Shreya Dhanwanthary is a popular actress, who works in both Bollywood and Telugu films, apart from web series. In Bollywood, she is best known for playing lead role opposite Emraan Hashmi in Why Cheat India and opposite Dulquer Salman in Chup: Revenge of the Artist. Though both films were not commercially successful, she got recognition. She portrays Zoya in The Family Man series, which is her most popular role up-to-date.
Apart from The Family Man (2019), Shreya has been a part of some of the popular web series of present times – Scam 1992 (2020), Mumbai Diaries 26/11 (2021) and Guns & Gulaabs (2023).
Shreya Dhanwanthary was born into a Telugu family in Hyderabad
Shreya was born on 29 August 1988 in Hyderabad. She was only 2 months old when she shifted to Dubai, along with her Telugu parents, where she grew up. Shreya spent her early years in Dubai, Bahrain, and Qatar before returning to Delhi. She graduated from NIT Warangal in Electronics and Communication Engineering. While doing her third year, Shreya Dhanwanthary participated in Femina Miss India South 2008 and finished as 1st Runner-Up. She was one among the finalists of Miss India 2008.
She always wanted to become an actor and focus her career in the entertainment industry. The following year, she marked her screen debut with 2009 Telugu cult classic, Josh. She made a brief appearance as a student in the film. The following year she made a brief appearance in Telugu film, Sneha Geetham. For the next one decade till 2019, she didn’t get a major break from the industry. She appeared in short films and TV series belonging to English and Bengali, without making a significant impact.
She got a major break from Hindi entertainment industry in 2019
After her Telugu debut, it took nine to ten years for her to get where she truly belongs. She went through a long period of struggle before she found her footing in the entertainment industry. During those long years, she signed some films, but they didn’t take off. Some got shelved too. She faced several financial struggles, stayed hungry and was almost homeless during her struggling years.
She got a break through role of Zoya in the hit series, The Family Man, and her career graph soared to new heights. The same year, she marked her Bollywood debut with Why Cheat India opposite Emraan Hashmi, and she became a known face in Bollywood. Thus, there was a long gap of 10 years.
She bagged a series of roles in web series like Scam 1992, Mumbai Diaries 26/11 and Guns & Gulaabs, and following the success of these series, her career got boosted a lot. Her role as Sucheta Dalal in Scam 1992 was well-praised by critics and viewers. A significant part of her professional life belongs to web series, where she got opportunity to associate with the main stream creators like Hansal Mehta, Nikkhil Advani, and Raj & DK.
Chup: Revenge of the Artist and Looop Lapeta – Shreya’s memorable performances
Shreya Dhanwanthary played lead role opposite Dulquer Salman in highly acclaimed drama thriller, Chup: Revenge of the Artist (2022) directed by R Balki. It’s one of her best roles up-to-date. Through her impressive performance as DQ’s lover, she stole audience’s hearts. But the film was only an average fare at the box office. The same year, she played a supporting role in Looop Lapeta. She was nominated for Best Supporting Actress in a Web Original Film 2022 at Filmfare OTT Awards for this role, though she couldn’t win it.
Shreya Dhanwanthary has been a part of ensemble cast of Bollywood films, Adbhut and The Great Shamsuddin Family. She acted in the ‘The Couple’ segment in 2022 anthology film, Unpaused: Naya Safar. She shared screen space with Priyanshu Painyuli in this segment. Nausikhiye is her upcoming project. She played the female lead in a 2023 short film, “Next, Please”, which received a lot of appreciation.
Shreya Dhanwanthary – Some interesting and less-known facts
1. She always loved writing and has published a book called Fade to White. In 2020, she scripted and directed a TV series, A Viral Wedding. She was also its producer and lead actress.
2. She describes her Telugu film debut a “happy accident”.
3. It took nearly 10 years, after her brief stint in Telugu cinema, to gain a foot in the entertainment industry. It was really a long wait.
4. While Shreya was working on her film, Nausikhiye, along with Bhagyashree’s son, Abhimanyu Dassani, there were dating rumours.
5. Shreya Dhanwanthary was ranked 43 on The Times of India’s “Most Desirable Women List” in 2020.
6. She revealed in an interview that she was not being able to afford food for three days for an audition. When a lady, who also appeared in that audition, offered her Rs. 5 Dairy Milk, it became her first meal in the last three days. And then she quit modelling.
Hit songs filmed on Shreya Dhanwanthary
Though her debut Bollywood film, Why Cheat India, was a flop, the songs – Dil Mein Ho Tum and Daaru Wargi became hits. Guru Dutt’s classic hit song, Jaane Kya Tune Kahi was reused in Chup: Revenge of the Artist, and Shreya Dhanwanthary was featured in it. She was featured in the music video of Kaam Bhaari song of RUBAAB.
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