While Katrina Kaif, Sunny Leone and Nargis Fakhri are all household names now, most people may not even know that these beautiful actresses aren’t Indian citizens. However, their nationality does not really matter now, because when it comes to entertaining the Indian masses, these ladies are at par with their desi counterparts.
Take a look at some of Bollywood’s most popular imports.
Katrina Kaif
Indians might find it hard to believe that Smitha Patil Memorial Awardee Katrina Kaif was actually born as Katrina Turquotte and that she is a British national. Although Kat’s dad was a British businessman of Kashmiri decent, he has had no influence on her, since her parents divorced when she was very young.
Despite Katrina’s disastrous debut in the Amitabh Bachchan and Padma Lakshmi starrer “Boom”, she has gone on to become one of the most popular and sought-after heroines in India. Now, she speaks Hindi like a pro and is part of some of the highest grossing films in Bollywood.
Katrina who worked in films like “Baar Baar Dekho”, “Fitoor” and “Jagga Jasoos”, was last seen in “Tiger Zinda Hai”.
Sunny Leone
Sunny Leone’s career in Bollywood is definitely unprecedented. Born to Sikh Punjabi parents, Karenjit Kaur Vohra aka Sunny was raised in Canada. She joined the adult film industry and received immense fame, leading to an important appearance in the comedy film “The Virginity Hit” produced by Will Ferrell.
Her foray into the Indian entertainment industry was through TV. She started with red carpet reporting for Video Music Awards. This was followed by her ‘memorable’ participation in “Bigg Boss 5”. Thereafter, she debuted in Bollywood with the 2012 film “Jism 2”. Since then, she has been an important part of many films. She was last seen in item number ‘Laila main laila’ from Shah Rukh Khan’s “Raees”. She is also the host of MTV’s reality show “Splitsvilla”.
Amy Jackson
Having starred in not only Hindi, but also South Indian films, Amy Jackson is proof that ethnicity is no bar when it comes to winning the hearts of Indian moviegoers. This British model and actress was spotted by the makers of Tamil drama film “Madrasapattinam” and it marked the beginning of Amy’s tryst with the entertainment business in India. “Madrasapattinam”, which paired Amy with Arya, was a critical and commercial success.
Amy stepped into Bollywood with her film “Ekk Deewana Tha” and is now a sought-after actress in Bollywood, Tamil and Telugu film industries. She is currently filming for Thalaivar Rajinikanth’s upcoming trilingual project “2.0”, which is pegged to be the most expensive Indian film till date.
Jacqueline Fernandez
The Bahrain-born Sri Lankan beauty is one of the busiest actresses in Bollywood, with at least three movie releases every year. With Sri Lankan, Malaysian and Canadian lineage, Jacqueline is clearly a global superstar, whose rise to stardom began with the winning of Miss Universe, Sri Lanka crown in 2006.
After working on many modelling projects and learning acting under theatre director Barry John, Jacqueline auditioned for the 2009 fantasy film “Aladin” and the rest as they say, is history. She was last seen in “Judwaa 2” opposite Varun Dhawan.
Nargis Fakhri
This American beauty was born to a Pakistani father and a Czech mother in New York. She was a participant in “America’s Next Top Model”. She was a popular model in the US before becoming a Kingfisher Calendar girl, which is what caught the attention of “Rockstar” director Imtiaz Ali.
She was last seen in “Banjo” opposite Riteish Deshmukh and will next be seen opposite Rajkummar Rao in the Indo-American drama film “5 Weddings”.
Elli Avram
Elli Avram’s connection with Bollywood began long before she made her acting debut. In fact, this Swedish Greek actress was a member of the prominent Pardesi Dance Group in Sundeyberg, which performed to Bollywood numbers all over Scandinavia. Although she gained mild stardom in Sweden, after acting in the 2008 crime drama romance film “Förbjuden Frukt”, it is in India, that Elli was actually recognised.
In 2013, Elli debuted in Bollywood with the film “Mickey Virus” opposite Manish Paul. She was also seen in the popular reality show “Bigg Boss” the same year. Elli was recently seen in the Akshay Kumar starrer “Jolly LLB 2” and was part of the widely anticipated “Naam Shabana”, which saw Taapsee Pannu in the leading role.
Lauren Gottlieb
The American dancer had made a mark in the US before moving to India in 2012 for Remo D’Souza‘s “Any Body Can Dance (ABCD)”. The same year as the film’s release, 2013, she also participated in “Jhalak Dikhla Jaa Season 6” and was adjudged the runner-up with choreo-partner Punit Pathak. Since then, Lauren has become one of the most beloved dancers and actors in India.
Lauren has been a part of films like “ABCD 2”, “Welcome to Karachi” and “Detective Byomkesh Bakshy”. In 2016, she was seen in the Punjabi film “Ambarsariya” starring Diljit Dosanjh. She was also seen as a judge in “Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa Reloaded” and has appeared on shows like “Comedy Nights with Kapil”, “Comedy Nights Live” and “Comedy Classes”.
Claudia Ciesla
This Polish-German model and actress’ first ‘entertainment’ stint in India was when she was roped in as the brand ambassador of Lovely Professional University, which also honoured her as the “New promising foreign face in India”. In 2008, she acted in the psychological thriller “Karma”, which won many prestigious international awards. However, it is her presence in “Bigg Boss 3” that made Claudia a household name in the country. Claudia was also a part of “Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout”, in which she became the first runner-up.
Claudia has acted in the Punjabi film “Yaar Pardesi” and was in the third installment of the “Kya Kool Hai Hum” film series. She has also performed many item songs in Bollywood films.
Giselli Monteiro
This Brazilian model who had a successful career at the age of 17 has only acted in Bollywood films. She travelled to countries like Italy, Germany, France, Grecce, Thailand, Singapore and Philippines as a teenager before arriving in Mumbai in 2008. Her first acting role was in the Imtiaz Ali film “Love Aaj Kal”, that also had Saif Ali Khan, Deepika Padukone and Rishi Kapoor in crucial roles. Although she had auditioned for the role of a Caucasian character in the film, she got the more pivotal role of the Punjabi girl Harleen Kaur in flashbacks.
Giselli was also seen in the 2011 film “Always Kabhi Kabhi”, but has not acted since. By 2014 she quit modelling as well, in order to pursue architecture after revealing that she had never intended to be in films and that architecture is her passion.
Bárbara Mori
This Mexican-Uruguayan actress started her career as a fashion model at the age of 14 before going on to become a huge Mexican TV star. Bárbara became a known face to Indians when she starred in the Bollywood film “Kites” opposite Hrithik Roshan.
In “Kites”, Bárbara played the role of a Mexican woman. The chemistry between Hrithik and Bárbara was widely applauded. However, she has not acted in a Bollywood film since.
In 2010 Bárbara Mori appeared in Namrata Singh Gujral’s docu-drama, wherein she spoke about her experiences as a cancer survivor.
Antonia Bernath
This English actress and singer had done a significant amount of work before becoming the female lead in the Bollywood film “Kisna: The Warrior Poet”. She played the role of Catherine, the daughter of a ruthless British collector.
Although Antonia’s role in the film was appreciated, she has not acted in any Indian film since then. She has starred in many British productions, however, and was last seen in the final season of “Downton Abbey”.
Erika Kaar
Polish actress Erika Kaar may be known worldwide for her role in the BBC series “The Passing Bells”, but for Bollywood fans she will always be “Shivaay’s” Olga. In the film, Erika was cast opposite Ajay Devgn.
Since “Shivaay”, which released in 2016, Erika has not had any acting projects.
Rachel Shelley
The English actress and model had a prominent role in the Oscar-nominated Aamir Khan film “Lagaan”, which was also listed No. 55 among the “100 Best Films of World Cinema” by Empire magazine in 2010. In “Lagaan”, she played Elizabeth, sister to the British commanding officer of Champaner cantonment, who imposed exorbitantly high taxes on the local villages. However, the kind-hearted Elizabeth helps the locals stand up to the British forces.
Since “Lagaan”, Rachel has not acted in any Bollywood film, but has had a flourishing career internationally. She played the role of Rumpelstiltskin’s wife in ABC’s “Once Upon a Time”.
Mahira Khan
This Pakistani beauty made her Bollywood debut with “Raees” in 2017, opposite superstar Shah Rukh Khan. Before the release of the film, India had decided to ban all Pakistani actors due to political tensions. Despite the controversies, the film was released in January 2017 and was a commercial success. Mahira became the first Pakistani actress to join “Bollywood’s 100 crore club”.
Prior to her Hindi film industry debut, Mahira Khan has starred in various Pakistani TV shows and films. She started her career as a VJ in 2006, hosting “Most Wanted” on MTV Pakistan. She is considered to be among Pakistan’s most popular and highest-paid actresses.