Poonam Dhillon (born 18 April 1962) is an Indian actress and politician. A former
Femina Miss India
Miss India or Femina Miss India is a national beauty pageant in India that annually selects representatives to compete in Miss World, one of the Big Four major international beauty pageants. It is organised by '' Femina'', a women's magazine ...
(1977), she is best known for her 1979 film ''
Noorie
''Noorie'' is a 1979 Indian romance film produced by Yash Chopra, and directed by Manmohan Krishna; this is his only film as director. The film stars Farooq Shaikh, Poonam Dhillon, Madan Puri and Iftekhar. The film's music is by Khayyam and the ...
.'' Some of her well-known films include ''
Red Rose'' (1980), ''
Dard'' (1981), ''
Romance
Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to:
Common meanings
* Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings
* Romance languages, ...
'' (1983), ''
Sohni Mahiwal
Sohni Mahiwal or Suhni Mehar ( pa, , ਸੋਹਣੀ ਮਹੀਂਵਾਲ is one of the four popular tragic romances of Punjab including Sindh. In Sindh Sohni's shrine is in Shahdadpur Town of Sangar District. The others are Sassi Punnun, Mirza ...
'' (1984), ''
Teri Meherbaniyan
''Teri Meherbaniyan'' is a 1985 Indian Bollywood, Hindi film directed by Vijay (director) , Vijay Reddy and produced by K.C. Bokadia. Dog Brownie played a pivotal role while Jackie Shroff and Poonam Dhillon played the lead roles. The movie is ...
'' (1985) ''
Samundar
Samundar is an Indian romantic action film directed by Rahul Rawail and produced by Mushir-Riaz released in 1986. The movie stars Sunny Deol, Poonam Dhillon, Anupam Kher and Amrish Puri.
Cast
* Sunny Deol ... Ajit
* Poonam Dhillon ... Anj ...
'' (1986), ''
Saveraywali Gaadi'' (1986), ''
Karma
Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...
'' (1986), ''
Naam'' (1986) and ''
Maalamaal'' (1988).
Dhillon participated in ''
Bigg Boss
''Bigg Boss'' is an Indian reality television game show franchise based on the Dutch reality show '' Big Brother''. It is produced by Endemol Shine India through Viacom18 and Disney Star. Subsequently, the various versions of the show are made ...
'' in 2009. She played the lead role of Sharda Modi in the
Sony TV Sony Television, Sony TV, or Sony HD may refer to any of the following television-related products from Japanese conglomerate Sony:
* Television sets designed and manufactured by Sony Corporation in Japan
** Trinitron, television hardware brand (196 ...
series ''
Ekk Nayi Pehchaan
''Ekk Nayi Pehchaan'' (in English ''A New Identity'') is an Indian television drama series which premiered on Sony TV on 23 December 2013. The series cast veteran Bollywood actresses Poonam Dhillon and Padmini Kolhapure along with Krystle D'Souz ...
'' in 2013. She has done theatre, starting with the award-winning "The Perfect Husband" and many other plays, the latest being "The Perfect Wife" with several shows in
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
and
Dubai
Dubai (, ; ar, دبي, translit=Dubayy, , ) is the most populous city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the capital of the Emirate of Dubai, the most populated of the 7 emirates of the United Arab Emirates.The Government and Politics of ...
.
Career
The first time Dhillon gained fame was when she got crowned Miss Young India 1978 at the age of 16.
Director
Yash Chopra
Yash Raj Chopra (27 September 1932 21 October 2012) was an Indian people, Indian film director and film producer who worked in Bollywood, Hindi cinema. The founding chairman of the film production and distribution company Yash Raj Films, Chop ...
noticed her and offered her a role in the film ''
Trishul'' (1978) where her song "Gapoochi Gapoochi Gum Gum" with
Sachin Pilgaonkar
Sachin Pilgaonkar, often known mononymously by his screen name Sachin, is an Indian actor, director, producer, writer and singer of Marathi language, Marathi and Hindi films. He has directed and acted in several Marathi films of the late 1980s ...
became popular. Chopra then gave her the title role in ''
Noorie
''Noorie'' is a 1979 Indian romance film produced by Yash Chopra, and directed by Manmohan Krishna; this is his only film as director. The film stars Farooq Shaikh, Poonam Dhillon, Madan Puri and Iftekhar. The film's music is by Khayyam and the ...
'' (1979) opposite
Farooq Shaikh
Farooq Shaikh (25 March 1948 − 28 December 2013) was an Indian actor, philanthropist and television presenter. He was best known for his work in Hindi films from 1973 to 1993 and for his work in television between 1988 and 2002. He returned to ...
, which he produced. The low budget film
Noorie
''Noorie'' is a 1979 Indian romance film produced by Yash Chopra, and directed by Manmohan Krishna; this is his only film as director. The film stars Farooq Shaikh, Poonam Dhillon, Madan Puri and Iftekhar. The film's music is by Khayyam and the ...
shot in Bhaderwah, Kashmir, became a superhit and was a phenomenal success at the box office, partly also for
Khayyam
Ghiyāth al-Dīn Abū al-Fatḥ ʿUmar ibn Ibrāhīm Nīsābūrī (18 May 1048 – 4 December 1131), commonly known as Omar Khayyam ( fa, عمر خیّام), was a polymath, known for his contributions to mathematics, astronomy, philosophy, ...
's music. For this film, Poonam was nominated for the
Filmfare Award for Best Actress
The Filmfare Award for Best Actress is given by ''Filmfare'' as part of its annual Filmfare Awards for Bollywood, Hindi films, to recognise the female actor who has delivered an outstanding performance in a leading role. The award was first gi ...
.
Subsequently, she went on to act in around 90 films in Hindi, including ''Sohni Mahiwal'', ''Red Rose'', ''Teri Kasam'', ''Dard'', ''Nishana'', ''Yeh Vaada Raha'', ''Samunder'', ''Romance'', ''Kasam'', and ''Sitamgar''. She was paired with
Rajesh Khanna
Rajesh Khanna () (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. He is called as the "First Superstar of Hindi cinema", he consecutively starred in a record ...
in six films: ''
Dard'', ''
Nishaan
Harr Nishaan (हरि/ਹਰਿ) or Nishaan Sahib is an official copyrighted symbol of the Ravidassia religion. The Harr nishan is found atop the Ravidassias Bhawans or on the flag, every year the Harr Nishaan is changed on the auspicious day ...
'', ''
Zamana'', ''
Awam'', ''
Red Rose (1980 film)
''Red Rose'' is a 1980 Indian Hindi-language psychological thriller film, starring Rajesh Khanna and Poonam Dhillon. It is a remake of the Tamil film ''Sigappu Rojakkal'', made by the same director Bharathiraja and the same cinematographer P. ...
'' and ''Jai Shiv Shankar''. She made a special appearance in
''Judaai'' as a favour to producer
Boney Kapoor
Achal Surinder "Boney" Kapoor (born 11 November 1955) is an Indian producer primarily associated with Hindi cinema in addition to Tamil and Telugu cinema.
Early life
Kapoor was born as Achal Surinder Kapoor in 1955, the son of Surinder Kapoor ...
when
Juhi Chawla
Juhi Chawla (born 13 November 1967) is an Indian actress, film producer and entrepreneur. She established herself as one of the leading actresses of Hindi cinema from the late 1980s through the early 2000s. Recognised for her comic timing and v ...
had to drop out.
She also appeared in regional films such as ''Nyay Danda'' (
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
), ''
Yuddha Kaanda
''Yuddha Kaanda'' () is a 1989 Indian Kannada-language film directed by K. V. Raju, starring Ravichandran, Poonam Dhillon and Bharathi Vishnuvardhan. It is a remake of the 1985 Hindi film ''Meri Jung''.
Upon release, the movie received positiv ...
'' (
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 ...
), ''Ishtam'' (
Telugu
Telugu may refer to:
* Telugu language, a major Dravidian language of India
*Telugu people, an ethno-linguistic group of India
* Telugu script, used to write the Telugu language
** Telugu (Unicode block), a block of Telugu characters in Unicode
S ...
) and ''
Yavarum Nalam
''Yavarum Nalam'' () is a 2009 Indian Tamil-language horror film written and directed by Vikram Kumar. The film stars R. Madhavan and Neetu Chandra. Produced by Suresh Balaje and George Pius, the film was simultaneously filmed and released in ...
'' (
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, nativ ...
), ''
13B: Fear Has a New Address'' (
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 de ...
).
Dhillon was a contestant on Season 3 of ''
Bigg Boss
''Bigg Boss'' is an Indian reality television game show franchise based on the Dutch reality show '' Big Brother''. It is produced by Endemol Shine India through Viacom18 and Disney Star. Subsequently, the various versions of the show are made ...
'' aired on
Colors TV
Colors TV is an Indian general entertainment broadcast network owned by Viacom18. The network's programming consists of family dramas, comedies, youth-oriented reality shows, shows on crime and television films.
History
It was launched on 2 ...
in 2009. She ended up as the second runner-up on the show.
Her big comeback on Indian television in a lead role was with the serial ''
Ekk Nayi Pehchaan
''Ekk Nayi Pehchaan'' (in English ''A New Identity'') is an Indian television drama series which premiered on Sony TV on 23 December 2013. The series cast veteran Bollywood actresses Poonam Dhillon and Padmini Kolhapure along with Krystle D'Souz ...
'' on
Sony TV Sony Television, Sony TV, or Sony HD may refer to any of the following television-related products from Japanese conglomerate Sony:
* Television sets designed and manufactured by Sony Corporation in Japan
** Trinitron, television hardware brand (196 ...
in 2013 where she played the uneducated yet ideal wife of a rich businessman.
She has been in the
Hindi theater production ''The Perfect Husband'', which won the best comedy play award in 2005 and which completed a
Golden jubilee
A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations.
Bangladesh
In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...
run. She then did another play ''The Perfect Wife'' co-starring Sooraj Thapar and ''Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi'' with
Asif Sheikh. She was also seen in a play called ''U Turn'' which is the Hindi version of a Marathi play.
Dhillon ventured into the make-up van business, pioneering the concept in the Indian film industry. She runs a make-up van company called "Vanity."
Personal life
Dhillon was born on 18 April 1962, in
Kanpur
Kanpur or Cawnpore ( /kɑːnˈpʊər/ pronunciation (help·info)) is an industrial city in the central-western part of the state of Uttar Pradesh, India. Founded in 1207, Kanpur became one of the most important commercial and military stations o ...
,
Uttar Pradesh
Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...
. Her father Amreek Singh was an
aeronautical engineer
Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is si ...
in the
Indian Air Force
The Indian Air Force (IAF) is the air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its complement of personnel and aircraft assets ranks third amongst the air forces of the world. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial w ...
and would often get transferred. Her mother was a school principal and both her siblings are doctors. Poonam was quite studious growing up and aspired to become a doctor.
Poonam attended Carmel Convent in
handigarhfor schooling and did her graduation after joining films at age 16.
In 2013, she was pursuing an MBA in International Business. Dhillon was married to producer
Ashok Thakeria and has two children, a daughter Paloma and a son Anmol.
Activism and politics
She has been very active with social causes like drug awareness, AIDS awareness,
family planning
Family planning is the consideration of the number of children a person wishes to have, including the choice to have no children, and the age at which they wish to have them. Things that may play a role on family planning decisions include marita ...
and
organ donation
Organ donation is the process when a person allows an organ of their own to be removed and transplanted to another person, legally, either by consent while the donor is alive or dead with the assent of the next of kin.
Donation may be for re ...
.
She has been a prominent speaker at the
SAARC
The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional intergovernmental organization and geopolitical union of states in South Asia. Its member states are Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan, ...
business summits in
Kathmandu
, pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name =
, subdivision_type1 = Province
, subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...
and Delhi and was appointed cultural ambassador. She was also a speaker at the MINDMINE event. In 2012, she along with other celebrities participated in a show supporting the "Save and Empower the Girl Child" cause in collaboration with
Lilavati Hospital
The Lilavati Hospital and Research Centre is a private hospital located in Bandra, Mumbai, India. The hospital was established in 1978 by the Lilavati Kirtilal Mehta Medical Trust.
History
In 1978, Kirtilal Manilal Mehta—a diamond ...
.
In 2014, she launched an event management and film production company called "Poetic Justice Films and Entertainment Pvt. Ltd." with industrialist
Aneel Murarka and choreographer Samir Tanna.
In 2017, Dhillon was appointed as one of four members to the
Film Certification Appellate Tribunal
The Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) is a statutory Motion picture content rating system, film-certification body in the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the Government of I ...
, which is the official body for appeals against decisions of the Central Board of Film Certification in the Indian film industry.
Dhillon joined the
Bhartiya Janta Party
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP; ; ) is a political party in India, and one of the two major Indian political parties alongside the Indian National Congress. Since 2014, it has been the ruling political party in India under Narendra Modi ...
in 2004 and was appointed Vice President of the Mumbai unit of the party in 2019.
Filmography
Films
Television
Accolades
References
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dhillon, Poonam
1962 births
Living people
Indian film actresses
Actresses in Hindi cinema
Actresses in Hindi television
Indian stage actresses
Indian television actresses
Indian soap opera actresses
Punjabi people
People from Kanpur
Actresses from Uttar Pradesh
20th-century Indian actresses
21st-century Indian actresses
Bigg Boss (Hindi TV series) contestants
Bharatiya Janata Party politicians from Maharashtra