The film industry is saturated with new faces that come from faraway areas with big hopes of making it big in Bollywood. But, in reality, an actor’s career graph is non-linear and utterly unpredictable. There have been a few one-hit wonders, while others have achieved success after years of struggle. So, in such a volatile industry, keeping your choices open is a wonderful idea. We’ve compiled a list of celebrities who left their performing careers to explore other opportunities. How many were you aware of?
Being the daughter of Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia, Twinkle was *meant* to join Bollywood at some point. She made her acting debut in 1995 with the movie Barsaat, and went on to act in a bunch of films including Badshaah, Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan, and Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega. However, owing to the lacklustre success of her career, she quit acting after she got married to Akshay Kumar in 2001. Now popularly known as Mrs Funnybones, she has a thriving career as an author, newspaper columnist, film producer, and interior designer.
This actress might not be a known face anymore, but she previously starred in popular movies including Papa Kehte Hain, Betaabi, Hogi Pyaar Ki Jeet, Badal and Papa the Great. While she started her Bollywood career in 1995 with the National Award-winning film, Naseem and even starred in TV shows, she later decided to leave behind the glitz and glamour of the industry. After getting married to NRI Aditya Dhillon in December 2003 she shifted to the United States and pursued an MBA in marketing and finance. She now lives in Gurgaon, and has joined Google India as its Industry Head – Agency Business!
Dino started his career as a model and later branched into Bollywood with his film Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi, which failed to create a buzz at the box office. Soon after, though, his career took off and he acted in several successful films including Raaz and Jism 2. However, his career later seemed to fizzle out and although he has made a couple of appearances in movies in the past few years, he now owns and runs restaurants across Mumbai.
Now known as Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Shilpa’s career began as a model when she was a teenager. After appearing in several television commercials, she made her acting debut with the 1993 thriller, Baazigar. She appeared in several blockbusters after, including Main Khiladi Tu Anari, Jaanwar, Dhadkan and Life in a…Metro. She shot to international fame after she won British reality television series Celebrity Big Brother 5. She married businessman Raj Kundra in 2009, and now co-owns an IPL team with him, besides being a reality show judge, an animal rights activist and a yoga guru.
Son of late actor Rajendra Kumar, Kumar Gaurav was an immensely popular Bollywood actor who made his debut with the movie Love Story in 1981 and went on to star in blockbusters including Teri Kasam, Naam and Kaante. The last movie he appeared in was in 2006, called My Daddy Strongest, and he hasn’t been active as an actor since. He is married to Sanjay Dutt’s sister Namrata Dutt, and currently owns a travel business in the Maldives.
This dimpled beauty made her acting debut with Dil Se and won over the hearts of the industry. She was a very prominent face in the 2000s and appeared in several blockbusters including Dil Chahta Hai, Veer-Zaara, Koi… Mil Gaya, Salaam Namaste, and of course, the iconic Kal Ho Naa Ho, for which she received the Filmfare Award for Best Actress in 2003. Preity was later bitten by the entrepreneurial bug and she is now the co-owner of the Indian Premier League cricket team Kings XI Punjab since 2008, and the owner of the South-African T20 Global League cricket team Stellenbosch Kings since 2017. Besides that, she also owns a production house, PZNZ Media, and has written several newspaper and magazine columns. Owing to her success as a businesswoman, her acting career has been on a hiatus but let’s hope she makes a comeback on the silver screen soon!
This real-life princess is the sister of actor Saif Ali Khan and the daughter of Sharmila Tagore and cricketer Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. Although Soha is *highly* educated—Soha has a degree in modern history from Balliol College, Oxford, and a Masters’s degree in International Relations from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Being from a filmi family, she made her foray into Bollywood in the 2004 film Dil Maange More and later went on to star in Rang De Basanti, Khoya Khoya Chand, and 99. She seems to have taken a break from acting after getting married to actor Kunal Khemu in 2015. She has since written a book called The Perils of Being Moderately Famous.
