Deepika Padukone's birthday special: 11 facts that you didn't know about the actress

First Published Jan 5, 2021, 9:01 AM IST

Today, Deepika Padukone is celebrating her 35th birthday and here are a few facts that you didn't know about your Shantipriya, read on.

Deepika Padukone is one of the most versatile actresses and fashion icons in Bollywood. She has proven her worth over these years, and today we see her as a fearless actress whose contribution to the Indian cinema will always be significant.

The actress may come from a South Indian background, but she was born in Copenhagen, Denmark. They shifted to Bangalore, India when she was 11 years old.

She is a national-level badminton player as she started her career as a sportsperson like her father. But, what you don't know is that she is a state-level baseball player.

When she left badminton to follow an acting career, she started with modelling. Do you know which advertisement gave her Bollywood's ticket? The Liril ad, after that, she also was the cover girl of Kingfisher's ad.

There was a time when we used to watch Himesh Reshmiyan's audio-videos. She was the Naam Hai Tera Tera girl, and that made Farah Khan choose for her movie.

Farah Khan approached DP with the leading role for Happy New Year, but as it didn't hit the floors, they started with Om Shanti Om.

She has taken both acting and dancing training from Anupam Kher's institution and Shiamak Davar's school, respectively. In recent days, it is very rare to find actresses who know acting and dancing both.

She was supposed to debut with Saawariya opposite Ranbir Kapoor, but Sanjay Leela Bhansali took Sonam Kapoor in place of Deepika and debuted with Om Shanti Om. Both of the films were released on the same day, and we all know which hit the box office.

During Chandni Chowk to China, Deepika didn't take any doubles for her stunts. She learnt Jujutsu, a martial art form for the film, even though it didn't work out in box office.

Did you know Deepika was the first choice of the directors for the films like Dhoom 3 and Jab Tak Hai Jan? But somehow it didn't work out with the actress and the role passed on to others.