25 Successful Models Who Became Bollywood Actors

They say hard work pays off and that is quite evident and a lot have been blessed with the reward of time. Well, Bollywood has always given its best when it comes to talent and it has churned the best out of people however it has not always been kind to outsiders; many struggling artists have given up on their dreams. Bollywood is one such popular industry which has given a lot of chance to the people from the modelling industry. In the race, only a few have reached to the stardom and some have vanished while taking the route to the Bollywood.

Well, the road must have been hard to travel, let’s get inspired by the struggle of real life straggler. Some have made to the top, some have tasted the success and some have kissed it and treasured it for forever.

1. John Abraham

John was already a recognized face of the modelling and was quite popular in his own world. Winning Gladrags Manhunt made him real popular in 1999.

2. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

It’s hard to describe her beauty in words, she chooses her dream over her education and before entering into Bollywood she was already a successful model. She has already been featured in some of the American commercials, before winning the Miss World Pageant 1994.

3. Priyanka Chopra

She has always been one of the most famous models, then she won the Miss World Pageant in 2000 before hitting into the Bollywood.

4. Arjun Rampal

Like John, Arjun was also a Super Model who was quite famous back then. He made his appearance with the leading Role in “Pyar Ishq Aur Mohabbat”.

5. Sushmita Sen

Sen was not in the limelight till the time she won the Miss Universe Pageant in 1994, and she was the first Indian Woman to win it. And later she entered into the world of acting and won the hearts of millions.

6. Deepika Padukone

She has been good at her work, be it modelling or the acting. She was signed by the international brands. She had even left her footprints by winning the model of the year at Kingfisher Fashion Awards. In 2006, she has even featured for the Kingfisher’s Swimsuit Calendar.

7. Diana Penty

She has been known as a model however she has made her Grand appearance in Cocktail. Her modelling career seems more flourishing with both nationally and internationally.

8. Freida Pinto

Freida is a Hollywood star, yeah that’s true. She was also a model before her starting a big career in Hollywood. Her modelling agency has shortlisted her for the big role in Slumdog Millionaire.

9. Milind Soman

Soman is actually a model, acting has been part of his career. He was the ruler of the Ramp. He was already popular but Alisha Chinai’s song Made in India Video in 1995 made him more popular into the nation. Well, these days people refer to him as an Ironman.

10. Anushka Sharma

She had her career on Modelling before hitting into the world of acting. She has pursued her career in modelling in Mumbai and soon after that, she appeared as a lead role in a blockbuster movie called “Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi”.

11. Lara Dutta

An ambitious lady and a real achiever when she steps on modelling. She was the winner of Gladrags Mega model in 1995. Later on, she won the Miss Intercontinental pageant in 1997 followed by miss universe pageant in 2000. She had done some work in Bollywood which does not turn out the same way.

12. Dia Mirza

Earlier she was a model and did some commercial advertisement. She did run after her passion and left her studies as because it was hard for her to manage both at the same time. In 2000 she won the Miss-Asia-Pacific, which led her to Bollywood.

13. Bipasha Basu

In 1999 she won the Ford Supermodel contest, and became a successful supermodel. With her hard work and passion which has really left a mark on her modelling and acting career.

14. Katrina Kaif

She started modelling at a very young age and she was a model at the age of 14. She was discovered for Bollywood when she appeared in London’s Fashion Week.

15. Randeep Hooda

A multi-talented guy with intellectual quality, his acting has won the heart of quite a few people and he is a popular actor. Well, he also appeared on TV and print commercials.

16. Lisa Ray

She was being named as the ninth most beautiful woman of the millennium. Lisa worked on some movies, but she is more of a model than she is an actress. She is an amazing woman, an achiever and a cancer survivor too.

17. Juhi Chawla

Her career started as a model and later she was crowned Miss India in 1984.
Later on, she started her career in Bollywood and turned out to be a successful actress.

18. Zeenat Aman

She was an amazing model and in 1970 she won Miss Asia Pacific and won the heart of the nation. Like the blooming modelling career her career as an actress also bloomed.

19. Jas Arora

He was being followed by a lot of females and was quite famous throughout his modelling career. However, his acting was not as enchanting as his dimples.

20. Upen Patel

His modelling career was really appreciable as he has won the Top Sexiest Men in Asia for five years in a row. He was crowned as a model of the year for four times, however, his career as an actor did not turn to be that flourishing.

21. Siddharth Malhotra

His Modelling Career started when he was 18 and he was quite successful in his time. However, he was quite unsatisfied and he switched his career in Bollywood and still flourishing his talent.

22. Sameer Soni

He is an actor and a model as well, it did not work more in Bollywood. However, he started in small screen and gained quite fame there.

23. Gul Panag

She was crowned Miss India in 1999 and by that time she was already working on TV commercials. Later she stepped into Bollywood and did some movies like Dor, Dhoop and TV series Kashmir.

24. Smriti Irani

She was the finalist of the Miss India Pageant of 1988, later on, she started working with the series of Ekta Kpoor “Kyuki saas bhi kavi bhau thi”. Now the road of her journey has completely changed.

25. Neha Dhupia

Miss India Universe 2002, Neha Dhupiya got entry into Bollywood after winning the title. He acting career has not got that well like her modeling one.