Kii, Karishma Kaa Karishma, and Chandra Nandni.