Rakhi Sawant (born Neeru Bheda; 25 November 1978) is an Indian dancer, model, actress and television

talk show A talk show (or chat show in British English) is a television programming or radio programming genre structured around the act of spontaneous conversation.Bernard M. Timberg, Robert J. Erler'' (2010Television Talk: A History of the TV Talk Sh ...

host, who has appeared in many

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 ...

and a few

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 ...

Marathi Marathi may refer to: *Marathi people, an Indo-Aryan ethnolinguistic group of Maharashtra, India *Marathi language, the Indo-Aryan language spoken by the Marathi people *Palaiosouda, also known as Marathi, a small island in Greece See also * * ...

, Odia, Telugu and

Tamil films Tamil cinema, also known as Kollywood is a part of Indian Cinema; primarily engaged in production of motion pictures in the Tamil language. Based out of the Kodambakkam neighbourhood in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, it is popularly called ''Kollywo ...

and was a contestant on the first season of the Indian reality television series '' Bigg Boss 1'' (2006) and as a challenger and finalist in '' Bigg Boss 14'' (2020). Sawant has established herself as a sex symbol in Bollywood. Sawant launched her own political party, headed by Jai Shah, called the

Rashtriya Aam Party Rakhi Sawant (born Neeru Bheda; 25 November 1978) is an Indian dancer, model, actress and television talk show host, who has appeared in many Hindi and a few Kannada, Marathi, Odia, Telugu and Tamil films and was a contestant on the first sea ...

, to contest the

2014 Lok Sabha Elections General elections were held in India in nine phases from 7 April to 12 May 2014 to elect the members of the 16th Lok Sabha. With 834 million registered voters, they were the largest-ever elections in the world until being surpassed by the 2019 ...

. However, after the election, she joined

Republican Party of India (A) The Republican Party of India (Athawale) ( RPI(A)) is a political party in India. The party is a splinter group of the Republican Party of India and has its roots in the Scheduled Castes Federation led by B. R. Ambedkar. The president of the pa ...

Early life

Rakhi was born as Neeru Bheda to Maya Bheda. Maya married Anand Sawant, a police constable at Worli Police Station, and gave the children surname of their step father.

Career

Career beginnings (1997–2005)

She made her film debut in the 1997 film '' Agnichakra'' under the name Ruhi Sawant. She went on to other small roles and dance numbers in Bollywood films '' Joru Ka Ghulam'', ''

Jis Desh Mein Ganga Rehta Hain ''Jis Desh Mein Ganga Rehta Hai'' () is 2000 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by Mahesh Manjrekar and starring Govinda and Sonali Bendre as leads. It is a remake of the 1972 Marathi film ''Ekta Jeev Sadashiv'', and the 1974 Kannada ...

'', and ''

Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke ''Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke'' ( en, These Are The Paths of Love) is a 2001 Bollywood romantic drama film. It is a love triangle, directed by Deepak Shivdasani. It stars Ajay Devgn, Preity Zinta and Madhuri Dixit in the lead roles, along with S ...

''.

In 2003, she auditioned for an

item number In Indian cinema, an item number or item song is a musical number inserted into a film that may or may not have any relevance to the plot. The term is commonly used within Indian films (Malayalam, Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Kannada, Punjabi, and ...

in the Bollywood film ''

Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne ''Chura Liyaa Hai Tumne'' (''Captured by You'') is a 2003 Indian Hindi romantic thriller film, which was directed by Sangeeth Sivan and released on 21 March 2003. Zayed Khan, the son of actor and director Sanjay Khan made his film debut wi ...

''. She auditioned about four times before being selected for her breakthrough item number, "Mohabbat Hai Mirchi", composed by Himesh Reshammiya. Sawant acted in small roles in films including '' Masti'' and ''

Main Hoon Na ''Main Hoon Na'' () is a 2004 Indian Hindi-language masala film written and directed by Farah Khan in her directorial debut. The film stars Shah Rukh Khan, Sushmita Sen, Sunil Shetty, Amrita Rao and Zayed Khan, and follows Major Ram Sharma, ...

''. In 2005, she appeared in the music video "Pardesiya", from the album ''D.J. Hot Remix - Vol 3''.

Television debut and success (2006–present)

In June 2006,

Mika Singh Mika Singh (born 10 June 1977) is an Indian singer. His songs include "Bas Ek King" ('' Singh Is Kinng''), "Mauja Hi Mauja" ('' Jab We Met''), "Ibn-e-Batuta" (''Ishqiya''), and "Dhanno" ('' Housefull''). He has released several solo albums and ...

attempted to kiss her at his birthday party, which caused a media controversy. A few months later, she appeared in the first season of the reality show ''

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 ...

''. She got evicted in week 4 but later made a re- entry. She was among the top four finalists but got evicted days before the grand finale (24 January 2007, Day 84). In 2007, Rakhi made her singing debut in the album ''Super Girl'' launched by

Venus Records & Tapes Ishtar Music is an Indian record label company, originally founded by Ganesh Jain and Ratan Jain as Venus Music in 1988 and currently a subsidiary of Believe Digital. It is primarily known for publishing and marketing Bollywood music soundtrac ...

Pvt. Ltd. She later participated in the dance reality show ''

Nach Baliye ''Nach Baliye'' () is an Indian Hindi-language celebrity dance reality television series that airs on Star Plus. Production Concept The show is a competition wherein 10 television celebrity couples compete against each other. Contestants danc ...

'' with

Abhishek Avasthi Abhishek Avasthi (born 17 March 1982) is an Indian actor, choreographer, dancer and model. Biography Abhishek Awasthi was born in Kanpur, India. He, along with Rakhi Sawant, an Indian model and actress, participated in the third season ...

and emerged as the first runner up. In 2008, Sawant appeared in the film ''

Krazzy 4 ''Krazzy 4'' is a 2008 Indian Hindi-language comedy thriller film directed by Jaideep Sen and produced by Rakesh Roshan. The film stars Juhi Chawla, Arshad Warsi, Irrfan Khan, Rajpal Yadav and Suresh Menon in lead roles while Shahrukh Khan and H ...

'' for the item song 'Dekhta Hai Tu Kya'. In 2009, Sawant launched the reality show '' Rakhi Ka Swayamwar'' in which she planned to select her future husband by the ancient ritual of Swayamvar. On 2 August 2009 she chose her life partner, a contestant from Toronto, Canada, Elesh Parujanwala. However, several months later, Sawant announced that the couple had separated due to irreconcilable differences. After separation she said on interview that she got engaged to Elesh Parujanwala for money. In 2010, Rakhi hosted a talk show '' Rakhi Ka Insaaf'' which aired on

Imagine TV Imagine TV was a Hindi general entertainment channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System, and based in New Delhi. The channel was known for shows such as '' Ramayan (2008), Chandragupta Maurya, ''Swayamvar'', ''Baba Aiso Varr Dhoondo'', ' ...

. The show saw a controversy after the death of a participant after Rakhi had called him impotent. In 2011, she participated in Sony TV's ''

Maa Exchange ''Maa Exchange'' is a Hindi language Indian reality television series which premiered on 12 January 2011 on Sony TV. The series is produced by Ronnie Screwvala Rohinton Soli "Ronnie" Screwvala (born 8 September 1956) is an Indian entrepreneur ...

'' along with mother Jaya Sawant. Often appearing in reality shows as a host, judge or participant, Sawant is a regular stage performer. In 2012, she did a comedy act with

Shahrukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in Hindi films. Referred to in the media as the " Baadshah of Bollywood", "King of Bollywood" ...

and

Ranbir Kapoor Ranbir Kapoor (; born 28 September 1982) is an Indian actor known for his work in Hindi-language films. He is one of the highest-paid actors of Hindi cinema and has featured in ''Forbes India''s Celebrity 100 list since 2012. Kapoor is the re ...

at the

57th Filmfare Awards The 57th Filmfare Awards were held on 29 January 2012 at Film City, Mumbai honoring the best film of 2011 from the Hindi-language film industry (commonly known as Bollywood). The ceremony was jointly hosted by Shahrukh Khan and Ranbir Kapoor. ...

and entry dance performance in 2015 with

Ranveer Singh Ranveer Singh Bhavnani (; born 6 July 1985) is an Indian actor who works in Hindi films. The recipient of several awards, including five Filmfare Awards, he is among the highest-paid Indian actors and has been featured in ''Forbes India''s ...

and

Arjun Kapoor Arjun Kapoor (born 26 June 1985) is an Indian actor working in Hindi films. Born to the Surinder Kapoor family, he is the son of film producer Boney Kapoor and Mona Shourie. Kapoor made his acting debut in 2012 with romance '' Ishaqzaade'' whic ...

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

. In 2013, she participated in ''

Welcome – Baazi Mehmaan Nawazi Ki ''Welcome – Baazi Mehmaan Nawazi Ki'' is an Indian reality television television series broadcast on Life OK. The series premiered on 21 January 2013. A second season aired in April to May 2014. Overview The show is an Indian version of the i ...

'' along with

Anchal Sabharwal Anchal Sabharwal (born 29 August 1986) is a film actress and model, who has appeared in Hindi television series and regional feature films. Career Anchal first appeared in many TV commercials and then in few Hindi television series. Her first ...

, Sangram Singh, Chetan Hansraj &

Madhura Naik Madhura Hemant Naik is an Indian model and actress who has appeared in television shows such as '' Iss Pyaar Ko Kya Naam Doon'', ''Hum Ne Li Hai- Shapath'' and '' Tumhari Pakhi''. Career Naik began her career as a model which led her to the mu ...

. The show aired on Life OK. She later was a contestant on '' Box Cricket League''. Sawant later played the leading role in thriller film '' Ek Kahani Julie Ki'', and was seen in a cameo appearance in comedy fiction television series '' Bhaag Bakool Bhaag''. From 2020 to 2021, Sawant appeared as a challenger in Bigg Boss 14. She emerged as a finalist but decided to walk out, opting for the cash prize of 14 lakhs.

Political venture (2014–present)

On 26 March 2014, she announced her plans to contest

2014 Lok Sabha elections General elections were held in India in nine phases from 7 April to 12 May 2014 to elect the members of the 16th Lok Sabha. With 834 million registered voters, they were the largest-ever elections in the world until being surpassed by the 2019 ...

from Mumbai North-West as an Independent Candidate. On 28 March, she founded the Rashtriya Aam Party (RAP). The party has no symbol assigned by the election commission. However, Sawant said that she's expecting it to be a "green chilli", which she feels resembles her personality.‘Green chilly’ as symbol, Rakhi Sawant launches her party
''The Times of India'' (28 March 2014) The party's office bearers and fundraisers are local businessmen from

Oshiwara Oshiwara is a neighbourhood in northern Mumbai, India near Lokhandwala Complex. Its name was derived from the Oshiwara River. Located between the western sides of Goregaon and Jogeshwari, it has many industrial estates. A railway station was bui ...

. She received only 15 votes from the Mumbai North-West Constituency and lost her deposit. Sawant resigned from the Rashtriya Aam Party and joined the RPI (Athavale) party in June 2014 and expressed her desire to work for

dalit Dalit (from sa, दलित, dalita meaning "broken/scattered"), also previously known as untouchable, is the lowest stratum of the castes in India. Dalits were excluded from the four-fold varna system of Hinduism and were seen as forming ...

s. Rakhi serves as party's state vice-president and president of the woman wing.

Personal life

In 2019, Sawant married an NRI man named Ritesh, separating in early 2022. As of May 2022, she is in a relationship with Adil Durrani.

Injury

In November 2018, during

The Great Khali Dalip Singh Rana (born 27 August 1972) is an Indian professional wrestler and wrestling promoter better known by his ring name The Great Khali. He is best known for his tenure in WWE where he became the first Indian-born WWE World Heavywe ...

's Continental Wrestling Entertainment promotion, American female wrestler

Rebel A rebel is a participant in a rebellion. Rebel or rebels may also refer to: People * Rebel (given name) * Rebel (surname) * Patriot (American Revolution), during the American Revolution * American Southerners, as a form of self-identification; ...

got involved in a dance battle against Sawant, during which Rebel grabbed her in inverse position, circulated her, and threw her on her back. It injured Sawant's back and she fell unconscious, and was later carried to a nearby hospital.

Controversy

On 4 April 2017, she was arrested by Punjab police about her remarks on Rishi Valmiki.

Filmography

Dance numbers

Music videos

Television

Other television appearances

* 2003: ''Carry On Shekhar'' (

SAB TV Sony SAB (formerly SAB TV) is an Indian pay television channel owned by Culver Max Entertainment. History Sony SAB was launched as SAB TV by Gautam Adhikari and Markand Adhikari under their company Sri Adhikari Brothers (thus the acronym) on ...

) * 2006: ''

Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai ''Jeena Isi Ka Naam Hai'' was an Indian talk show hosted initially by Bollywood actor Farooq Shaikh and later by Bollywood actor Suresh Oberoi. It premiered on 22 March 2002, and due to the success of its first season, the show reappeared on Zee ...

'' ( Zee TV) * 2007: ''Let's Talk...'' ( Zoom TV) * 2007: ''Aap Ki Adalat'' (

India TV India TV is a Hindi news channel based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. The channel was launched on 20 May 2004 by Rajat Sharma and wife Ritu Dhawan. The channel is a subsidiary of Independent News Service, which was co-founded by Sharma and Dha ...

) (later in 2008 and 2009) (Star Plus) * 2007: '' Baa Bahoo Aur Baby (Season 1)'' ( Star Plus) * 2007: '' Koffee with Karan (Season 2)'' (

STAR One Star One was an Indian pay television network based in Mumbai. It was launched on 1 November 2004 and was it owned by Star TV and distributed worldwide by Fox International Channels. In November 2006, Star One was launched in the UK on Sky. ...

) * 2008: '' Bigg Boss 2'' (

Colors Color (American English) or colour (British English) is the visual perceptual property deriving from the spectrum of light interacting with the photoreceptor cells of the eyes. Color categories and physical specifications of color are associa ...

) * 2008: '' 10 Ka Dum (season 1)'' (

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 ...

) * 2009: ''

Nach Baliye 4 ''Nach Baliye'' () is an Indian Hindi-language celebrity dance reality television series that airs on Star Plus. Production Concept The show is a competition wherein 10 television celebrity couples compete against each other. Contestants danc ...

'' ( STAR Plus) * 2009: ''

Boogie Woogie Boogie-woogie is a genre of blues music that became popular during the late 1920s, developed in African-American communities since 1870s.Paul, Elliot, ''That Crazy American Music'' (1957), Chapter 10, p. 229. It was eventually extended from pi ...

'' (

) (later in 2011) * 2009: '' Lux Perfect Bride'' ( STAR Plus) * 2010: '' Bigg Boss 4'' (

) * 2010: ''

Jubilee Comedy Circus ''The Comedy Circus Show '' is an Indian comedy show that aired on Sony Entertainment Television. Overview Comedy Circus 1: Hindi TV Show where daily soap stars perform stand-up comedy. Paired with the "finest" stand up talent from India and ...

'' (

) * 2011: '' Comedy Circus 3 Ka Tadka'' (

) * 2011: '' Ratan Ka Rishta'' (

NDTV Imagine Imagine TV was a Hindi general entertainment channel owned by Turner Broadcasting System, and based in New Delhi. The channel was known for shows such as '' Ramayan (2008), Chandragupta Maurya, '' Swayamvar'', ''Baba Aiso Varr Dhoondo'', '' ...

) * 2011: ''Sheela, Shagun and Meenakshi'' ( STAR News) * 2011: ''Shaadi 3 Crore Ki'' (

) * 2012: ''

Bigg Boss 5 ''Bigg Boss 5'' is the fifth season of the Indian reality TV show ''Bigg Boss'', which aired on Colors TV from 2 October 2011 to 7 January 2012 with Sanjay Dutt and Salman Khan as the hosts. During the launch on 2 October, fourteen hand-picke ...

'' (

) * 2012: ''All Most Famous'' ( Zoom TV) * 2012: '' Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 5'' (

) * 2012: '' Bigg Boss 6'' (

) * 2012: '' Movers & Shakers Masala Markey'' (

) * 2014: Comedy Nights with Kapil (

) *2015: ''

Comedy Classes ''Comedy Classes'' is an Indian comedy show on channel Life OK. Produced by Optimystix Entertainment, its starting date was 7 October 2014. The show is set in the ''Ache Din Institute'' an acting school run by ''Selfie Mausi'' and her brothe ...

'' ( Life OK) *2015: ''

Chidiya Ghar ''Chidiya Ghar'' () is a sitcom which aired on Sony SAB from 28 November 2011 to 2 October 2017. The series was produced by Ashwni Dhir under the banner of Garima Productions. The show gets its name “Chidiya Ghar” because Chidiya Ghar mean ...

''(

) *2016: '' Comedy Nights Bachao'' (Colors) *2017: '' Bhaag Bakool Bhaag'' (Colors) as ''Twinkle Maa'' *2019: '' Kanala Khada'' (

Zee Marathi Zee Marathi is an Indian general entertainment channel which carries programming in Marathi. It is owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. The channel was launched on 15 August 1999 and was known as Alpha TV Marathi until 28 March 2005, then ...

) as Guest *2021: ''

Indian Idol 12 ''Indian Idol'' is the Indian music competition television franchise based on the ''Pop Idol ''Pop Idol'' is a British music competition television series created by Simon Fuller which ran on ITV from 2001 to 2003. The aim of the show w ...

'' (Sony TV) as Guest *2021: '' Bigg Boss OTT'' (Colors) as Guest *2021: ''

Bigg Boss 15 ''Bigg Boss 15'', also known as ''Bigg Boss: "Sankat in Jungle"'' or ''Bigg Boss: Pan Pana Pan Pandrah'' was the fifteenth season of the Indian reality TV series ''Bigg Boss''. It premiered on 2 October 2021 on Colors TV Salman Khan hosted the ...

'' (Colors) as Guest *

References

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sawant, Rakhi Actresses in Hindi cinema Indian television actresses 21st-century Indian actresses Converts to Christianity Indian television talk show hosts Actresses in Tamil cinema Participants in Indian reality television series Living people 1978 births Actresses from Mumbai Candidates in the 2014 Indian general election Republican Party of India (Athawale) politicians Marathi politicians Maharashtra politicians Actresses in Telugu cinema Actresses in Marathi cinema Politicians from Mumbai Indian actor-politicians Actresses in Hindi television Women in Maharashtra politics 20th-century Indian actresses 21st-century Indian women politicians 21st-century Indian politicians Bigg Boss (Hindi TV series) contestants