Bollywood artistes who’ve made their mark in Hollywood

We bring you a list of the most famous Bollywood big names who’ve pursued parallel careers abroad.

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan

Aishwarya Rai entered the public eye as the Miss World winner in 1994. She proved to be a capable actress despite being referred to as the most beautiful woman in the world. She has appeared in several iconic Bollywood films from the 2000s, including Mohabbatein and Devdas, which was nominated for a BAFTA for Best Foreign Language Film. She appeared in a number of Hollywood films, including Mistress Of Spices, The Last Legion, The Pink Panther 2 and the hard-hitting Provoked as the lead actress and was praised for her work.

Ali Fazal

Ali Fazal’s boyish charm has found a lot of takers in Hollywood with roles in Furious 7 and Death On The Nile. He co-starred in Victoria And Abdul with supremely talented Judie Dench in 2017. He recently landed a key role in the hit Gerard Butler starrer, Kandahar, playing the main antagonist. Fazal appears to be on his way to succeeding the late Irrfan Khan as the most recognisable ones.

Amitabh Bachchan

Amitabh Bachchan made a brief appearance as the shady underworld businessman Meyer Wolfsheim in the 2013 film The Great Gatsby. Leonardo DiCaprio couldn’t help but be impressed by Bachchan’s talent. “He couldn’t be a more gentle, wonderful individual to work with or astoundingly talented. To come and play Meyer Wolfsheim in this movie and embody that roughness and mystery, everything that comes out of his mouth is filled with so much more and so much presence. And then you see the camera cut, and he’s the perfect gentleman—just a joy to be around and a wonderful collaborator. He’s a magnificent actor, and I was honoured to work with him,” he said. In fact, during a media interview at the KBC event, AB revealed that he did not charge for the role.

Anil Kapoor

Anil Kapoor’s wide range and commanding screen presence made him an ideal choice for Hollywood roles. Anil Kapoor’s first appearance in the West was in Slumdog Millionaire, in which he played the host of a reality show. In addition, he has appeared in Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol and the action drama series 24.

Anupam Kher

Anupam Kher needs no introduction as a Bollywood mainstay and prolific actor, having appeared in over 500 films. He is frequently seen portraying nuanced paternal figures and he is capable of slipping into his roles with effortless grace. His understated, tempered performances have made him a popular choice for many Hollywood films. His performances in English-language films include The Big Sick, Silver Linings Playbook, and A Family Man.

Dimple Kapadia

Dimple Kapadia plays the enigmatic wife of a major arms dealer in Mumbai in Christopher Nolan’s film Tenet. But she pulls a bait-and-switch when she reveals herself to be the one making the decisions. “A masculine front in a man’s world has its uses,” her character tells the Protagonist (John David Washington). Her natural acting style complemented the tense, thrilling tone of the film.

Freida Pinto

With the success of Slumdog Millionaire, in which she plays Jamal’s love interest Latika, Freida Pinto became an overnight global star. Despite the fact that she was born and raised in India, the success of Slumdog Millionaire catapulted her to a career in the Hollywood film industry. Her direct follow-up to that film was Woody Allen’s You Will Meet A Tall, Dark Stranger. Her film roles have ranged from the major sci-fi film Rise of the Planet of the Apes to the art drama Knight of Cups and the neo-western action film Blunt Force Trauma.

Irrfan Khan

Irrfan Khan made his international debut with Asif Kapadia’s The Warrior (2001), which won the BAFTA Alexander Korda Award for Best British Film. He rose to international prominence in 2008 as a police inspector in British director Danny Boyle’s drama Slumdog Millionaire, which received eight Academy Awards and seven BAFTA Awards. Khan then moved on to a larger role in Life of Pi, in which he played the eponymous Pi. The film received numerous Golden Globe and Academy Award nominations. He also appeared in major US films such as The Amazing Spider-Man, Jurassic World and Inferno.

 Naseeruddin Shah

In 2003, Naseer was a part of an international film project called The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, co-starring Sean Connery as Allan Quatermain. Naseer played Captain Nemo, the eccentric genius-villain from 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea. But what made Naseeruddin an international phenomenon was a film rooted in Indian sensibilities that everyone could relate to. It was Mira Nair’s ode to big, fat North Indian weddings, – Monsoon Wedding. Did you know he was also approached to play Albus Dumbledore in the massively popular Harry Potter franchise?

Om Puri  

Om Puri has appeared in Bollywood, British,and Pakistani films. The late actor appeared in the Academy Award-winning film Gandhi, directed by Richard Attenborough. He also starred as Hazari Pal in Roland Joffe’s City of Joy. The veteran actor also appeared in Michael Winterbottom’s Code 46, Damien O’Donnell’s East Is East, and Lasse Hallström’s The Hundred-Foot Journey, all directed by Mike Nichols. His malleable expressions and versatility were among the characteristics that drew directors to him. The actor was remembered and honoured at the 89th Academy Awards for his contribution to cinema, along with the likes of Carrie Fisher, Bill Paxton and many more.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas

Priyanka Chopra Jonas is one of the few Indian actors on this list who has successfully broken into Hollywood. The former Miss World signed on to play Alex Parrish in the action thriller Quantico in 2015. Her performance in the American series received critical acclaim, paving the way for many Hollywood film roles. News sites named her performance as the antagonist in the 2017 film Baywatch as the best among the cast members. She is currently attached to several major Hollywood projects, including the series Citadel and is set to share screen space with Idris Elba and John Cena in Heads Of State.

Randeep Hooda

Randeep Hooda first came onto the screen as Rahul in Mira Nair’s most celebrated work till date, Monsoon Wedding. With the action thriller Extraction, Randeep Hooda continued to make waves in international waters in 2020. Hooda holds his own as Saju Rav, a former Indian special operations colonel, alongside Chris Hemsworth. The suspenseful thriller will keep you glued to the screen.

Shabana Azmi

Shabana Azmi is yet another veteran star who has managed to make it big in Hollywood. The bonafide force of nature in the Indian film industry made a world of a difference with her true-to-life and terrific acting prowess. Shabana Azmi didn’t just act, but she lived her characters onscreen so much that she blew life into them. For this very reason she caught the eye of Steven Speilberg who casted her in Halo as a part of the show’s colour blind casting. She also recently was a part of the classic Hollywood romcom What’s Love Got To Do With It alongside Hollywood stalwarts like Emma Thompson and Lily James. Her other Western credits include John Schlesinger’s Madame Sousatzka (1988), Roland Joffe’s City of Joy (1992), Blake Edwards’ Son of the Pink Panther (1993) and Deepa Mehta’s Fire (1996) and Midnight’s Children (2012).