Sai Dhanshika (born 20 November 1989) is an Indian

actress An actor (masculine/gender-neutral), or actress (feminine), is a person who portrays a character in a production. The actor performs "in the flesh" in the traditional medium of the theatre or in modern media such as film, radio, and television. ...

who predominantly appears in

Tamil cinema Tamil cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the names Kodambakkam, a Ch ...

, alongside roles in

Kannada Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...

and

Telugu Telugu may refer to: * Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of South India ** Telugu literature, is the body of works written in the Telugu language. * Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India * Telugu script, used to write the Tel ...

films A film, also known as a movie or motion picture, is a work of Visual arts, visual art that simulates experiences and otherwise communicates ideas, stories, perceptions, emotions, or atmosphere through the use of moving images that are gen ...

. She made her acting debut with the Tamil film ''Thirudi'' (2006) and gained recognition for her performances in ''Peranmai'' (2009) and ''Aravaan'' (2012). Her portrayal of Vanapechi in the

period drama A historical drama (also period drama, period piece or just period) is a dramatic work set in the past, usually used in the context of film and television, which presents history, historical events and characters with varying degrees of fiction s ...

''Paradesi'' (2013) earned her the

Filmfare Award South The Filmfare Awards South are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Telugu cinema, Tamil cinema, Malayalam cinema and Kannada cinema. They are presented by ''Filmfare'' magazine of The Times Group. When it was intr ...

for Best Supporting Actress, and she won the same award for her role as Yogi in the Rajinikanth-starrer ''Kabali'' (2016).

Career

She starred in several films including ''

Peranmai ''Peranmai'' () is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language action adventure film directed by S. P. Jananathan and produced by Ayngaran International. It stars Ravi Mohan (credited as Jayam Ravi) and Roland Kickinger, with Dhansika, Saranya Nag, Varsh ...

'' (2009), ''

Maanja Velu ''Maanja Velu'' is a 2010 Indian Tamil-language masala film directed by A. Venkatesh. It stars Arun Vijay, Karthik, Prabhu (actor), Prabhu and Sai Dhanshika, Dhansika, with Vijayakumar (Tamil actor), Vijayakumar and Riyaz Khan playing supporti ...

'' (2010) and '' Nil Gavani Sellathey'' (2010). Regarding her role in ''Nil Gavani Sellathey'', a reviewer stated that "Among the relatively fresh cast, only Dhansika (Maanja Velu, Peraanmai) makes an impression". She starred as the heroine in ''

Aravaan ''Aravaan'' () is a 2012 Indian Tamil language epic historical film directed by Vasanthabalan, based on S. Venkatesan's novel ''Kaaval Kottam''. It stars Aadhi, Dhansika, Archana Kavi and Pasupathy. Kabir Bedi has a prominent role and Bhara ...

'' (2012) and '' Paradesi''. She garnered acclaim for her performance in the latter with a critic noting that "Dhansikaa is as good as ever". Her next film ''

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'' released to negative reviews. '' Thiranthidu Seese'' (2015) released to positive reviews with a critic stating that "A ravishing Dhanshika plays Charmi with elan". She also garnered recognition for her portrayal of

Rajinikanth Shivaji Rao Gaikwad (born 12 December 1950), known professionally as Rajinikanth, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. In a career spanning over five decades, he has done 170 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, ...

's daughter in ''

Kabali ''Kabali'' is a 2016 Indian Tamil-language action drama film directed by Pa. Ranjith and produced by Kalaipuli S. Thanu under V Creations. The film stars Rajinikanth, Winston Chao, Radhika Apte, Sai Dhanshika, Kishore, Dinesh Ravi, Kalaiyar ...

'' (2016) with a critic noting that "Watching Yogi (Dhansikaa) is a delight, given her stylish makeover and ease in fight sequence". For her role in the film, she sported a short hair cut. Her next film '' Enga Amma Rani'' (2017), which was set in Malaysia, released to positive reviews with a critic stating that "Sai Dhanshika is pretty much the highlight here: tough, determined, and also vulnerable to grief when the situation demands". Her performance was praised in her subsequent films ''

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'' and ''

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''. ''

Vizhithiru ''Vizhithiru'' () is a 2017 Indian Tamil-language action thriller film written and directed by Meera Kathiravan, who debuted with ''Aval Peyar Thamizharasi''. The film which began production in 2012 after numerous delays released in 2017. The fil ...

'', '' Kaathadi'', and '' Kaalakkoothu'' released to negative reviews. Her Kannada debut '' Udgharsha'' (2019) released to positive reviews. Her next film ''

Iruttu ''Iruttu'' () is a 2019 Indian supernatural horror thriller film written and directed by V. Z. Durai. It stars Sundar C, Sakshi Choudhary and Dhansika in the lead roles and Vimala Raman, VTV Ganesh, Yogi Babu, and Manasvi Kottachi in s ...

'' released to mixed and Positive reviews. She was cast in ''

Laabam ''Laabam'' () is a 2021 Indian Tamil-language action drama film written and directed by S. P. Jananathan. It stars Vijay Sethupathi and Jagapathi Babu, with Shruti Haasan, Dhansika, and Kalaiyarasan in pivotal roles. Ramji was hired as a ci ...

'' in a negative role. She has also been cast in ''Yogi Da''. The multilingual films ''

Kitna Kitna is a village in Kirkovo Municipality, Kardzhali Province, southern Bulgaria Bulgaria, officially the Republic of Bulgaria, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern portion of the Balkans directly south of th ...

'' and ''Vaalujada'' got stuck in production.

Personal Life

In May 2025, Sai Dhanshika openly announced her relationship with actor

Vishal Vishal may refer to: People * Vishal (name), a common Indian given name * King Vishal, emperor of the Mahabharata era who founded the ancient city of Vishalapura * Vishal (actor) (born 1977), Indian film actor, producer and anti-piracy activi ...

during the press--meet of the film ''Yogi Da'' and announced that the pair will officially get married on 29 August 2025 on the occasion of Vishal's 48th birthday.

Filmography

Television

Short films

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Dhansika Actresses from Tamil Nadu Indian film actresses Living people Actresses in Tamil cinema 21st-century Indian actresses Filmfare Awards South winners Actresses in Malayalam cinema Actresses in Kannada cinema Actresses in Telugu cinema Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people)