- Sonal Chauhan won Femina Miss India and Miss World Tourism titles in 2005
- She debuted in Bollywood with the film Jannat in 2008 alongside Emraan Hashmi
- Sonal acted in Telugu, Kannada, and Tamil films after her Bollywood debut
Sonal Chauhan will be among the personalities attending NDTV Yuva 2026. Ahead of her appearance at the event, here's a look back at her journey.
From Beauty Pageants To Bollywood
Sonal's journey to the movies did not begin on a film set. It began on the pageant stage. In 2005, she won the Femina Miss India title and, in the same year, was crowned Miss World Tourism. Those wins brought her into the spotlight and set her on a path that would eventually lead her to films.
In 2008, Sonal made her acting debut with Jannat, alongside Emraan Hashmi. The film introduced her to Hindi film audiences and became the first major step in her acting career.
In an exclusive interview with NDTV, Sonal said she continues to cherish the love she received for her first film.
"I love being called the Jannat Girl. I think very few actors get what I got in my first film," Sonal told NDTV.
She added that even years after the film's release, being identified by her character or the film is something she considers special.
"Till today, I am called by my character's name, or I'm known as the Jannat Girl, and why would I mind it? I think it's just beautiful that in my first film, I got so much love that the audience is still not over it," she said.
Her Journey After Bollywood Debut
After Jannat, she made her Telugu debut with Rainbow. She gradually became a familiar face in Telugu cinema, appearing in films such as Legend, Pandaga Chesko and Dictator. She was also part of Size Zero in 2015.
Sonal's career then took her to more regional industries. She made her Kannada debut with Cheluveye Ninne Nodalu in 2010 and entered Tamil cinema with Inji Iduppazhagi in 2015. Over the years, she has worked across Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Tamil films.
Now, almost two decades after her first film, Sonal is once again in the spotlight with Mirzapur: The Movie in 2026.
Sonal Chauhan On Mirzapur: The Movie's Box Office Success
In an exclusive interview with NDTV, Sonal opened up about the overwhelming response to the film.
She said, "Honestly, I don't think any one of us expected this kind of a storm at the box office. I mean, like I said, you know, we were all nervous and we didn't know how this transition from OTT to the big screen will be taken by the audience."
For Sonal, however, the audience's affection for the individual characters is more meaningful than the numbers alone.
"But obviously, it's been, it's been amazing and all the love that we're getting from the audience is something that matters more. The numbers are amazing, but the way the audience has received this film and the way they have received me as Mumtaz is just unbelievable and it's just so beautiful," she said.
She concluded, "Sometimes there are films that make a lot of money, but we don't hear or we don't get this love for each and every character. But here, it's been both. So of course, we're all very, very happy and delighted."
Mirzapur: The Movie hit the big screens on September 4.
ALSO READ: "Why Would I Mind It?": Sonal Chauhan To NDTV On Whether Jannat Overshadows Her Other Work