Preeti Nigam is an Indian television actress, known for her performances in Telugu-language serials. She has had a career spanning over two decades, with notable roles in both positive and negative characters. Her acting career began in the 1990s, and she is recognized for her roles in several successful serials such as '' Ruthuragalu'', ''Kasturi'', and ''Chandramukhi''.

Early life and background

Preeti Nigam was born and raised in

Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...

in a

Kayastha Kayastha (or Kayasth) denotes a cluster of disparate Indian communities broadly categorised by the regions of the Indian subcontinent in which they were traditionally locatedthe Chitraguptavanshi Kayasthas of North India, the Chandraseniya Ka ...

family with roots in

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh ( ; UP) is a States and union territories of India, state in North India, northern India. With over 241 million inhabitants, it is the List of states and union territories of India by population, most populated state in In ...

. Her ancestors migrated from Uttar Pradesh to the Nizam's dominions and settled in Hyderabad several years ago. She spent her early years in the Sultan Bazar area and initially did not know Telugu. Coming from a family with a strong background in the arts, Preeti received training in classical dance forms such as

Kathak ''Kathak'' is one of the eight major forms of Classical Indian dance, Indian classical dance. Its origin is attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern India known as ''Kathakar'' ("storyteller"), who communicated stories from the ...

and Kuchipudi. During her school years, she gave her first stage performance at the Birla Mandir.

Career

Despite her interest in acting, Preeti's entry into the industry was met with resistance from her father, who questioned the necessity of acting for girls. However, her mother encouraged her passion. Preeti initially faced challenges due to her lack of proficiency in Telugu. Her acting debut came in 1989 in a dance-based documentary film, where she delivered a small dialogue. Her first notable role was in the

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

serial ''Aaradhana'', where she was initially hired as a choreographer but was later asked to act. Unable to speak Telugu at the time, she played a mute character, relying solely on her expressive eyes.

Career Breakthrough

Preeti initially struggled with Telugu but learned the language to advance her career. She gained recognition for her performance in '' Ruthuragalu'' (1996–1999), a popular serial where she portrayed the character of Haritha. The serial’s title song became immensely popular, and Preeti's portrayal earned her widespread acclaim. She continued to rise to fame with other notable roles in serials like ''Kasturi'', ''Adadhi'', ''Endamavulu'', ''Kavyanjali'', and ''Santhi Nivasam''. Her career further soared when she portrayed negative roles, particularly in ''Chandramukhi''. She has also appeared in serials like ''Swati Chinukulu'', ''America Ammayi'', and ''Sravana Sameeralu'', balancing both positive and negative shades of characters.

Films

In addition to her extensive television career, Preeti has acted in several Telugu and Hindi films. She featured in films such as '' Student No: 1'', ''Sai'', ''Chakali Ailamma'', ''Jai Telangana'', and ''Tripura''. She played supporting roles in several films including the Hindi films '' Welcome to Sajjanpur'' (2008) and '' Well Done Abba'' (2009) before portraying the lead role of the revolutionary '' Chakali Ilamma'' in the film of the same name in 2013.

Personal life

Preeti is married to Nagesh Karra, whom she met during the shooting of ''Ruthuragalu''. They have two children, Adithi Sri and Aryan. Their son Aryan was selected to represent India in the

World Roller Games The World Skate Games (formerly World Roller Games) are an international biennial multi-sport event, comprising all the world roller sport disciplines as regulated by the World Skate international federation. The games involve 11 World Championshi ...

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

(Spain) in 2019.

Filmography

Films

Television

* ''All television shows are in Telugu, unless otherwise noted.''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Nigam, Preeti Actresses in Telugu television Actresses in Telugu cinema Actresses in Hindi cinema Living people Year of birth missing (living people)