Shruti Seth is an Indian actress and
video jockey. Having begun her career as television show host, she gained wider recognition with her roles as comedian in several television shows and the
Hindi film industry
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" (fo ...
.
Born and brought up in Mumbai, Maharashtra, Seth graduated
St. Xavier's College
A multitude of schools and universities have been named after St. Francis Xavier, a Spanish Roman Catholic saint and co-founder of the Society of Jesus. This page lists notable educational institutions named after St. Xavier, arranged by country a ...
with a degree in
economics. She ventured into a modelling career and began hosting television shows for
Channel V. A significant turning point came in her career when she cast in the role of Jiya Malhotra, a teenage in
Star Plus
StarPlus is an Indian Hindi language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star (formerly ''Star India''), a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India. The network's programming consists of family dramas, comedies, ...
's comedy series
''Shararat'' (2003–06). The show's popularity grew over the years and Seth gained prominence for her performance.
Seth made her film debut in 2003 with
''Waisa Bhi Hota Hai Part'' II, and later earned praise for her supporting roles in top-grossing productions
''Fanaa'' (2006) and ''
Slumdog Millionaire'' (2008). Seth starred in
Disney Channel
Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...
's original series ''
The Suite Life of Karan & Kabir'' and continued to host such television shows as the
''Comedy Circus series''.
Personal life
Seth attended Ashok Academy and graduated from
St. Xavier's College, Mumbai with a degree in
Economics and
Commerce. She is married to film director
Danish Aslam, and together they have a daughter named Alina.
Seth is of
Punjabi Hindu origin.
A controversy arose when Aslam commented on
Twitter in critique of
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's #''selfiewithdaughter'' campaign for women and girls, which he announced in his ''
Mann Ki Baat'' radio address. After this she started to receive abuse through Twitter and social media. This resulted in members of the media and Bollywood defending her against the abuse.
Career
Television roles
Seth started her career as a guest relation executive at the
Taj Mahal Hotel, Bombay. She began modelling at the same time "to make some pocket money", and was soon offered guest roles in a few television shows.
Seth then hosted such successful shows as ''First Day First Show'' and ''Junglee Jukebox'' on
Channel V. She said, in a later interview, that it was her time as a
video jockey and
television presenter
A television presenter (or television host, some become a "television personality") is a person who introduces, hosts television show, television programs, often serving as a mediator for the program and the audience. Nowadays, it is common for ...
on the channel "that firmly put me on the map."
Seth auditioned for a role in the
Star Plus
StarPlus is an Indian Hindi language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star (formerly ''Star India''), a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India. The network's programming consists of family dramas, comedies, ...
sitcom ''
Shararat''. Co-starring
Farida Jalal and Eva Grover, the show followed the life of teenager who, on her eighteenth birthday, discovers she has magical powers. Seth was cast in the lead role; her performance received positive response from critics and fans. The show was in itself a surprise success and ran for three years on the network.
Seth went on to star in other television show including ''
Kyun Hota Hai Pyarrr'', ''
Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand'', and ''
Rishta.com
Rishta.com is an Indian television series which broadcast on Sony Entertainment Television on 3 January 2010. The show is produced by Aditya Chopra under YRF Television. The show was conceived, written and directed by Rishab Seth.
Premise
Ri ...
'' on
Sony Entertainment Television. On ''Rishta.com'', she said in an interview that, "They (the Yash Raj serials) haven't got any TRPs at all. But it's not for the people who are watching TV in the first place. The whole TRP game is very skewed. I don't believe that in a population of over a billion people, 15,000 households decide what the entire country wants to watch. This lot of Yash Raj was conceptualised for those who are not watching TV". She further said in the same interview that "All our loyal audience for my serial on TV is in
London,
America
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 ...
,
South Africa,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
. It's not that the Indians will not like it, it's just sad that they are not aware of it, because the publicity has been disappointing". She has also hosted several seasons of ''
Comedy Circus'' on Sony Channel.
Film career
Seth has starred in a few films. On moving from television to films, she stated that, "I haven't really moved on to anything. It's not that I would not do TV and only do films. Yes, more avenues have started opening for me. I am game for doing something exciting on any medium – stage, celluloid or TV".
She is probably best known for her role as Fatima "Fatty" in ''
Fanaa
Fanaa ( ar, فناء ') in Sufism is the "passing away" or "annihilation" (of the self).Harmless, William. ''Mystics''. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008 Fana means "to die before one dies", a concept highlighted by famous notable Persian m ...
'' (2006) with
Aamir Khan and
Kajol
Kajol Devgan (née Mukherjee; born 5 August 1974), known mononymously as Kajol, is an Indian actress. Described in the media as one of the most successful actresses of Hindi cinema, she is the recipient of numerous accolades, including six F ...
. She starred in ''
Tara Rum Pum'', produced by
Yash Raj Films and made an appearance in
Prakash Jha's film ''
Raajneeti'' in 2010. On her role in ''Rajneeti'', she said in an interview that "I am hoping that my hard-hitting role in ''Rajneeti'' will change my being typecast, because it is the most unlikely character one would expect me to play".
Filmography
Films
Television
Web series
References
External links
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Seth, Shruti
Living people
Actresses from Mumbai
Indian television actresses
Indian film actresses
Female models from Mumbai
People from Mumbai
Punjabi people
Punjabi Hindus
St. Xavier's College, Mumbai alumni
Actresses in Hindi cinema
Indian soap opera actresses
Actresses in Gujarati cinema
21st-century Indian actresses
Actresses in Hindi television
1977 births
Indian VJs (media personalities)