Sushmita Sen birthday special: 5 career-defining roles of the former beauty queen

It’s 19th November and actress Sushmita Sen is celebrating her 41st birthday today. Sushmita’s shot to fame came when she was crowned as the Miss Universe in the year 1994. Soon she added another feather in her cap, when this Bengali beauty ventured into showbiz with 1996 release ‘Dastak’. Though the movie tanked at the box office, Sushmita managed to strike a place for herself with sheer confidence and acting prowess. The ravishing diva made the industry go gaga over her vivid style statements, intelligence and panache. It’s been two decades since Sushmita Sen stepped into showbiz and in her career so far, the diva has redefined the Hindi film heroine on the silver screen with several commendable performances. Unfazed by the length of the character in a movie, Sushmita has ensured to essay each role with elan. As the former beauty queen turns a year older today, we bring you 5 of her career defining roles

Chingaari – A 2006 release, ‘Chingaari’ had Sushmita playing a role of a exploited sex-worker in a village. The movie also featured veteran actor Mithun Chakraborty as an antagonist. He played the role of a priest who is seen abusing the innocent villagers with the help of his powers. Interestingly, ‘Chingaari’ was based on Bhupen Hazarika’s novel ‘The Prostitute and Postman’.

Biwi No.1 – After venturing into Bollywood in 1996, Sushmita Sen later appeared in David Dhawan’s ‘Biwi No.1’ in 1999. The actress played the role of a stunning model who is embroiled in an affair with a married man Salman Khan. It was indeed a bold step for Sen to essay such a role at the initial stage of her career. However, the diva defied all the notions about Indian heroines and went on to flaunt her glamorous avatar with panache on the silver screen. Sushmita even won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for the movie.

Sirf Tum – In 1999 once again Sushmita Sen rocked the silver screen with her second remarkable performance with Boney Kapoor’s production venture ‘Sirf Tum’. The diva once again portrayed the other woman role, but this time it was for Sanjay Kapoor. The movie became Sushmita’s first toast to commercial success. ‘Sirf Tum’ was a remake of Ajith Kumar starrer ‘Kadhal Kottai’.

Filhaal: Yet another important film of Sushmita Sen’s career, ‘Filhaal’ revolved around the sensitive issue of surrogacy. Sushmita played a role of a surrogate mother to Tabu in the movie. Despite finding limited commercial success, it managed to earn tremendous critical acclaim.

Aankhen – A successful heist thriller drama, ‘Aankhen’ has Sushmita playing the role of teacher of visually impaired students. The movie saw her hold her own against some stalwarts of the film industry such as Amitabh Bachchan and Paresh Rawal. Directed by Vipul Shah, interestingly, ‘Aankhen’ was an adaptation of Shah's own Gujarati play ‘Andhalo Pato’.