Ameesha Patel – Bollywood actress best known for her debut flick, ‘Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai’

Ameesha Patel is a Bollywood actress best known for her debut flick, ‘Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai’ as well as her second Bollywood release, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. Both these movies were huge blockbusters, breaking several collection records, and she was then named as one of the top actresses of new millennium. However her career deteriorated after that, and she has only a few hits to her credit. Humraaz, Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai, Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd, Bhool Bhulaiyaa, Race 2 etc are a few more hit movies, in which she played lead or supporting roles. She is also known for her appearance in movies such as Mangal Pandey: The Rising, Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage, Yeh Hai Jalwa etc, though those movies were not commercial hits. She has also done a few Telugu films and item songs.

A successful model turned actress

Ameesha Patel was born in 1975 into a Gujarati family in Mumbai, with strong political background. She is the granddaughter of Rajni Patel, well-known Congress politician, Union leader and lawyer. However she decided to pursue her career in entertainment field and started her modelling career in the second half of 1990s. She was also featured in TV many commercials in the late 1990s including Almond Drops Hair Oil, before she got her first break to acting. Her younger brother Ashmit Patel has also appeared in a few Bollywood movies, playing lead and supporting roles.

After completing her graduation in Economics from Tufts University, US, she worked as an economic analyst at Khandwala Securities Limited for a while before returning in India. She joined Satyadev Dubey’s theatre group and acted in a few plays. She also started accepting modelling assignments after that.

She marked her screen debut aside Hrithik Roshan through ‘Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai’

Ameesha Patel was offered her first film role by filmmaker Rakesh Roshan, her father’s schoolmate, who wanted to launch his son Hrithik Roshan to Bollywood through his next romantic movie. She was offered the lead role in Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai, which she initially refused. The role was later offered to Karishma Kapoor’s younger sister Kareena Kapoor who was waiting to join Bollywood. However after shooting a few scenes, Kapoor left the project and the role once again came back to Patel, which she accepted.

Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai gave her a magic entry to Bollywood, though her co-star Hrithik Roshan got benefited most. The movie also gave the first superstar to new millennium through Hrithik Roshan, which currently holds the world record of receiving maximum film awards. The movie was the biggest hit of the year. Same year she also marked her south Indian debut through Telugu super hit film, Badri, which gave the title of ‘Powerstar’ to her co-star Pawan Kalyan.

Her second Bollywood movie, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha opposite Sunny Deol too was a major hit breaking several collection records, and was registered as the biggest Bollywood hit of the year. With three big hits back to back, she reached the list of A-grade actresses of Bollywood.

A string of flops following the hat-trick success

She tasted failure for the first time with her fourth release – Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar followed by Kranti. Her next release, Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai was only an average fare, and after the flop of one of the anticipated movies, Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage opposite Hrithik Roshan, she received a lot of criticism from critics and movie-goers.

After the success of Humraaz, her career failed to take off

She bounced back with the thriller, Humraaz, where she was paired with Bobby Deol and Akshaye Khanna, and was also nominated for Filmfare Award for Best Actress for the second time after Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. It was for the first time she played a negative shaded character on screen. She worked with Salman Khan in Yeh Hai Jalwa and with Aamir Khan in Mangal Pandey: The Rising, and both flopped at box office.

Movies like – Parwana, Suno Sasurjee, Zameer: The Fire Within, Elaan (average fare), Mere Jeevan Saathi, Vaada, Teesri Aankh (average hit), Aap Ki Khatir, Ankahee, Humko Tumse Pyaar Hai etc joined the long string of her flop movies, and she started appearing in item songs and also accepted a few more Telugu projects. After a long time, she tasted success through Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd., where she was a part of the ensemble cast. She also played supporting role opposite Akshay Kumar in Bollywood hit Bhool Bhulaiyaa the same year.

Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Race 2 and a few more

She did a glamour role in Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic. She appeared aside Saif Ali Khan in ‘Lazy Lamhe’ song. Though the song in which she was spotted in a bikini, brought her to spotlight once again, it couldn’t revive her career further. Except a memorable supporting role in Race 2, where she shared screen space with Anil Kapoor, all her movies flopped at box office.

Ameesha Patel and her relationships

She was dating film director Vikram Bhatt while they were doing the first film together, Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage in 2002. She worked in his movies such as Elaan and Ankahee. They broke their relationship in 2008, and later she dated businessman Kanav Puri for a brief period. She is currently single. Ameesha also had a bad phase of her life when her parents used her money for a financial crisis of their family business and she sent a legal notice to her father for mismanaging her accounts and assets in 2004. It also hurt the sibling relationship, and they patched up their relationship during Raksha Bandhan in 2009. Indifferences with parents also ended soon.

Ameesha Patel – Some interesting and less-known facts

1. Ameesha Patel is one among the long array of actors who marked their screen debut in the new millennium year. Leading name is Hrithik Roshan, followed by Kareena Kapoor, Abhishek Bachchan, Arjun Rampal, Keerthi Reddy, Uday Chopra, Jugal Hansraj, Jimmy Shergill, Shamita Shetty, Kim Sharma, Preeti Jhangiani, Vasundhara Das etc.

2. Her lead role in her debut flick, Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai was originally shot with Kareena Kapoor, who also marked her screen debut in year 2000. In fact Kareena shot a few scenes for the movie before she quit the project, and one of such scenes was never edited from the movie. Kareena later criticized Ameesha for her looks in the movie, makeup etc. 

3. Her name was coined from the first three letters of her father’s name and the last three letters of her mother’s name. Her younger brother’s name was coined from first three letters of his mother’s name Asha and the last three letters of his father’s name Amit.

4. Her brother Ashmit Patel started his film journey as an assistant director in Bollywood under Vikram Bhatt and Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage starring Ameesha was his first movie as an assistant director.

5. She worked in a single Tamil movie, Pudhiya Geethai opposite Vijay and the movie was a commercial failure.

6. She shared screen space with Aftab Shivdasani in the sweet romantic film, Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai, and they knew each other since childhood days in real life.

7. Among all playback singers, Alka Yagnik’s voice suited her most. Songs of Ameesha’s movies such as Kaho Na Pyar Hai, Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai, Humraaz, Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage, Yeh Hai Jalwa, Gadar etc sung by Yagnik became immensely popular.

8. As a child she was trained in Bharatnatyam.

9. For her higher studies in US, she initially chose Bio-genetic engineering, and after two years she switched to Economics. She is a gold medallist in her studies in Economics.

10. After graduation she started her career as an economic analyst at Khandwala Securities Limited and later turned down an offer from Morgan Stanley. She moved back to India and pursued modelling and theatre.

11. In the 1990s, she appeared in the TV ads of Almond Drops Hair Oil, Bajaj, Fair & Lovely, Cadburys, Fem bleach, Lux soap etc.

12. She performed aside Hrithik Roshan at The Roshans: Hrithik Live in Concert (2001), alongside her first hero, soon after the major success of their debut film together. It was her first world tour, and later she was a performer at many such events.

13. She received Filmfare award for best performance for one of her major hits of her career, Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001).

14. In 2019 a warrant was issued against the actress in a cheating and cheque bounce case. It was related to a shelved project, when she and her business partner Kunal took 2.5 crore loan from a person, and the given cheque bounced. She faced one more cheat case almost at the same time when she took money for attending an event in Ranchi and never showed up.

Ameesha Patel – Top Bollywood Songs featuring the actress

1. Kaho Na Pyar Hai from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
2. Ik Pal Ka Jeena from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
3. Jaaneman Jaaneman from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
4. Pyar Ke Kashti from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
5. Dil Ne Dil Ko Pukara from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
6. Kyon Chalti Hai Pawan from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
7. Chand Sitare from Kaho Na Pyar Hai (2000)
8. Udja Kale Kawan from Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)
9. Musafir Jaane Wale from Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)
10. Main Nikla Gaddi Leke from Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)
11. Hum Juda Ho Gaye from Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)
12. Title track from Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage (2002)
13. Hawaon Ne Yeh Kaha from Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage (2002)
14. Tum To Sagar Jaise from Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage (2002)
15. Dil Ne Kar Liya from Humraaz (2002)
16. Tune Zindagi Mein from Humraaz (2002)
17. Sanam Mere Humraaz from Humraaz (2002)
18. Bardaasht Nahin Kar Sakta from Humraaz (2002)
19. Pyaar Kar from Humraaz (2002)
20. Aankhen Pyari Hein from Yeh Hai Jalwa (2002)
21. O Jaane Jigar from Yeh Hai Jalwa (2002)
22. Dheere Dheere from Yeh Hai Jalwa (2002)
23. Chudi Khankayi Re from Yeh Hai Jalwa (2002)
24. Dil Mein Dard Sa Jaga Hai from Kranti (2002)
25. Mera Dil Tu Wapas Mod De from Kranti (2002)
26. Hayo Raba Hayo Raba from Kranti (2002)
27. Dil Ki Nazar Mein from Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002)
28. Dil Pe Chaane Laga from Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002)
29. O Mahive from Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002)
30. Pehli Pehli Baar Hai from Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002)
31. Meri Tarah Tum Bhi from Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002)
32. Jo Pallu Gira Diya from Parwana (2003)
33. Pyar To Hota Hai from Parwana (2003)
34. Tere Pyar Ne Deewana from Zameer – The Fire Within (2005)
35. Kam Nahin Kisi Se from Zameer – The Fire Within (2005)
36. Vaada Hai Yeh from Vaada (2006)
37. Teri Kurti Sexy from Vaada (2006)
38. Main Ishq Uska from Vaada (2006)
39. Title track of Humko Tumse Pyaar Hai (2006)
40. Tu Hai Kamal from Aap Ki Khatir (2006)
41. I Love You For What You Are from Aap Ki Khatir (2006)
42. Meethi Meethi Batan from Aap Ki Khatir (2006)
43. Sajnaji from Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd (2007)
44. Yeh Lazy Lamhe from Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (2008)
45. Party On My Mind from Race 2 (2013)