Pooja Hegde facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Pooja Hegde
Hegde in 2022
Born	(1990-10-13) 13 October 1990 (age 34) Bombay, Maharashtra, India (present-day Mumbai)
Alma mater	M. M. K. College (B. Com)
Occupation	Actress
Years active	2012–present

Pooja Hegde (/puːdʒɑː hɛɡdeɪ/ born 13 October 1990) is an Indian actress who appears in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. She was the second runner-up at the 2010 Miss Universe India pageant. She made her acting debut with the Tamil film Mugamoodi (2012). She had her first Telugu release in Oka Laila Kosam (2014) and established herself as one of the leading actresses in Telugu cinema. Hegde is a recipient of four SIIMA Awards.

Hegde won the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu for her performance in Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020) and Most Eligible Bachelor (2021). She was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu for Oka Laila Kosam, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo and Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018). Her other commercially successful films include Duvvada Jagannadham (2017), Maharshi (2019), Gaddalakonda Ganesh (2019) and Housefull 4 (2019). This was followed by a career setback as the 2022 films Radhe Shyam, Beast, Acharya and Cirkus, and the 2023 film Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, were all poorly received.

Early life and work

Pooja Hegde was born on 13 October 1990 and brought up in Mumbai, Maharashtra in a Tulu-speaking Bunt family. Her parents are Manjunath Hegde and Latha Hegde. They are originally from Udupi, Karnataka. She also has an elder brother Rishabh Hegde, who is an orthopaedic surgeon. Besides Tulu, she is fluent in English, Hindi and Marathi. She later learnt Telugu following a career in her respective cinema. She did her schooling in Maneckji Cooper Education Trust School, Mumbai. She went to M. M. K. College, where she regularly participated in dance and fashion shows, graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce degree.

Hegde competed in the Miss India 2009 competition, but was eliminated in an early round despite winning the Miss India Talented 2009 honour. She re-applied the following year and was the second runner-up in the Miss Universe India 2010 competition.

Career

Early work (2012–2017)

After rejecting several films, post winning Miss India, Hegde made her acting debut in Mysskin's Tamil superhero film Mugamoodi (2012) opposite Jiiva, portraying the female lead character of Shakthi, a fun-loving girl who inspires the male lead to change his outlook on society. She was selected after Mysskin had seen still photographs from her pageant success, and Hegde helped practice Tamil dialogue for the film by writing and memorising words in English, adding that the similarity between Tamil and her native tongue Tulu was also useful. Prior to release, the film garnered high expectations as a result of the novel theme of a superhero in Tamil films and the film took a grand opening at the box office in August 2012. In a positive review for the film, a critic from The Times of India stated that "Pooja Hegde though has little to do and comes across as just another pretty face." Pavithra Srinivasan of Rediff.com felt that Hegde's role was limited from an acting viewpoint. She earned nominations for the SIIMA Award for Best Female Debut – Tamil and Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South.

Hegde in 2017

In 2014, Hegde made her Telugu film debut with Oka Laila Kosam, opposite Naga Chaitanya. The success of the production house and director Vijay Konda's previous ventures prompted her to sign the project. In preparation, she took Telugu lessons to help her portray the lead female role. Her performance received acclaim, for portraying Nandana, the character who captures the hero’s heart. Suresh Kavirayani from Deccan Chronicle praised the film and said it was a perfect launching pad for her and she gave a "impressive" performance in it. Rajitha S from The New Indian Express opined she "done justice" for the role and had "accurate lip syncing". She was nominated with the SIIMA Award for Best Female Debut – Telugu and received her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu nomination. The film too was success at box office. Chandra Mouli of Siasat felt Hegde gained fame with this film.

Her second Telugu film, Mukunda, was a romantic-action tale, set in the backdrop of a village, released in late 2014. She was starred with Varun Tej in the film, directed by Srikanth Addala. Her portrayal of a simple, innocent village girl was highly appreciated and fetched her nomination for Santosham Best Actress Award. Hegde has said that the song "Gopikamma" marked a major breakthrough in her career.

In July 2014, Hegde agreed terms to make her Bollywood debut opposite Hrithik Roshan in Ashutosh Gowariker's period film Mohenjo Daro, set against the backdrop of the Indus Valley civilisation. She was selected after Gowariker's wife Sunita Gowariker had spotted her in an advertisement and called her to audition, which she successfully completed. As a result of her commitment to the film, she revealed that she would take a break from appearing in regional Indian movies until her Hindi film's release and rejected an opportunity to work in a film directed by Mani Ratnam. Mohenjo Daro released in 2016. On her performance, Lisa Tsering of The Hollywood Reporter wrote she "brings a forgettable blandness to her sparsely sketched role." Writing for IndiaTimes, Shubha Shetty Saha wrote, "Pooja Hegde is pretty and makes quite a confident debut." Though the film underperformed commercially, it was Hegde's first ₹100 crore (US$17 million) grosser film. The film proved a breakthrough for her, and she received a nomination for Stardust Award for Superstar of Tomorrow – Female.

In 2017, she appeared in Telugu-language vigilante action comedy film Duvvada Jagannadham alongside Allu Arjun. The film opened to positive reviews from the critics. Hegde described her role as an "outgoing" and "modern" girl, unlike her previous Telugu films (which she considered traditional) and took a lot of effort to portray the role. Writing for The Indian Express, Manoj Kumar R found that she "has convincingly done the given job that is to look stunning in every frame of the film." The film was successful in box office grossing over ₹150 crore and became one of the highest-grossing Telugu films of 2017. She won Entertainer Of The Year (Female) award and Favourite Heroine of the Year award at Zee Telugu Golden Awards, and Zee Telugu Apsara Award for Rising Star of the Year.

Commercial success and fluctuations (2018–present)

In 2018, Hegde featured in three Telugu films. The first is a special appearance in the song "Jigelu Rani" for the period action Rangasthalam. The song was trending in the YouTube and she was praised for her performance. A critic from The Times of India wrote, "through alluring dance-moves in "Jigelu Rani" item number, Pooja has become a hot favourite among the masses in no time". Femina noted that Hegde's act in the song became the "talk of the town". Her next film was Saakshyam alongside Bellamkonda Sreenivas, in which she portraited a middle class Brahmin girl, who was spiritual leader. On her performance, Murali Krishna C H of The New Indian Express found that she "gets more screen time in this film compared to her last outing DJ and she does a good job". While, Vyas of The Hans India opined that she "has once again grabbed the attention with her performance and glamour show".

She then played the titular character opposite N. T. Rama Rao Jr. in the action-drama Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava directed by Trivikram Srinivas. She felt that the role allowed her to explore a new side of dubbing for herself and felt it was an amazing opportunity. Haricharan Pudipeddi of News18 opined that she gets a "meaty part" and she deserves "praise" for it. Writing for India Today, Janani K found "she has done a commendable job" in it. Her performance in the film garnered wide appreciation, and won Sakshi Excellence Award for Most Popular Actress of the Year and received a nomination for Best Actress – Telugu at 66th Filmfare Awards South. The film received positive response and was a blockbuster.

In 2019 too, starred in three films namely Maharshi, Gaddalakonda Ganesh and Housefull 4. Maharshi is a Telugu film directed by Vamsi Paidipally co-starring with Mahesh Babu. Although the film received mixed reviews, her role as Pooja, a traditional Indian girl with modern thoughts, was appreciated by audiences and critics alike. Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India felt that she delivers a "honest performance" in the film. While Suresh Kavirayani of Deccan Chronicle opined that she "appears mostly in the first half, but she has done a commendable job". The film was awarded the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at the 68th National Film Awards. It grossed over ₹200 crore (US$34 million) worldwide and became the third highest grossing Telugu film of 2019 and one of the highest-grossing Telugu films. She then reunited with Harish Shankar and Varun Tej in Gaddalakonda Ganesh, a remake of the 2014 Tamil-language film Jigarthanda, featuring Varun Tej and Atharvaa along with her. Hegde felt that she was "excited to play a super special character in this film". Praising her performance, Firstpost's Hemanth Kumar wrote that she "fits into her character quite well, and praised her chemistry with Tej. A The Hans India critic felt she had different role compared to commercial and glamorous roles, and has "delivered her best". The film received positive reviews and was success at box office. The Times of India commented that the major attraction of the film was the short-yet-impactful role of Hegde and her jaw-dropping presence in the yesteryear superhit number "Elluvochi Godaramma". Hegde returned to Bollywood after a gap of three years with Sajid Nadiadwala's comedy film Housefull 4, the fourth instalment of the Housefull franchise. Directed by Farhad Samji, the film featured her as Rajkumari Mala and Pooja (reincarnated). Despite poor reviews, Housefull 4 was one of the |highest grossers of the year, earning ₹296 crore (US$50 million).

Hegde in 2022

Her 2020 Telugu-language action drama film Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo, alongside Allu Arjun and directed by Trivikram marks their collaboration with both Arjun and Trivikram, for the second time, after DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham (2017) and Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018). On her performance, a The Times of India critic wrote, "Pooja Hegde manages to bring in spunk into a character that is nothing more than a manic pixie dream girl, but she sure is a delight to watch on-screen." The film became third highest-grossing Telugu films of all time, grossing over ₹280 crore. Her performance fetched her several awards, including the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu. Hegde's dance performance in the song "Butta Bomma" received wide response.

In 2021, Hegde starred in Most Eligible Bachelor, directed by Bommarillu Bhaskar opposite Akhil Akkineni in which she played the role of a stand-up comedian. Her performance in the film received critical acclaim and won her the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu. In 2022, Hegde starred in the multilingual period romance film Radhe Shyam with Prabhas directed by Radha Krishna Kumar. Hegde's performance received positive reviews. The film's song "Aashiqui Aa Gayi" also gained more popularity among audiences with Hegde's grace and style being appreciated. Her second film in the same year was Tamil film Beast directed by Nelson, alongside Vijay. Released on 13 April, the film marked her return to Tamil cinema after a gap of 9 years. On her performance, Divya Nair of Rediff.com wrote, "Pooja Hegde looks pretty and does a decent job". Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute opined "Pooja is gorgeous in 'Arabic Kuthu'". Hegde's #ArabicKuthuChallenge went viral in social media, and many recreated her signature step. The film has worldwide collections of over ₹300 crore. Her next brief appearance was in the Koratala Siva-directed film Acharya alongside Chiranjeevi and Ram Charan. These three films were commercial failures. She performed her second dance number in the film, F3 alongside Venkatesh and Varun Tej in the party song "Life Ante Itta Vundaala". Her last release in 2022 was Hindi film Cirkus directed by Rohit Shetty where she played one of the female leads opposite Ranveer Singh. The film was a commercial failure.

In 2023, she starred opposite Salman Khan in Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, directed by Farhad Samji. The film was released coinciding with the Eid festival. Ronak Kotecha of The Times of India, wrote, "Pooja Hegde has a meaty role, which she pulls off confidently, but could have dialed down over-the-top filmy antics." The film also underperformed commercially.

Hegde will next star opposite Shahid Kapoor in Deva, a Hindi action thriller film from filmmaker Rosshan Andrews. She will star in Suriya 44, directed by Karthik Subbaraj and reunite with Vijay in Thalapathy 69 in their second collaboration after Beast.

Filmography

Key

Denotes films that have not yet been released

Year	Title	Role(s)	Language(s)	Notes	Ref.
2012	Mugamoodi	Shakthi	Tamil
2014	Oka Laila Kosam	Nandana	Telugu
	Mukunda	Gopika	Telugu
2016	Mohenjo Daro	Chaani	Hindi
2017	DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham	Pooja	Telugu
2018	Rangasthalam	Jigelu Rani	Telugu	Special appearance in song "Jigelu Rani"
	Saakshyam	Soundarya Lahari	Telugu
	Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava	Aravinda	Telugu
2019	Maharshi	Pooja Mahalakshmi	Telugu
	Gaddalakonda Ganesh	Sridevi	Telugu
	Housefull 4	Rajkumari Mala/Pooja Thakral	Hindi
2020	Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo	Amulya	Telugu
2021	Most Eligible Bachelor	Vibha	Telugu
2022	Radhe Shyam	Dr. Prerana Chakravarthy	Telugu Hindi	Bilingual
	Beast	Preethi	Tamil
	Acharya	Neelambari	Telugu
	F3: Fun and Frustration	Herself	Telugu	Special appearance in song "Life Ante Itta Vundaala"
	Cirkus	Mala	Hindi
2023	Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan	Bhagyalaxmi Gundamaneni	Hindi
2025	Deva	TBA	Hindi	Post-production
	Suriya 44	TBA	Tamil	Filming
	Thalapathy 69	TBA	Tamil	Filming

Accolades

See also

In Spanish: Pooja Hegde para niños