Former Miss Afghanistan Vida Samadzai is said to soon be seen in an item number in a forthcoming film.
Former Miss Afghanistan Vida Samadzai was in Delhi recently on a business trip.
According to reports, the model has an item number on the cards. She said she was in talks with a director who is currently shooting in Delhi. The only two films based in the capital are Saif Ali Khan's Agent Vinod and Ladies vs Ricky Bahl, starring the Band Baaja Baaraat jodi Anushka and Ranveer. So which will it be Vida?
After introducing Brazilian supermodel Giselle Monteiro in Love Aaj Kal, director Imtiaz Ali is all set to launch a New York based half Pakistani, half Czech supermodel Nargis Fakhri in his upcoming movie Rockstar.
The 21-year-old Nargis, who has also featured in the 2009 Kingfisher Calendar has been cast opposite Ranbir Kapoor in the movie. According to rumours, Nargis will be playing a dancer in Rockstar. (Photo: Kingfisher Calendar)
Nargis grew up in New York and was a contestant on Cycle 3 of America's Next Topmodel competition. She was voted off in the first episode.
Nargis joins a long list of women from foreign shores who came to India and conquered hearts. Here's a look at some of the stunning international talent that Bollywood has acquired over the years.(Photo: Kingfisher Calendar)
Sarah Thompson, known for her role in Cruel Intentions 2, was seen romancing Ranbir Kapoor in Prakash Jha's political thriller Rajneeti.
Mexican actress and model Bárbara Mori was seen getting hot and steamy with Hrithik Roshan in Kites. In fact the scenes involving Bárbara and Hrithik are so hot that papa Roshan was reportedly ordered off the sets by director Anurag Basu to put his leading couple at ease. Now that's one Latin bombshell everyone is hoping will explode!
Former Miss Sri Lanka Jacqueline Fernandez made her debut opposite superstar Amitabh Bachchan in Aladin, for which she won the IIFA Award for Best Debut Actress.
Australian pop singer, songwriter, and actress Kylie Minogue's first brush with Bollywood has not been a happy one. She failed to impress critics in India with her song and dance in Anthony D'Souza's multi-starrer Blue.
Her guest appearance in the film, for which she reportedly received a whopping $1 million, fell flat along with her song Chiggy Wiggy.
Ali Larter too had an ominous start to her Bollywood career. Her debut film was the Salman Khan-starrer Marigold and it ended in box office catastrophe. However the American actress and fashion model insists her love affair with Indian cinema is far from over. "We watched a bunch of Salman Khan's movies and what was incredible to me was they're just about joy. They're about sheer entertainment. To the amount of people who watch Bollywood movies, it allows them to dream in life. They dream of better places, foods and colors. It just excites your senses in so many ways. There's something so joyous about them," she was quoted as saying.
Claudia Ciesla, who sizzled on the small screen as a Bigg Boss housemate, is a German model, actress and singer of Polish descent.
A 22-year-old Claudia starred in Karma - Crime. Passion. Reincarnation, a $5 million Hollywood film made in India. If reports are to be believed, she is currently shooting a guest role for the film Private Number in Bangalore with director Anand Kumar.
Brande Roderick was cast opposite Ritesh Deshmukh in the 2003 comedy Out of Control, as the American wife of an Indian man who, on a visit to India, gets pressured by his family into marrying a local girl. While the film didn't exactly send the cash registers 'out of control', this former Playboy Playmate more than made up for any disappointment.
She was perhaps Bollywood's best kept secret till Saif Ali Khan's Love Aaj Kal actually hit the theatres. When 19-year-old Brazilian model Giselle Monteiro first hit B-town, she couldn't speak Hindi or dance. However that small problem didn't stop her from making a name for herself as Harleen Kaur. Interestingly, Giselle auditioned to play Jo, Saif's girlfriend in the second half of of the film, but it was director Imtiaz Ali's wife who thought Giselle fit the bill for the 1965-girl-next-door Harleen. And rest, as they say, is history.
Giselle Monteiro wasn't the only foreign face in Love Aaj Kal. The film also saw Florence Brudenell-Bruce. In the film, she played Saif's Swiss Miss Jo, the part originally sought by Giselle.
Former Miss Universe UK Lisa Lazarus had a small part to play in the Salman Khan starrer Veer.
Charlie Sheen's ex Denise Richards stepped onto the Bollywood stage with Kambakkht Ishq. The Bond girl made a guest appearance as herself in this Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor starrer.
Of Norwegian-Iranian parentage, Negar Khan shot to fame with the Chadti Jawani remix video. She went on to act in films like Rudraksh, Shaadi Ka Laddoo and Double Cross: Ek Dhoka.
Bruna Abdullah is another Brazilian beauty who has been making waves in India. She made her name hosting India's Hottest show on Channel V and there could certainly have been few other women so perfectly qualified for the job. Bruna has already made the shift from the small to the big screen with a bold item number Rehem Kare in Anubhav Sinha's Cash (2007).
Although born and brought up in India, Kalki Koechlin, the actress who made waves with her debut film Dev D, is of French descent. After a brief stint in theatre, Kalki decided to try her luck in Bollywood and was cast as Chandramukhi (Chanda) in the film, a performance that received much critical acclaim.
South African model Ilene Hamann got her break in Bollywood with Pooja Bhatt's Rog in 2005. Although the film didn't do too well at the box office, Ilene was noticed for her performance.
If the public choked on this popcorn, don't blame Jelena Jakovljevic. The Dubai-based Serbian ramp scorcher's item number Dupatta Beimaan Re was one of the high points in the film Popcorn Khao Mast Ho Jao that sank without a trace at the box office.
Linda Arsenio is an American actress and model from Texas. While she has made special appearances in films like Mumbai Salsa and Aloo Chaat, she is perhaps best known for her performance as Jessica Beckham in the 2006 Hindi film Kabul Express.
Rosa Catalano has had a tough time overcoming the tag of superstar Saif Ali Khan's ex-girlfriend. Although the Italian beauty moved to India for Saif, she decided to stay on and try her luck in Bollywood after the couple split. She was seen in a sizzling item number Jaane Kyun for Samar Khan's Shaurya and then in films like Nakshatra and Monopoly.
Once upon a time 'Bijli girl' Yana Gupta wanted to dance her way into the record books. "I want to set a record by working in the most number of item songs. Crossing 100 should not be too difficult," she was quoted as saying. Since then the Czech-born beauty has gone on to ample justice to her name that literally means 'gift of the Gods'. Besides Babuji from Dum she has been seen in films like Kaisay Kahein, Aparichit and Rakht.
Yana has even made her mark on the small screen, with her participation in the reality shows Khataron Ke Khiladi and Jhalak Dikhla Jaa.
Thai singer, model and actress Tata Young has never shied away from her image as a sex symbol. With albums like Sexy, Naughty, Bitchy behind her, this popular Asian star was voted as one of the '50 sexiest women in the world' by Malaysian publications.
In 2004 Young expanded her reach to India, recording the song, Dhoom Dhoom for the Bollywood blockbuster Dhoom.
Tania Zaetta, Australian actress of Italian origin and television presenter, made a mark as an American billionaire's wife in the 2005 comedy Bunty Aur Babli, and also starred in Salaam Namaste the same year. In 2008, she appeared in another Bollywood film Mr. White Mr. Black.
US-born British actress Antonia Bernath made her feature film debut with Subhash Ghai's Kisna: The Warrior Poet in 2005.
It was considered a minor casting coup when writer-director Kaizad Gustad managed to rope in Bo Derek for his film Boom. Even though the film had three hotties Madhu Sapre, Padma Lakshmi and Katrina Kaif in leading roles, Derek, the veteran of many Playboy appearances, managed to hold her own.
Aerobics instructor and Thai-Danish actress Lena Christensen overcame the challenge from 100 other girls to bag the leading role in Nagesh Kukunoor's Bombay to Bangkok (2008).
Shannon Esra, an actress from South Africa, made her Bollywood debut with her portrayal of Stephanie in Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love. Dying her hair blonde and speaking in an American accent, Esra played a Canadian who travels to India to stop her boyfriend (played by Kushal Punjabi) from marrying another.
English actress Alice Patten won many hearts for her nuanced portrayal of Sue McKinley in the 2006 cult film Rang De Basanti. Despite the film's resounding success, Patten has shown no hurry to return to Bollywood. "I ought to try my hand at other kinds of films," she was quoted as saying in an interview.
Rachel Shelley was already a well established actress in the United Kingdom, before playing Elizabeth Russell opposite Aamir Khan in Lagaan in 2001. The film went on to receive an Academy Award nomination for Best Foreign Film.
No list of foreign beauties in India could be complete without making a mention of the women from Pakistan who have lit up our silver screen. Pakistani actresses like Salma Agha (Nikah, PatiPatni, Tawai), Zeba Bakhtiyar (Heena), Somy Ali (Andolan, Buland, Krishnaavtar) and Meera Khan (Nazar) all crossed over to make their mark.
