There are a number of beautiful Indian actresses in Hollywood. These ladies are quite famous worldwide. Let’s know about these Indian women in the American film industry.
Indian actresses in Hollywood and English-language movies are quite popular worldwide. Some have been quite global stars and are ruling millions of hearts with their acting skills, beauty, and hotness. Thanks to globalization, more and more Indian actresses are going to the United States to pursue a career in film. Several Bollywood beauties have also been successful in American movies. From Aishwarya Rai to Deepika Padukone and from Shabana Azmi to Tabu, many Indian actresses have got opportunities to work in Hollywood.
However, in this blog, we will talk about those Indian actresses in Hollywood who continuously work in the American film industry. Since India is a movie-fanatic country, with thousands of movies released every year in more than 20 languages, hundreds of Indian-origin girls aspire to work in Hollywood. The Indian diaspora, the biggest in the world, has played a vital role in promoting American films. In the last couple of decades, especially with the advent of OTT platforms, Indian actresses in Hollywood have been getting more chances, thanks to the fact that millions of Indians watch many American movies.
10 Hottest Indian Actresses in Hollywood
- Padma Lakshmi
- Indira Varma
- Priyanka Chopra
- Archie Panjabi
- Frieda Pinto
- Sheetal Sheth
- Naomi Scott
- Nazneen Contractor
- Parminder Nagra
- Melanie Chandra
10 Most Beautiful Indian Actresses in Hollywood
1. Padma Lakshmi
- Full Name: Padma Parvati Lakhsmi
- Date of Birth: September 1, 1970
- Birth Place: Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
- Height: 1.75 m
One of the most popular Indian actresses in Hollywood, Padma Lakshmi, started her career as a model at age 21 while studying in Madrid, Spain. She was featured in the American documentary film Unzipped (1995). She has been hosting the cooking competition program Top Chef on Bravo since 2006. The show’s sixth season won Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Reality-Competition Program in 2010. Her film career began with the Italian movie The Son of Sandokan (1998). She also featured in Glitter (2001) and the Indian film The Mistress of Spices (2005).
Along with being a successful actor and model, Padma is an acclaimed author of several books, including Easy Exotic (1999), Love, Loss and What We Ate (2016), and Tomatoes for Neela (2021). She was married to Indian novelist Salman Rushdie.
Also Read: Top 10 Best Hollywood Movies of All Time
2. Indira Varma
- Full Name: Indira Anne Varma
- Date of Birth: September 27, 1973
- Birth Place: Bath, Somerset, United Kingdom
- Height: 1.71 m
Indira Varma has played some of the most memorable characters, including Ellaria Sand in Game of Thrones, Rattanbai Jinna in Jinnah (1998), Niobe Vorena in the historical drama series Rome, and Ilsa Pucci in the American drama series Human Target. Born to an Indian father and a Swiss mother, she is one of the most famous Indian-origin actresses in Hollywood and the English film industry.
Indira first came to notice with her scintillating role in the Indian historical erotic romantic film Kama Sutra: A Tale of Love (1996), which was also her debut project. The beautiful actress has also been successful as a narrator and is an alumnus of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art.
3. Priyanka Chopra
- Full Name: Priyanka Chopra Jonas
- Date of Birth: July 18, 1982
- Birth Place: Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, India
- Height: 1.65 m
Despite being the most recent entrant to the list, Priyanka Chopra has been the most prominent Indian actress in Hollywood. She won the Miss World title in 2000 and started her career in the Indian film industry with the Tamil film Thamizhan in 2002. She later made her name in Bollywood with several superhits like Fashion (2008), Barfi! (2012), and Mary Kom (2014).
Her ticket to Hollywood was booked with the lead role of Alex Parrish in the American thriller series Quantico (2015). She has also acted in several English-language films, including A Kid Like Jack (2018) and The Matrix Resurrections (2021). One of the richest Hollywood actresses, Priyanka Chopra is married to American singer and actor Nick Jonas.
4. Archie Panjabi
- Full Name: Archana Panjabi
- Date of Birth: May 31, 1972
- Birth Place: Edgware, London England
- Height: 1.6 m
One of the most beautiful Indian actresses in Hollywood and the English film industry, Archi Panjabi, has been quite popular in both the United Kingdom and the United States. Some of her popular roles include Maya Roy in Life on Mars, Nas Kamal in NBC crime drama Blindspot, Meenah Khan in East Is East (1999), and Kalinda Sharma in CBS Legal drama The Good Wife, for which she got a Primetime Emmy Award in 2010 and an NAACP Image Award in 2011 & 2012.
Her role in the 2005 drama Yasmin earned her Prix Ciné Femme – Best Actress Award in 2005. Archie currently resides in Los Angeles with her husband, Rajesh Nihalani, and two children.
5. Freida Pinto
- Full Name: Freida Selena Pinto
- Date of Birth: October 18, 1984
- Birth Place: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
- Height: 1.65 m
Freida Pinto is among the most beautiful and famous Indian actresses in Hollywood. She has achieved success in a very short span of time, having started her career with the Academy Award-winning Indian film Slumdog Millionaire (2008). Born to Mangalorean Catholic parents, Pinto acted in several commercial and critical successes, including Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011), Trishna (2011), and Desert Dancer (2013).
Pinto was inspired by Indian actress and Miss Universe Sushmita Sen and has stated to have been rejected in several auditions for Bollywood and Hollywood productions. She was included in the “50 Most Beautiful Women in Film” by Los Angeles Times Magazine in 2011, being the only Indian celebrity on the list.
6. Sheetal Sheth
- Full Name: Sheetal Sheth
- Date of Birth: June 24, 1976
- Birth Place: Trenton, New Jersey, United States
- Height: 1.63 m
Sheetal Sheth, counted among the gorgeous Indian actresses in Hollywood, is quite a popular name in American movies. She has been successful as an actress, with a number of astonishing performances in several films, such as Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World (2005), The World Unseen (2008), and I Can’t Think Straight (2008). The first Indian American to appear in Maxim Magzine, Sheetal is known for her beautiful smile and sizzling look.
Apart from being an actor, Sheth is a writer and participates in several humanitarian causes. She was selected to be a part of AmeriCorps, launched by former US president Bill Clinton. In 2019, she revealed that she was diagnosed with breast cancer in a Twitter post.
7. Naomi Scott
- Full Name: Naomi Scott
- Date of Birth: May 6, 1993
- Birth Place: Hounslow, London, England
- Height: 1.63 m
Followers remember Naomi Scott as the ever-smiling charming face in English films. Her mother is of Indian Gujarati descent and migrated from Uganda to the UK. One of the most popular Indian-origin actresses in Hollywood, Naomi became a household name through her performances in the teen musical drama Lemonade Mouth (2011) and the science fiction series Terra Nova. She was selected as the “Stars of Tomorrow” by Screen International in 2015.
Her role as Princess Jasmine in Aladin (2019) and Kimberly Hart in Power Rangers (2017) earned her wider recognition and several award nominations. Scott is also a popular singer and has appeared in several singles. She is married to English professional footballer Jordan Spence.
8. Nazneen Contractor
- Full Name: Nazneen Contractor
- Date of Birth: August 26, 1982
- Birth Place: Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
- Height: 1.64
Nazneen Contractor is regarded among the hottest Indian actresses in Hollywood. Born to Parsi parents, she holds a Canadian passport and is quite famous in America. She started her career as a television actress with Starhunter in 2000. She went on to act in some very popular TV shows, including The Border, Stretch Armstrong, the Flex Fighter, and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.
Nazneen also has several films under her belt, including Star Trek Into Darkness (2013), Roman J. Israel, Esq. (2017), and Spiral (2021). The beautiful movie star is married to Canadian actor Carlo Rota and has two children: a son and a daughter. Her fans rate her among the most beautiful women in the world.
9. Sakina Jaffrey
- Full Name: Sakina Jaffrey
- Date of Birth: February 14, 1962
- Birth Place: New York City, United States
- Height: 1.74 m
Sakina Jaffrey is probably the most prominent name in the list of Indian-origin actresses in Hollywood. She comes from a very affluent movie family. Her father, Saeed Jaffrey, was a notable Bollywood actor, and her mother, Madhur Jaffrey, is an actress and travel writer. One of the most popular Muslim actresses in the world, Sakina has acted in several hits, including the Netflix series House of Cards (as Linda Vasquez), Timeless (starring role), and the 2017 comedy-drama film The Meyerowitz Stories (as Malini).
Sakina has also acted in several Bollywood films with her father. That’s why she is quite popular in the country of her origin. Currently, she lives in NYC with her husband, Francis Wilkinson, and their two children, Cassius and Jamila.
10. Melanie Chandra
- Full Name: Melanie Chandra (nee Kannokada)
- Date of Birth: February 28, 1986
- Birth Place: Park Ridge, Illinois, United States
- Height: 1.68 m
A famous model and actress, Melanie Chandra, co-founded Hospital for Hope, a non-profit organization providing healthcare services in India’s villages. A trained pianist and a 2nd-degree black belt in Shotokan Karate, Chandra is one of the most beautiful Indian actresses in Hollywood. She has acted in various films and series, establishing herself as a leading lady in English films. Her first assignment was Rules of Engagement in 2011.
Melanie’s first major role came in 2013 with Writer’s Block as Vandana, followed by the American medical drama Code Black (as Malaya Pineda). Many praised her role as Ella in the American comedy film Distancing Socially (2021).
We hope you liked the list of the most beautiful and hottest Hollywood actresses of Indian origin. These are our top 10. If you think we have missed some names, you can suggest a few names of Indian actresses in Hollywood on our social media handles; we will try to include them later.
Also Read: Top 10 Best Hollywood Movies 2022
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