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Preity Zinta

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Preity G. Zinta<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> (pronounced {{#invoke:IPA|main}}; born 31 January 1975) is an Indian actress primarily known for her work in Hindi films. After graduating with degrees in English honours and criminal psychology, Zinta made her acting debut in Dil Se.. in 1998,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> followed by a role in Soldier in the same year. These performances earned her the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut, and she was later recognised for her role as a teenage single mother in Kya Kehna (2000). She established a career as a leading Hindi film actress of the decade with a variety of character types. Her roles, often deemed culturally defiant, along with her unconventional screen persona won her recognition and several accolades.<ref name="The only man in Bollywood" />Template:Sfn

Following critically appreciated roles in Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001), Dil Chahta Hai (2001), Dil Hai Tumhaara (2002), and Armaan (2003), Zinta received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress for her performance in Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003). She starred in two consecutive annual top-grossing films in India, Koi... Mil Gaya (2003) and Veer-Zaara (2004), and was noted for her portrayal of independent, modern Indian women in Salaam Namaste (2005) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), top-grossing productions in domestic and overseas markets. For her first international role in the Canadian drama Heaven on Earth (2008) she was awarded the Silver Hugo Award for Best Actress and nominated for the Genie Award for Best Actress. She followed this with a hiatus from acting work for several years, with intermittent appearances such as in her self-produced comeback film, Ishkq in Paris (2013), which failed to leave a mark.

Zinta is also a social activist, television presenter and stage performer. Between 2004 and 2005, she wrote a series of columns for BBC News Online South Asia. She is the founder of the production company PZNZ Media, a co-owner of the Indian Premier League cricket team Punjab Kings since 2008, and the owner of the South-African T20 Global League cricket team Stellenbosch Kings since 2017. Zinta is known in the Indian media for publicly speaking her mind and consequently has sparked the occasional controversy. These controversies include her being the sole witness not to retract in court her earlier statements against the Indian mafia during the 2004 Bharat Shah case, for which she was awarded the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award.

Early life and backgroundEdit

Preity Zinta was born on 31 January 1975 into a Himachali Rajput<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Hindu family from Shimla district, Himachal Pradesh.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="birth_details" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her father, Durganand Zinta, was an officer in the Indian Army.<ref name="Zinta the PM">Template:Cite news</ref> He died in a car accident when she was thirteen; the accident also involved her mother, Nilprabha, who was severely injured and consequently remained bedridden for two years. Zinta called the tragic accident and her father's death a significant turning point in her life, which forced her to mature rapidly.<ref name="The Preity Zinta interview">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She has two brothers; Deepankar and Manish, a year older and a year younger, respectively. Deepankar is a commissioned officer in the Indian Army, while Manish lives in California.<ref name="washpostbrave">Template:Cite news</ref>

Zinta, who describes herself as having been a tomboy as a child, has emphasised her father's military background as having given her a lasting impression on how family life was to be conducted. He asserted the importance of discipline and punctuality to the children.<ref name="Early life">Template:Cite news</ref> She studied at the Convent of Jesus and Mary boarding school in Shimla. Although she confesses to loneliness in the boarding school, she noted that it was compensated by her finding a "...Template:Nbsperfect set of friends" there.<ref name="Zinta the PM" /><ref name="good times">Template:Cite news</ref> As a student, she developed a love for literature, particularly the works of William Shakespeare and poetry.<ref name="Zinta the PM" /> According to Zinta, she enjoyed schoolwork and received good grades; in her free time she played sports, especially basketball.<ref name="The Preity Zinta interview" />

After her schooling at Convent of Jesus and Mary, Zinta enrolled at St. Bede's College in Shimla, an affiliated college of Himachal Pradesh University.<ref name="Zinta the PM" /> She graduated with an English honours degree, and then started a graduate programme in psychology.<ref name="Talk Asia interview">Template:Cite news</ref> She earned a postgraduate degree in criminal psychology, but later took up modelling.<ref name="Zinta the PM" /> Zinta's first television commercial was for Perk chocolates, the result of a chance meeting with a director at a friend's birthday party in 1996.<ref name="Zinta the PM" /> The director persuaded Zinta to audition for the spot, and she was selected. Afterwards, she appeared in other catalogues and commercials, including one for the soap Liril.<ref name="The Preity Zinta interview" /><ref name="Talk Asia interview" />

Acting careerEdit

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Debut and early roles (1998–1999)Edit

In 1998, Zinta met Shekhar Kapur when she accompanied a friend to an audition in Mumbai and was asked if she would audition too.<ref name="BAFTA" /><ref name="Pretty face">Template:Cite news</ref> Upon seeing her audition, Kapur insisted that she become an actress. She was originally scheduled to make her screen debut in Kapur's Tara Rum Pum Pum opposite Hrithik Roshan, but the filming was cancelled.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She reminisced the experience: "I began to recognise the power of destiny. I had no intention ever to be an actress."<ref name="Pretty face" /> Kapur later recommended her for director Mani Ratnam's Dil Se.. (1998), a romantic thriller about a terrorist group in New Delhi.<ref name="Talk Asia interview"/><ref name="BAFTA">Template:Cite video</ref> Zinta often recalls that when she joined the film industry her friends teased her that she would typically "wear white saris and dance in the rain", thereby motivating her to seek unconventional parts.<ref name="Zinta the PM"/><ref name="BAFTA"/>

Zinta commenced shooting for Kundan Shah's Kya Kehna, whose release was delayed until 2000.<ref name="Chopra-India-Today"/> The delay of another film, Soldier (1998), meant that her first release was Dil Se.. opposite Shahrukh Khan and Manisha Koirala.<ref name="BAFTA"/> She was introduced as Preeti Nair, a middle-class Delhi girl and Khan's fiancée.Template:Sfn The film was considered an unusual launch for a newcomer, as her role called for only twenty minutes of screen time.<ref name="Chopra-India-Today"/> However, she was eventually noticed for her role, particularly for the forthright character she played.<ref name="The Preity Zinta interview"/>Template:Sfnm Her scene with Khan, in which she asked him, "Are you a virgin?", became well-known,<ref name="Chopra-India-Today"/><ref name="Champagne">Template:Cite magazine</ref> and her portrayal earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress.<ref name="awards" /> Khalid Mohamed of Bombay Talkies said that she "radiates confidence and spunk even if she's given just scraps of footage".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film did not attract a wide audience in India but was the first Hindi film to enter the UK's top 10 box-office charts.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Zinta's second release of 1998 was Abbas–Mustan-directed action-drama Soldier, one of the biggest commercial hits of the year.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She won the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut for her performance in both Dil Se.. and Soldier.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Zinta next acted in two Telugu films, Premante Idera (1998) and Raja Kumarudu (1999).Template:Sfn She followed with the leading role in Sangharsh, a 1999 thriller directed by Tanuja Chandra and written by Mahesh Bhatt.Template:Sfn Zinta portrayed Reet Oberoi, a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) officer who falls in love with a captured killer played by Akshay Kumar.Template:Sfnm<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Having been impressed with Zinta's work in Dil Se.., Chandra approached her for the part after several leading actresses had refused the offer, which Zinta viewed as an opportunity to expand her range.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Chandra">Template:Cite magazine</ref> Sangharsh was not a box-office success, although Zinta's performance received favourable comments by critics.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref name="The Preity Zinta interview"/> An article published by The Tribune described her performance as "an amazing act" in an "intense film", documenting her career path thus far with the observation: "She wowed the audiences with her cameo in Dil Se.., then she zapped the viewers with her sensuality in Soldier and now Preity Zinta is all set to shock everybody with her stark performance [in Sangharsh]."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Subhash K. Jha reflected in 2013 that Sangharsh marked a rare occasion in Hindi cinema at the time where a top male star played a secondary role to the leading lady.<ref name="SKJ">Template:Cite news</ref>

Breakthrough and career advancement (2000–2002)Edit

Zinta's first role in 2000 was in the drama Kya Kehna, which exceeded expectations to emerge a major box-office success.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref name="KK-DHT">Template:Cite news</ref> The film addressed themes of single parenthood and teenage pregnancy, and gained Zinta wider recognition from the public as well as film critics.<ref name="Chopra-India-Today"/>Template:Sfn Her portrayal of Priya Bakshi, a teenage single mother who fights social prejudice, earned her several award nominations, including her first nomination for Best Actress at the Filmfare Awards.Template:Sfnm<ref name="awards">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Anupama Chopra from India Today reported that Zinta belonged to a new breed of Hindi film actors that breaks away from character stereotypes.<ref name="Chopra-India-Today"/> Further positive feedback came her way that year for her starring role in the romantic comedy Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She next appeared alongside Sanjay Dutt and Hrithik Roshan in Vidhu Vinod Chopra's drama Mission Kashmir (2000).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Set in the valley of Kashmir during the Indo-Pakistani conflicts, the film dealt with the topic of terrorism and crime;Template:Sfnm it was an economic success, becoming the year's third-highest-grossing release in India.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Zinta's role was that of Sufiya Parvez, a TV reporter and Roshan's childhood love.Template:Sfn A review in The Hindu noted her for lending colour to an otherwise serious subject matter, and she shared similar sentiments about the character, citing its positive nature within the dark film as having sparked her interest in the part.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="Different1">Template:Cite news</ref>

File:Preity Zinta 2001.jpg
Zinta at the audio release of Chori Chori Chupke Chupke in 2001

In 2001, Zinta was paired with Sunny Deol in the action film Farz. Her role was dismissed by critics, and the film failed commercially.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="BOI Filmography" /> Abbas–Mustan's family drama Chori Chori Chupke Chupke was released later that year after a one-year delay due to the trial of producer Bharat Shah and opened to a wide audience.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> One of the first Hindi films to address the controversial issue of surrogate childbirth,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> it starred Zinta as Madhubala, a golden-hearted prostitute hired as a surrogate mother.<ref name="Different1"/>Template:Sfn Initially reluctant to play the part, she eventually accepted it at the directors' persuasion and, to prepare for it, visited several bars and nightclubs at Mumbai's red-light areas to study the lingo and mannerisms of sex-workers.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Reviews of the film were varied, but critics singled out Zinta for praise.<ref name="CCCCHT">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She received a second Best Supporting Actress nomination at the Filmfare Awards for her performance, of which reviewer Sukanya Verma wrote: "Preity Zinta, who clearly has the meatiest part of all, makes the best of it. Her transformation from the cocky and unabashed prostitute to a sensitive and warm person is amazingly believable."<ref name="awards" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Two more 2001 releases featured Zinta, including Farhan Akhtar's coming-of-age Dil Chahta Hai. Depicting the contemporary routine life of Indian affluent youth, it focuses on a period of transition in the lives of three young friends (Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan and Akshaye Khanna).<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Sfnm Zinta played Aamir Khan's love interest Shalini, who is conflicted about her upcoming, loveless marriage. Dil Chahta Hai was popular with critics, some of whom believed it broke new ground with an unusually realistic portrayal of India's urban milieu.Template:Sfnm It was named Best Feature Film in Hindi at the 49th National Film Awards and received the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Film.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> A moderate box-office success in India, it performed well in the big cities but failed in the rural areas, which was attributed by trade analysts to the city-oriented lifestyle it presented.<ref name="BOI Filmography" />Template:Sfnm Dinesh Raheja took note of Zinta's "casual and appealing acting", and Sita Menon described her as "beautiful and vibrant, wavering between endearingly naive and confused".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Next followed Deepak Shivdasani's Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke, a romantic drama co-starring Ajay Devgn and Madhuri Dixit which was commercially and critically unsuccessful.<ref name="Champagne"/><ref name="BOI Filmography">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2002, Zinta collaborated once again with director Kundan Shah, as the protagonist in the family drama Dil Hai Tumhaara, alongside Rekha, Mahima Chaudhry and Arjun Rampal.<ref name="KK-DHT"/> She played Shalu, an adopted daughter craving love, a role she identified with due to its rebellious nature.<ref name="good times"/> Billed as a star vehicle for Zinta,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Dil Hai Tumhaara did not succeed financially, but her portrayal was uniformly acclaimed by critics, with those critical of the film marking her presence as its main highlight.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref name="Champagne"/><ref>Reviews of Dil Hai Tumhaara:

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Established actress (2003–2007)Edit

Zinta's career surged significantly in 2003 as she was the lead in India's three highest-grossing films of the year: The Hero: Love Story of a Spy, Koi... Mil Gaya and Kal Ho Naa Ho.<ref name="top actresses">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="2003 BO">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Hero, co-starring Sunny Deol and Priyanka Chopra, is an action drama about a Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) secret agent on a mission to gather intelligence about terrorist activity from across the border of Kashmir.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Zinta played the part of Reshma, a Kashmiri villager who falls in love with the agent and becomes part of this network. The film, involving stunts never seen before in the cinematic history of Bollywood, became the most expensive Hindi film ever produced at the time.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The third-highest-grossing film of the year, it was labelled a disappointment against its high production costs.<ref name="2003 BO"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

She next starred in Honey Irani's directorial debut, Armaan; the drama is set in a hospital and follows the travails of its personnel and its principal, Dr. Akash (Anil Kapoor), who struggles arduously to sustain the institution financially and enters into a marriage of convenience to save it. Zinta played Akash's egocentric, excessively possessive and capricious wife Sonia Kapoor,Template:Sfn a role written specially for her and which she considered her best to that point.<ref name="Champagne"/><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> The film received predominantly positive reviews, and Zinta was particularly praised.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Khalid Mohamed called her a "peppy scene-stealer, achieving her manic mood swings dexterously", and Vinayak Chakravorty of Hindustan Times concluded that she "takes over the script and, indeed, the film" with "a brilliant act".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> For her performance, she received nominations for Best Performance in a Negative Role at different award ceremonies, including Filmfare.<ref name="awards" />

File:Audio Launch of Kal Ho Naa Ho.jpg
Zinta pictured with Saif Ali Khan (left) and Shah Rukh Khan at an event for Kal Ho Naa Ho in 2003

Rakesh Roshan's science-fiction film Koi... Mil Gaya, about a developmentally disabled young man (Hrithik Roshan) coming in contact with an alien, followed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn Zinta's portrayal of Nisha, a young woman whom Roshan befriends and falls in love with, was deemed "fresh and inspired" by The Times of India.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Regarded as the "most novel Bollywood movie of the year" by Empire magazine,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> the film emerged as India's most popular film of the year with a domestic total of Template:INRConvert.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="2003 BO"/> It went on to spawn two superhero sequelsTemplate:EmdashKrrish and Krrish 3Template:Emdashmaking it the first of the Krrish film series, to which Zinta did not proceed.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Set in New York City, Nikhil Advani's romantic drama Kal Ho Naa Ho starred Zinta as Naina Catherine Kapur, an insecure and irritable Indian-American who falls for a man with a fatal heart disease (Shah Rukh Khan).Template:Sfn<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The film earned over Template:INRConvert worldwide: the second-biggest hit of the year after Koi... Mil Gaya in India and the top-grossing Hindi film overseas.<ref name="2003 BO" /><ref name="Worldwide gross">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Critics received Kal Ho Naa Ho favourably,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and Ram Kamal Mukherjee of Stardust asserted that it exclusively rested on Zinta's "astounding performance", noting her for having "skillfully handled the hues of the complex character".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref><ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> At the 49th Filmfare Awards, Zinta received two Best Actress nominations: one for Koi... Mil Gaya, which was named Best Film, and another for Kal Ho Naa Ho, for which she won the award,<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="awards02">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> in addition to accolades from other functions, including IIFA and Stardust.<ref name="awards" /><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In 2004, Zinta played TV journalist Romila Dutta in Farhan Akhtar's war drama Lakshya, alongside Hrithik Roshan. The film is based on the historical events of the 1999 Kargil War, and Zinta's character is modelled after Barkha Dutt, the only female reporter who covered the conflict.Template:Sfn She called it the toughest film she had worked on and said it made her respect journalists.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> To provide an accurate portrayal, she watched a number of Dutt's television shows and read books on the conflict.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film was a critical success, yet her performance received mixed reviews; Namrata Joshi of Outlook likened her to "a teenybopper trying to do a TV news reading skit for her college fest",<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> and Rediff.com's Rajeev Pai observed that despite a good part, she only "does a fairly decent job of it without ever being spectacular".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Lakshya failed to attract an audience, grossing Template:INRConvert against its Template:INRConvert budget.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

For the lead part in his cross-border romance Veer-Zaara (2004), Yash Chopra was looking for an actress whose "look and personality could be transformed". Having identified this opportunity in Zinta, who was mostly known for playing westernised characters, he cast her in the title role of Zaara Haayat Khan, a feisty Pakistani woman whose love story with Indian officer Veer Pratap Singh (Shah Rukh Khan) spans three decades amid trials and tribulations.<ref name="Choprint">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>Template:Sfn Highly anticipated pre-release, the film had a strong international release, including a screening at the Berlin International Film Festival, and was named Best Film at major Indian award functions.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>List of awards received by Veer-Zaara:

|CitationClass=web }}</ref> With revenues of over Template:INRConvert, it was that year's top-grossing Hindi film both in India and abroad.<ref name="Worldwide gross"/> Zinta's part required her to master the fine nuances of the Urdu language.<ref name="Talk Asia interview"/> Though excited at first, she later "got knots in her stomach" worrying about her performance, but Chopra assured her.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Her work resulted in a fourth Filmfare Best Actress nomination, among others.<ref name="awards" /> Jitesh Pillai wrote of her "tremendous restraint", and Avijit Ghosh of The Telegraph likewise believed she had delivered her most nuanced performance.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Derek Elley of Variety hailed her as "the most interesting young actress of her generation".<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Veer-Zaara was Zinta's second highest-grossing film and third major success in two consecutive years.<ref name="top actresses"/>

Zinta starred opposite Govinda in the 2005 folk comedy Khullam Khulla Pyaar Karen, a production that had been delayed since 2002.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The film garnered negative reviews and poor box office returns,<ref name="BOI Filmography" /> and Subhash K. Jha found Zinta's work to be incompatible with her screen image and acting style.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Critics and moviegoers were more appreciative that year of Siddharth Anand's comedy-drama Salaam Namaste, which saw Zinta and Saif Ali Khan as a contemporary cohabiting Indian couple in Australia dealing with an unexpected pregnancy.Template:Sfnm<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Produced on a big budget by Yash Raj Films,Template:Sfn it was the first Indian feature filmed entirely in Australia and became the year's highest-grossing Indian production outside of India and overall third-highest-grossing Hindi film,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> earning Template:INRConvert.<ref name="Overseas market"/> Zinta received a number of Best Actress nominations for playing the protagonist Ambar Malhotra, a single modern young woman who leaves India to make her own life in Melbourne and works as a radio host while studying medicine.Template:Sfnm<ref name="awards" /> Devyani Srivastava of Mid-Day considered the independent, strong-minded character of Ambar to be a rare Hindi film heroine, and Taran Adarsh argued that Zinta had given "her most accomplished performance to date".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Anita Gates of The New York Times noted Ambar's negative shades but admired Zinta's positive personality, by which she remains likable even despite uncharitable traits in her characters.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

File:PreityZinta.jpg
Zinta at a promotional event for Jaan-E-Mann in 2006

Zinta received further success in 2006, starring in Karan Johar's drama Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna alongside Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Abhishek Bachchan, and Amitabh Bachchan.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film became one of the biggest box-office hits in India, earning Template:INRConvert, and grossed over Template:INRConvert abroadTemplate:Emdashthe biggest Bollywood success of all-time in the overseas market up until then.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> It was Zinta's fourth overseas top-earner in four consecutive years.<ref name="Overseas market">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Revolving around two unhappily married couples in New York, the film featured Zinta as Rhea Saran, an ambitious fashion magazine editor whose husband begins an adulterous affair with a family acquaintance.Template:Sfnm She described the part as an attempt to shed her vivacious public image.<ref name="bubbly image">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna polarised critics, but The Indian Express approved of Zinta's effort, noting her for having "walked with poise, sat with grace, smiled with composure and spoken with calmness".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Other reviews questioned the limited length of her role.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In later years, Filmfare and Verve lauded the character for breaking stereotypes of screen portrayals of married women in Hindi films.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Zinta next appeared in Shirish Kunder's romantic musical Jaan-E-Mann (2006). She played Piya, the cynosure of two men in the United States (Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film opened to mixed reviews from critics and its eventual box office profit was poor.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /> Despite being mostly criticised for taking a role of minimal importance, she was complimented on her performance and appearance.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She said the film was a great relief after the more emotionally intense Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, as Jaan-E-Mann was "easy, happy and much more simple".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Even less successful was her next turn as British Pakistani woman Alvira Khan in her third project with Yash Raj Films, the musical comedy Jhoom Barabar Jhoom (2007), co-starring Abhishek Bachchan, Bobby Deol and Lara Dutta. The film was a commercial failure in India and critics panned her performance;<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Times of India described her as "too plastic"<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and Rediff.com concluded, "From accent to emotion, Preity is plain and simple insufferable in this film."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Professional expansion (2007–2008)Edit

Following the failure of two of her commercial releases, Zinta decided to venture into art films, a movement of neo-realistic films known in India as parallel cinema.<ref name="art film">Template:Cite news</ref> She acted alongside Amitabh Bachchan in her first English-language film, Rituparno Ghosh's film-within-a-film drama The Last Lear (2007).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Zinta played Shabnam, a struggling film actress working on a new project opposite Shakespearean actor Harish Mishra (Bachchan) in the midst of a turbulent relationship with her possessive husband. The film premiered at the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival and was received well.Template:Sfn<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later reviews in India were approving, with Rajeev Masand writing that she "gets through her scenes competently, never allowing her cute-as-a-button image to take away from the impact she makes here as a conflicted, mature woman".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Sukanya Verma called Zinta "palpably vulnerable" but lamented the English dialogue, finding it distracting "from the seriousness of the situation".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Last Lear was named the Best English Film at the 55th National Film Awards.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Initially dismissive of art films, Zinta eventually spoke positively of her experiment with the genre, confessing, "I did think with art films that they don't pay you, they don't feed you, but I was wrong, and I'm so happy to be here."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Zinta next starred in Samir Karnik's Heroes (2008), a three-chapter road movie about two film students who, as part of an assignment, travel across North India to deliver three un-posted letters written by army personnel who lost their lives during the 1999 Kargil war to their families. Zinta is featured in the first chapter as Salman Khan's war widow, Kuljeet Kaur, a woman who becomes the sole breadwinner of the family and single-handedly raises her son. In preparation for the role Zinta attended Anupam Kher's acting school, "Actor Prepares" to learn the dialect and mannerisms of a Punjabi woman.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The film was released to a mixed critical reaction, but her performance received rave reviews; Anand Singh of Hindustan Times wrote: "Karnik is merely interested in wringing tears the old-fashioned way, and not in starting a debate. He succeedsTemplate:Emdashmainly because Preity Zinta brings to a role a gravitas and dignity that is seen on the faces of ordinary womenTemplate:Emdashthis may be her coming of age as an actress."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In the same year she played the leading role of Chand in Deepa Mehta's Canadian film Heaven on Earth, a Punjabi-language mystical drama based on the true story of a young Indian woman who, after an arranged marriage to a non-resident Indian man from Canada, migrates to Toronto and becomes a victim of severe domestic abuse.Template:Sfn Zinta described Mehta as one director she was longing to work with to fulfill her desire for "a new kind of acting challenge".<ref name="art film"/> To prepare for the part, she studied extensively the subject of domestic violence and took a crash course in Punjabi, a language that was totally alien to her.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She confessed to not being able to emotionally disconnect from the part during the making of the film: "I never knew a character would affect me so deeply. I've become completely withdrawn and introspectiveTemplate:Nbs... I can't snap out of the character."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She eventually called it her most challenging project, as it helped her "shed everything that Preity Zinta was about".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Heaven on Earth was first screened at several film festivals and garnered career-best reviews for Zinta.<ref>Reviews of Heaven on Earth in India:

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Hiatus and occasional returns (2009–present)Edit

File:Preity Zinta at an event for ISHKQ IN PARIS.jpg
Zinta at a promotional event for Ishkq in Paris in 2013

Following Heaven on Earth, Zinta took a two-year sabbatical from films, later explaining that she had chosen to focus on her work with her cricket team.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2011, she launched her own production company, PZNZ Media.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Two years later and following numerous delays, she starred in her first film under the bannerTemplate:Sndthe Prem Raj-directed romantic comedy Ishkq in Paris, which she also co-wrote.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> An Indo-French collaboration, the film saw Zinta as a half-Indian half-French Parisian woman alongside Rhehan Malliek and Isabelle Adjani. Zinta's role required her to learn French and follow a strict diet and fitness regime, for which she hired the services of celebrity trainer Tracy Anderson.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Whilst the film bombed at the box office and received mostly negative reviews, Zinta's performance attracted a mixed critical reception.<ref name="BOI Filmography" /><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Sonia Chopra of Sify called her "hugely likeable", and added that she is a "good actress, astute producer andTemplate:Nbs... writer".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Shilpa Jamkhandikar from Deccan Herald, critical of both the film and Zinta's work, concluded a scathing review by calling it "a mediocre film, one that was supposed to showcase one of our favourite leading ladies, but instead just shows us what a shadow of her past she's become".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Following a five-year sabbatical, Zinta starred opposite Sunny Deol as an aggressive Varanasi-based wife in Neeraj Pathak's action comedy Bhaiaji Superhit (2018).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Ajit Duara of Open magazine called the film a "rude, sexist, and completely mixed-up farce" and bemoaned that the "once vivacious [Zinta] appears completely disinterested in her surroundings and in her co-actors".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2020, Zinta appeared alongside Vir Das in an episode of the American sitcom Fresh Off the Boat, titled "The Magic Motor Inn"; she was set to reprise her role in a spin-off series, centered around her character's family,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> but it eventually did not materialise.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

After another hiatus, Zinta will return to Hindi cinema with Lahore 1947, a period drama film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and co-starring Sunny Deol.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The film will be produced by her Dil Chahta Hai co-star Aamir Khan

Other workEdit

Column writingEdit

In 2004, Zinta joined a group of South Asian commentators for BBC News Online. She expressed joy at participating in the project, saying, "I am pretty outspoken and have my own view on every subject. So it will be a good platform for me to air my views."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her first column, "The changing face of Bollywood", published in January 2004,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> discussed the evolution of Bollywood in the past decade. The column became one of the site's ten most read stories of the day. In her second column, "Odds stacked against Indian women", Zinta analysed the eve teasing phenomenon in India, and criticised those who practice it.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She wrote, "Incidents like these take away a woman's dignity, her space and her freedomTemplate:Nbs... why the state is so helpless in protecting the women. Why should women feel unsafe in a country which had an internationally revered woman prime minister?" The column caught the attention of readers worldwide, and she received thousands of e-mails about it.<ref name="everes">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It was applauded particularly by women for its stand against abuse of Indian women.<ref name="everes"/> Her third column, "The darkness that all actors fear", was a more personal column and dealt with her stardom, fans, insecurity and fears as an actor.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Her fourth and final column, titled "Facing death in Sri Lanka and Thailand", described her two near-death experiences in late 2004.<ref name="facing death">Template:Cite news</ref>

Stage performances and television presentingEdit

File:Zinta Temptation04.jpg
Zinta performing at "Temptation 2004"

Zinta has taken part in several stage shows and world tours since 2001. Her first world tour, a series of concerts called "Craze 2001", was performed across the US alongside Anil Kapoor, Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Gracy Singh. The show faced early cancellation due to the 11 September 2001 attacks, and the team prepared to return to India as soon as possible. However, the shows continued successfully in Canada.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> In 2002, she participated in the show "From India With Love" in the UK, along with Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan and Aishwarya Rai. It took place at two outdoor venues, Manchester's Old Trafford and London's Hyde Park, with more than 100,000 spectators.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Zinta's largest world tour was in 2004, when she joined a group of stars (Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, Saif Ali Khan, Arjun Rampal and Priyanka Chopra) in the "Temptation 2004" tour. Showcased in more than 22 countries across the world, it became Bollywood's most prominent international concert.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2006, Zinta was part of the "Heat 2006" world tour, along with Akshay Kumar, Saif Ali Khan, Sushmita Sen and Celina Jaitley.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> "The Unforgettable Tour" (2008) saw Zinta performing with the Bachchan family and Ritesh Deshmukh in a forty-day show staged in eleven cities across North America, Europe and the Caribbean.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In December 2012 Zinta returned to the stage with the "Temptation Reloaded" concert in Jakarta (joined by Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukerji and Bipasha Basu).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2011, Zinta made her television debut as the host of the show Guinness World Records – Ab India Todega on Colors Channel.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> An Indian version of Guinness Book of World Records, the show premiered on 18 March to an audience measurement of 3.3 rating points, which made it occupy the seventh position on the chart of celebrity-driven reality shows on Hindi entertainment channels.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In a four-star review for Hindustan Times, critic Rachana Dubey wrote, "Preity is a riot. She's vivacious and knows exactly when she needs to be serious and when she can crack jokes."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later that year Zinta started hosting the celebrity-based chat show Up Close & Personal with PZ, shot at her own penthouse in Mumbai and broadcast on the newly launched channel UTV Stars. The first episode aired on 3 September.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2015, Zinta featured as a talent judge for the seventh season of the dance reality show Nach Baliye.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Humanitarian workEdit

During her years in the film industry, Zinta has been involved with different charitable organisations and has particularly supported women's causes in India, for instance protesting against female infanticide.<ref name="charities">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="poised">Template:Cite news</ref> She has also participated in AIDS awareness drives and campaigns to clean up Mumbai.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

File:Preity Zinta at ACT (Against Child Trafficking) (4).jpg
Zinta at an event against child trafficking in 2012

Along with other Bollywood stars, Zinta performed at the "HELP! Telethon Concert" in 2005 to raise money for victims of the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The following year, as an ambassador of the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Movement, Zinta attended a blood donation camp organised by the Rotary Club of Delhi and the Godfrey Phillips Awards. She lent her support to the cause of women's empowerment and promoted blood donation. She said, "Donating blood doesn't kill one but goes on to save somebody's lifeTemplate:Nbs... Once blood is donated it becomes universal and might be used by anyone in need, irrespective of community, caste or region. It binds people together."<ref name="Donating blood">Template:Cite news</ref>

In 2007, as part of the NDTV show Jai Jawan, Zinta visited Hisar, Haryana, where she spent a day at the army training base to boost the morale of the jawan troops and met children with disabilities at a special school maintained by the army.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In August, along with Mumbai-based artist Gurcharan Singh, Zinta painted for the cause of street children for the non-governmental organisation Khushi.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In December she joined the efforts of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) to curb human trafficking in India. She spoke on behalf of awareness against the practice, the need for protection and rehabilitation for those rescued from it, and punishment for perpetrators.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2009, on her 34th birthday, Zinta adopted 34 girls from the Mother Miracle orphanage in Rishikesh and took the responsibility of financially supporting their education, food and clothing.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She expressed her excitement at doing so and recounted her full commitment to their upbringing.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

In January 2010 Zinta was appointed the brand ambassador of The Loomba Trust, an organisation that works for the welfare of widows and their children. She said, having lost her father at thirteen, she could relate to the problems faced by widowed women.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Later in the year, she joined the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) as their Goodwill Ambassador in India, to promote public awareness on HIV prevention, treatment and support, with emphasis on women and children, and combat discrimination against it. Speaking of her appointment, Zinta expressed hope to be "the voice for the voiceless" and bring about a "transformation in the minds of people" through collaborative work.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In October 2010 Zinta was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Arts from the University of East London. It was awarded in honour of both her cultural contribution and her humanitarian work, with the citation describing her as "an international actress, pioneering star of Hindi cinema and devoted humanitarian. Preity has carved a path for women to follow."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Ownership of cricket teamsEdit

Along with Ness Wadia, Mohit Burman and others, Zinta acquired ownership rights in 2008 for the Mohali-based Twenty20 cricket team of the Indian Premier League (IPL).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The group paid $76Template:Nbsmillion for the franchise and named the team Kings XI Punjab (it was renamed Punjab Kings in 2021).<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Until 2009, Zinta was the only woman to own an IPL team, and was the league's youngest owner.<ref name="toispree">Template:Cite news</ref> She has been involved with launching ticket sales and promoting the team.<ref name="toispree"/><ref name="ticket">Template:Cite news</ref> She said, "My involvement with the team is total. I am extremely passionate about our team and I do believe that I am the team's good luck factor, so I want to be there for everything."<ref name="toispree"/> In September 2017, she became the owner of the Stellenbosch Kings franchise team of South Africa's Mzansi Super League. Further business expansion took place in 2021 as Zinta and her Punjab Kings partners bought Saint Lucia's representative team in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL), which was rebranded as Saint Lucia Kings.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Personal lifeEdit

Zinta used to visit her native town Shimla when she was not busy shooting. In 2006, she moved into her own home in Mumbai.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She does not identify with any particular religion. In an interview with The Times of India, she commented, "I believe in good deeds, in karma, I don't believe in going to temples. For me, religion is very personal. It's all about having faithTemplate:Nbs... We have heard and read that all religions are equal. Now I am increasingly believing in this."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She narrowly escaped death twice in late 2004: first after an explosion at a Temptation concert in Colombo, Sri Lanka; and second during the Indian Ocean earthquake.<ref name="facing death"/>

File:Priety Zinta with Gene Goodenough.jpg
Zinta with her husband Gene Goodenough in 2016

Zinta has been the subject of several controversies.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2003, as a witness in the Bharat Shah case, she testified against the Indian mafia. Bharat Shah, the financer of Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, was arrested in 2000 for having connections with Chhota Shakeel, a Mumbai underworld boss.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Unlike several of her colleagues, Zinta repeated in court her earlier statement that she had received extortion threats from the mafia during the shooting of the film.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> After her testimony, she was given witness protection and was forced to stay out of the public eye for two months.<ref name="bubbly image"/> Thirteen other witnesses before her, including celebrities Salman Khan and Shahrukh Khan, were witnesses in the case but later retracted their earlier statements.<ref name="hostile">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Zinta was the only witness who did not become hostile to the prosecution.<ref name="hostile"/> Her actions met with nationwide public resonance and applause.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>Template:Sfn Consequently, she was the first recipient of Godfrey's Mind of Steel Award at the annual Red and White Bravery Awards, given to her for the "courageous act" of standing against the Mumbai Underworld.<ref name="nation applauded">Template:Cite news</ref> On receiving the award, she said, "To be brave is not to be fearless. It is when you fear and you get over it, then you can be called brave. I am human. It is not that I fear nothing. But getting over a fear is a continuous process and I have been successful so far."<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Since 2006, Zinta has been the brand ambassador for the Godfrey Phillips Bravery awards.<ref name="Donating blood"/>

Tabloids have often linked Zinta romantically with other Bollywood stars, but she has strongly denied any such rumours.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2000, Zinta began dating model Marc Robinson. They separated the following year, and according to Zinta remained on good terms.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> Zinta dated the Bombay Dyeing heir, businessman Ness Wadia from February 2005 until May 2009.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Their relationship was often reported on by the media, with frequent speculation about an engagement or a break-up.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> On 13 June 2014, Zinta filed a complaint with the Mumbai police against Ness Wadia alleging he had molested, threatened, and abused her at an IPL match at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on 30 May.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Wadia denied the allegations.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2018, the Bombay High Court quashed this complaint after the issue was amicably settled.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 29 February 2016, Zinta married her American partner Gene Goodenough at a private ceremony in Los Angeles.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Goodenough is Senior Vice-president for Finance at NLine Energy, a US-based hydroelectric power company.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Zinta moved to Los Angeles following the marriage; she visits India on a frequent basis.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2021, she and her husband became parents to twins, a boy and a girl, through surrogacy.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

On 25 February 2025, Zinta faced a major backlash from the Indian National Congress, after the party posted on their X(formerly Twitter) handle about an ₹18 crore loan written off from a co-operative bank and had handed over her social media accounts to the Bharatiya Janata Party.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In response, Zinta retaliated by tweeting "I operate my social media accounts my self and shame on you for promoting FAKE NEWS! No one wrote off anything or any loan for me."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The tweet was subsequently labelled as fake.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The fake news came days after Zinta express frustration about cynicism from the nation stating that "If you appreciate your PM then you are a bhakt(follower) & god forbid, if you are a proud Hindu or Indian then you are an Andh Bhakt (blind follower)".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Media image and artistryEdit

Zinta is known in the Indian media for her straightforward nature and for honestly expressing her opinions in public, be it about her on-screen or off-screen life or her raising a voice against social injustice.<ref name="brave2">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="brave3">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="poised"/> While she does not believe she is "as tough as people portray [her] to be", she asserts having no qualms about speaking her mind, even if faced with surmounting opposition, as long as she stands "by what's right".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> These features were noted during the Bharat Shah case, when she testified against the underworld; following this incident she was often called by journalists "the only man in Bollywood", a label she was unhappy with for its underlying misogynist connotations.<ref name="The only man in Bollywood">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="charities"/> Film actor Amitabh Bachchan, describing her as "frank and painfully honest", lauded her "drive and guts in a world that can be most cruel to a single girl".<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> Author and columnist Shobhaa De, while commending her for lodging a molestation complaint against Ness Wadia in 2014, expressed concern regarding Zinta's repeated quest for justice, believing it could eventually play against her: "India is not terribly kind to strong-willed, outspoken women who are dubbed 'trouble makers' if they dare to raise their voices, especially against men. Zinta is such a woman."<ref name="Shobhaa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

File:Preity Zinta at Ishkq In Paris-Isabelle Adjani event 05.jpg
Zinta in 2012

The media have cited her characteristic dimple as her trademark. At the beginning of her career, the press often described her as having a vivacious personality and a bubbly, outgoing persona, an image she had confessed to disliking.<ref name="bubbly image"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> According to film critic Sukanya Verma, Zinta's energetic nature extends from her real life into her screen appearances and is an integral part of her technique. Discussing Hindi film actresses and their flair for comedy, Verma wrote of Zinta: "What can you say about an actress who giggles non-stop in a tone that is anything but prim and propah? She is carefree. She is animated. She talks non-stop. She laughs all the time. She has a chilled out sense of humour. And a tomboyish streak too. Preity Zinta is all that and more. All this greatly contributes to her style of acting."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Director Tanuja Chandra ascribed Zinta's screen appeal to her lack of acting pretense, commenting, "She doesn't act, she's so real that you just can't look away from her."<ref name="Chandra"/> Reviewing Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001) for Hindustan Times, Vinayak Chakravorty noted that "there is an admirable zest that Preity pumps into every role she does".<ref name=CCCCHT/> Farhan Akhtar, who directed her in two films, believes she is an actress who "can mould herselfTemplate:Sndthe way she speaks, works and her body languageTemplate:Sndand adapt herself to roles", while Vidhu Vinod Chopra (director of the 2000 film Mission Kashmir) credits her with the ability to "make the viewer believe even in the most convoluted situation."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="Champagne"/> In a review of Salaam Namaste, Australian film critic Jake Wilson observed, "While Preity Zinta isn't the subtlest actress, she's quite a comedienneTemplate:Sndfor a Hollywood equivalent to her combination of beauty, high-strung emotion and facial gymnastics you might have to go back to Natalie Wood."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> American critic Derek Elley considers her to be "one of Bollywood's best pure actresses."<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>

Zinta's variety of characters,<ref name="Early life"/> such as Dil Se (1998), Sangharsh (1999), Kya Kehna (2000), Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001), Salaam Namaste (2005) and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006), gained her a reputation for playing roles that go against Indian traditional mores.<ref name="bubbly image"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> These roles were cited by critics as having contributed to a new image for Indian screen women by means of departure from the conventional parts previously played by leading actresses in mainstream Hindi films.<ref name="The only man in Bollywood"/>Template:Sfn Karan Johar describes her as "a new-wave actress" who has the advantage of working at a time when "films portray a woman who knows her mind".<ref name="Champagne"/> The character of Preeti from Dil Se was noted by gender scholar Janell Hobson as one that breaks the stereotypes that Westerners have of South Asian women.Template:Sfn Author Monika Mehta notes the similarity between Zinta's public image as an independent and opinionated woman and her culturally defiant character in Salaam Namaste.Template:Sfn According to Jennifer Thomas, who analysed Zinta's roles for a chapter in the book Once Upon a Time in Bollywood (2007), Zinta "resists patriarchal constraints through her modern lifestyle and the controversial roles she chooses".Template:Sfn

Zinta is one of the best-known celebrities in India; at her career peak she was one of Hindi cinema's most celebrated stars and was acknowledged for having managed a career without any traditional assistance or family relations in the film industry.<ref name="The only man in Bollywood"/><ref name="changing">Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> She featured in Box Office India's top actress listing for seven years and ranked first for two consecutive years (2003–2004).<ref name="top actresses" /> In 2003, Zinta appeared in the number one spot on Rediff.com's "Top Bollywood Female Stars".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She was ranked second for the following three years.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> She has been featured frequently on other Rediff.com lists, including "Bollywood's Most Beautiful Actresses",<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> "Bollywood's Best Dressed Women"<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> and "Women of Many Faces".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> Between 2006 and 2008 Zinta made three consecutive appearances at the Cannes Film Festival. At first she attended the 2006 Film Festival along with filmmaker Karan Johar to represent the Hindi film industry and promote Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna,<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> returning in later years as the brand ambassador of Chopard, the maker of luxury watches and jewellery.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

In September 2006 the UK magazine Eastern Eye ranked her among "Asia's Sexiest Women".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> In 2010, Time magazine selected her as one of the candidates for its list of the world's 100 most influential people. She was the only Indian actress nominated for the poll and eventually did not make it to the final list, ranked at 144.<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref> This was followed, however, by a marked period of decline in her popularity when she restricted her work in films, which was further decreased with the debacle of her self-produced comeback vehicle.<ref name="Shobhaa"/> Film journalists like Khalid Mohamed and Subhash K. Jha have written columns in which they lament her absence from the movies and encourage her to return to acting.<ref name="openletter">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

See alsoEdit

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