Vishakha Singh is an

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Peoples South Asia * Indian people, people of Indian nationality, or people who have an Indian ancestor ** Non-resident Indian, a citizen of India who has temporarily emigrated to another country * South Asia ...

actress An actor or actress is a person who portrays a character in a performance. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. The analogous Greek term is (), li ...

, producer and

entrepreneur Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...

who is best known for her role as Neetu Singh, Zafar's girlfriend, in Fukrey Series. She appeared in many South Indian language films before starring in

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" ...

projects with director

Ashutosh Gowariker Ashutosh Gowariker (born 15 February 1964) is an Indian film director, actor, screenwriter and producer who works in Hindi cinema. He is known for directing films "set on a huge canvas while boasting of an opulent treatment". His is particular ...

's 2010 ''

Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey ''Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey'' () is an Indian Hindi-language historical action-adventure film directed by Ashutosh Gowariker and released on 3 December 2010. Starring Abhishek Bachchan, Deepika Padukone and Sikandar Kher, it was based on Manin ...

'', alongside

Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...

and

Deepika Padukone Deepika Padukone ( or ; born 5 January 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. She features in listings of the nation's most p ...

. Her breakthrough role was in the

Tamil Tamil may refer to: * Tamils, an ethnic group native to India and some other parts of Asia ** Sri Lankan Tamils, Tamil people native to Sri Lanka also called ilankai tamils **Tamil Malaysians, Tamil people native to Malaysia * Tamil language, na ...

film ''

Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya ''Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya'' () also known as KLTA, is an Indian 2013 Tamil-language romantic comedy film directed by KS Manikandan. It stars Santhanam, Srinivasan, newcomer Sethu and Vishakha Singh. The film marked Santhanam's venture in ...

'' (2013).

Education

She graduated from

Abu Dhabi Indian School Abu Dhabi Indian School ( ar, مدرسة أبو ظبي الهندية), commonly abbreviated as "ADIS", is a private school offering Indian curriculum education in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. The school is managed by a Board of Governors. ...

(ADIS) and

Delhi Public School Delhi Public School (also known as DPS) is the largest public school institution in India. The classes are from KG I to Class XII (Science, Arts and Commerce). It is affiliated to CBSE. Delhi Public School may refer to: * Delhi Public School Socie ...

. She completed a degree in business studies from

Delhi University Delhi University (DU), formally the University of Delhi, is a collegiate central university located in New Delhi, India. It was founded in 1922 by an Act of the Central Legislative Assembly and is recognized as an Institute of Eminence (IoE) ...

. She did her post graduation in Advertising and Public Relations from the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi (1998-1999 batch).

Career

She started modelling in 2007 and appeared in television and print commercials. She made her feature film debut in 2007 with

Telugu film Telugu cinema, also known as Tollywood, is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Telugu language, widely spoken in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Telugu cinema is based in Film Nagar, ...

''Gnaapakam'', which did not do well. After that, she starred in one Tamil, and two

Kannada Kannada (; ಕನ್ನಡ, ), originally romanised Canarese, is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by the people of Karnataka in southwestern India, with minorities in all neighbouring states. It has around 47 million native s ...

films, , '' House Full'' and ''Antaraatma''. She made her

Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

film debut with ''Hum Se Jahan'', which was never released on DVD and only in theatres, in 2008. However, she got noticed in director Ashutosh Gowarikar's ''

'', for which she received a "Best Breakthrough Performance – Female" nomination from Stardust Awards (2011). She acted in Abhijeet Sengupta's ''Do Aur Do Paanch'', which did not release. In 2012 Vishakha ventured into film production by co-producing '' Peddlers'', a film directed by Vasan Bala. The other producers were

Guneet Monga Guneet Monga (born 21 November 1983) is an Indian film producer, executive producer of an Academy Award-winning short, a 2015 BAFTA nominee (for “The Lunchbox”), and the founder of Sikhya Entertainment a boutique film production house that p ...

and

Anurag Kashyap Anurag Kashyap (born 10 September 1972) is an Indian filmmaker and actor known for his works in Hindi cinema. He is the recipient of several accolades, including four Filmfare Awards. For his contributions to film, the Government of France awa ...

Films. ''Peddlers'' was selected at the critic week at the Cannes Film Festival. She has also co-produced ''

Haraamkhor ''Haraamkhor'' () is a 2015 Indian romantic drama black comedy film directed by Shlok Sharma. It stars Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Shweta Tripathi. Jasleen Royal is the music composer. The film was shot in just 16 days. In April 2017, an FIR was ...

'', directed by Shlok Sharma, with Guneet Monga and AKFPL. The film was set to release in 2015. After three years, she returned to acting in Tamil films. Vishakha's second

Tamil film Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...

'' released on 13 January 2013 and went on to become the first blockbuster of the Tamil film industry in 2013. Back in Bollywood, she signed on three films that released in succession in 2013. Her first two films were

Farhan Akhtar Farhan Akhtar (born 9 January 1974) is an Indian actor, director, screenwriter, playback singer, producer, and television host who works in Hindi films. Born in Mumbai to screenwriters Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, he grew up under the influe ...

and

Ritesh Sidhwani Ritesh Sidhwani (born 1973) is an Indian film producer. He is the co-founder of Excel Entertainment along with Farhan Akhtar. His first film as a producer, ''Dil Chahta Hai'', won the National Award in 2001. Through his vision, Excel Entertain ...

's ''

Fukrey ''Fukrey'' () is a 2013 Indian Hindi-language comedy film, directed by Mrighdeep Singh Lamba, produced by Farhan Akhtar and Ritesh Sidhwani, and starring Pulkit Samrat, Manjot Singh, Varun Sharma, Ali Fazal, Priya Anand, Vishakha Singh, Pa ...

'' and

Vikram Bhatt Vikram Bhatt (born 27 January 1969) is an Indian director, producer, screenwriter and actor. He is best known for directing the ''Raaz'' film series, an Indian horror series produced by Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt and for directing '' Ghula ...

's '' Ankur Arora Murder Case''; both films released on 14 June 2013. Her third film was director Shahant Shah's '' Bhajathe Raho'', which released the next month. She said that ''Fukrey'' changed people's perceptions of her, and that she turned down nine films after ''Fukrey''. Vishakha made her

Malayalam Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry ( Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam wa ...

debut in director

Rajesh Pillai Rajesh Raman Pillai (07 October 1974 – 27 February 2016) was an Indian film director best known for his work in the Malayalam cinema. He is credited with setting a new trend in Malayalam cinema with his thriller, ''Traffic'' (2011). Raj ...

's forthcoming film '' Motorcycle Diaries'', and her next Tamil film is with ''Vaaliba Raja'', with the same team that worked on ''Kanna Laddu Thinna Aasaiya''. She returned to Telugu films with ''Rowdy Fellow'', opposite Nara Rohit as "a girl who looks like an angel but is a devil in disguise". She also acted in ''The Maya Tape'', a horror thriller directed by Nikhil Alag, in which she plays a journalist. She was signed for an important, albeit a cameo, role in

R. Kannan R. Kannan (born Rajmohan on 21 July 1971) is an Indian filmmaker. He made his directorial debut with the successful Tamil film ''Jayamkondaan'' starring Vinay Rai and Bhavana in 2008. Career Kannan started his career assisting director Manoba ...

's ''

Oru Oorla Rendu Raja ''Oru Oorla Rendu Raja'' ( ''Two kings in a town'') is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language comedy film written and directed by R. Kannan and produced by S. Michael Rayappan. The film stars Vimal, Priya Anand and Soori, while Nassar, Anupama Kumar ...

''. She currently works at WazirX as Vice-president, NFT section.

Social activism

Vishakha Singh along with

Gopi Shankar Madurai Gopi Shankar Madurai, born 13 April 1991, is an Indian equal rights and Indigenous rights activist. Shankar was one of the youngest, and the first openly intersex and genderqueer statutory authority and one of the candidates to contest in 2016 ...

launched multiple complaints on behalf of athlete

Santhi Soundarajan Santhi Soundarajan (also spelled ''Shanthi Soundararajan'', ta, சாந்தி சௌந்திரராஜன், born 17 April 1981) is a track and field athlete from Tamil Nadu, India. She is the winner of 12 int ...

National Commission for Scheduled Castes The National Commission for Scheduled Castes is an Indian constitutional body under the jurisdiction of Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India established with a view to provide safeguards against the exploitation of Sc ...

and

National Human Rights Commission of India The National Human Rights Commission of India (abbreviated as NHRC) is a statutory public body constituted on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Ordinance of 28 September 1993. It was given a statutory basis by the Protection ...

also initiated ''Justice For Santhi'' Campaign which was instrumental in fetching her a permanent job at Tamil Nadu Sports Development Authority.

Filmography

Films

As producer

Awards

2011: Nomination for "Best Breakthrough Performance – Female" from the

Stardust Awards The Stardust Awards was an award ceremony for Hindi movies, which was sponsored by '' Stardust'' magazine. Here is a list of the award winners and the films for which they won. The first ceremony was held in 2004 for films released in 2003. The ...

for her role in ''

.''

References

External links

* * *
'Chak De! India' dropout happy playing lead, Daily News & Analysis (India)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Vishakha Living people People from Abu Dhabi Indian expatriates in the United Arab Emirates Actresses from Mumbai Actresses in Malayalam cinema Indian film actresses Actresses in Hindi cinema Actresses in Tamil cinema 21st-century Indian actresses Actresses in Kannada cinema Actresses in Telugu cinema 1986 births