Shefali Shah Biography, Movies, Age, Net Worth, Awards, Husband

Know more facts about Shefali Shah’s Age, Family, Biography, Relationships, and Career. Keep reading more to get interesting about Shefali Shah

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Shefali Shah’s Biography

Shefali Shah is an Indian film television and theatre actress. She is well-known for her acting abilities and has won both local and international acclaim for her work in independent Hindi films.

Shah began her acting career on the Gujarati stage before making her television debut in 1993. She rose to prominence in 1997 for her role in the popular series Hasratein following tiny roles on television and a brief spell in the movie Rangeela (1995). 

This was followed by starring parts in the television series Adhikar (1997) Kabhie Kabhie (1997) and Raahein (1997). (1999). She received positive acclaim and a Filmfare Critics Award for her supporting role in the crime film Satya (1998) and she quickly turned her focus to film acting beginning with a major role.

Shah's career took off in the late 2010s when she moved into main roles. She earned a Filmfare Short Film Award for her role in Juice (2017) and she went on to work on two Netflix projects: the love drama Once Again (2018) and the crime miniseries Delhi Crime which won an International Emmy Award (2019).

Shefali Shah’s Age

Shefali Shah is aged 49 years old as of 2022. Shefali Shetty was born in Mumbai on May 22 1973. Her zodiac sign is Gemini.

Shefali Shah's Education

She went to the Arya Vidya Mandir School. She enrolled at Mithibai College in Vile Parle

Shefali Shah's Childhood

While she was drawn to the arts as a child including singing and dancing (she is trained in Bharatanatyam) she was not drawn to acting. Her first acting experience occurred when she was 10 years old when her schoolteacher's writer husband asked Shah's mother if she would let her daughter play a part based on Damien Thorn from The Omen (1976).

 Shah took the part with her mother's permission and would not perform again for several years. After finishing school where she studied physics but spent most of her time working in the theatre.

Shefali Shah's Family

Sudhakar Shetty a banker at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and his Gujarati wife Shobha a homeopathic doctor are her parents. Shah speaks Tulu Hindi English Marathi and Gujarati fluently. The family lived in the RBI quarters in Santa Cruz Mumbai.

Shefali Shah's Relationship

Harsh Chhaya

Shefali Shah made her acting debut in 1995 with the film Rangeela in which she played a little role but left an indelible impression on the audience. Later she portrayed Satya the film's protagonist. During this period Shefali had fallen in love with Harsh Chhaya a television actor. They married in 1997 after only dating for a short time.

Shefali Shah and Harsh Chhaya's marriage went south within a few months after they married. They split up in 2000 after a four-year relationship. Harsh Shefali's ex-husband revealed in an interview with the Hindustan Times that he saw the divorce coming and that it was a nasty one. They had relationship problems and he labeled it a closed chapter.

Vipul Amrutlal Shah

She married filmmaker Vipul Amrutlal Shah in December 2000 and they have two boys Aryaman and Maurya. Shefali resumed her life with film producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah after a nasty divorce from Harsh. The couple married in December of 2000. 
Marya and Aryaman the couple's two kids were born. It's been 22 years and Shefali and Vipul are still trying to keep the spark alive in their marriage.

Shefali Shah's Struggles

Shefali Shah recently reflected on her youth in Mumbai and remembered not having a fixed home. The actor revealed that she grew up in a lower-middle-class household that moved about a lot until her father acquired a job at the Reserve Bank of India. 

Shefali recalls staying at a little 'kholi' with her family and aunt and uncle at some point during those periods. A 'kholi' is a common form of accommodation in Mumbai's chawls often spanning 100 to 200 square feet.

Shefali Shah's Movies

Darlings

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Darlings Shah's latest film in which he co-stars alongside Alia Bhatt and Vijay Varma is a black comedy-drama that was recently published on Netflix. The story revolves around Badru and Shamshu a mother-daughter combo who abduct Hamza Badru's abusive husband in order to exact revenge on him for abusing and assaulting her and causing her miscarriage.

The two make every effort to keep him at home but his missing complaint is made after he fails to show up for work. The film depicts a cat-and-mouse chase between the police and the mother-daughter duo who attempt to conceal the kidnapping.

Satya

Satya Ram Gopal Varma's 1998 crime drama was Shefali Shah's second Bollywood film in which she played a seven-minute role that made an impression on both audiences and reviewers. She portrayed Pyaari Mhatre the wife of Manoj Bajpayee's mafia villain Bhiku Mhatre. 

The character was claimed to be based on the wife of underworld don Arun Gawli Asha Gawli. The film was a big hit and Shah's acting was praised. At the 44th Filmfare Awards she won the Screen Award for Best Supporting Actress the Critics Award for Best Actress and was nominated for the Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Waqt: The Race Against Time

This 2005 comedy-drama starring Akshay Kumar Amitabh Bachchan Priyanka Chopra and Shefali Shah. Her husband Vipul Amrutlal Shah produced and directed the film. Shah played Sumitra Thakur Akshay Kumar's character's mother in the film which drew a lot of controversies because Shah is five years younger than Kumar and was requested to play his mother. 

She did however state that she chose the job because she felt a connection to it. She was nominated for a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance.

Dil Dhadakne Do

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Shah portrays the passive-aggressive Neelam Mehra the wife of Delhi-based millionaire businessman Kamal Mehra in this 2015 multi-starrer comedy-drama directed by Zoya Akhtar. Her character is trapped in a marriage of convenience and is forced to conceal her eating condition from her chaotic family. 

Shah was initially hesitant to play the role but the film was a success and Shah's performance drew praise from reviewers earning her another nomination for a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress and a Stardust Award for Best Supporting Actress.

Ajeeb Dastaans

Ajeeb Dastaans is a four-part anthology film that will be released in 2021 and stars Shefali Shah Nushratt Bharuccha Fatima Sana Sheikh and Konkana Sen Sharma in major parts. Kayoze Irani directed her in one of the four stories titled Ankahi in which she played Natasha.

 Her character was a married woman who is unhappy in her marriage and the mother of a hearing-impaired daughter. She meets a hearing-impaired photographer Manav Kaul and falls in love with him complicating matters. The audience and critics both praised the film and Shah's performance.

Jalsa

This 2022 thriller starring Shefali Shah Vidya Balan Mohammed Iqbal Khan and Manav Kaul is set against the backdrop of a hit-and-run case that becomes increasingly intricate as the characters involved strive to conceal their wrongdoings. 

In the film Shefali Shah plays Rukhsana the babysitter of prominent journalist Maya Menon's (Vidya Balan) son whose daughter is hit and killed in an accident while she is out at night. However as the investigation of the case progresses the pieces of evidence are constantly altered and justice becomes further distant.

The Last Lear

This Indian drama film starring Shefali Shah Amitabh Bachchan Preity Zinta Arjun Rampal and Divya Dutta was released in 2007. The film tells the story of an experienced actor who is inspired by Shakespeare but has retired from acting. 

However despite his unwillingness to adapt to modern cinema he decides to play the lead in a film by an ambitious director. Shah plays Vandana Harish's caretaker and lady love who is one of the characters that tell his story via their interactions with him.

Monsoon Wedding

Shefali Shah Naseeruddin Shah Vijay Raaz and Lillete Dubey played significant parts in this 2001 comedy-drama. The film premiered at Cannes in 2001 won the Golden Lion at the Venice International Film Festival and was nominated for a Golden Globe. A musical based on the film premiered on Broadway in 2014.

Set against the backdrop of a huge large monsoon Indian wedding Shah portrays the bride's cousin who was molested as a child at the hands of her cousin's uncle who is an essential and close part of the family.

Gandhi My Father

This film which was released in 2007 centered on Mahatma Gandhi's troubled relationship with his son Harilal. Darshan Jariwala played Mahatma Gandhi Akshaye Khanna played Harilal Gandhi and Shefali Shah played Kasturba Gandhi in the film. 

Shah's role was not that of a revolutionary like Kasturba Gandhi Mahatma Gandhi's son who led and oversaw the independence movement alongside her husband. Her personal life was the focus of the part which was that of a lady divided between her love for her husband and her son who don't get along.

Shefali Shah's Career Timeline

Shefali Shah TV Show

Shefali Shah's Controversies

Waqt Casting Controversy

For years netizens have been outraged by the casting of Shefali Shah as Akshay Kumar's mother in Waqt. Shefali's portrayal of a mother to someone nearly her age has frequently been cited as an example of the film industry neglecting women by casting them in conventional roles.

Now the performer has spoken out about the casting claiming that she chose to play the role. Shefali went on to say that she has no trouble playing a mother on television because she is a mother in real life. I really don't want to play mother to someone much older than me she explained.

Shefali Shah's Networth

Shefali Shah has a net worth of $ 05 million.

Shefali Shah's Awards

• In 2018  Shefali won Filmfare Awards 2018 Best Actor Female Short Film Juice
• In 1999 Shefali won Best Performance Critics Award Satya
• In 2007  Shefali won National Awards for Best Supporting Actress in The Last Lear

15 Interesting facts about Shefali Shah

• Shefali was born and raised in a non-filmic family.
• Shefali spent her childhood at the RBI quarters in Santa Cruz Mumbai.
• Shefali began her career as a television actor.
• Shefali has appeared in a variety of Hindi TV shows including 'Ramayan' (2008) 'Hasratein' 'Naya Nukkad ' and others.
• Before making her feature film debut with 'Satya' (1998) she appeared in 'Rangeela ' in which she had only a few scenes.
• Shefali has starred in numerous Hindi films including 'Mohabbatein ' 'Commando 2 ' and 'Karthik Calling Karthik ' among others.
• Shefali gained to prominence as Manoj Bajpayee's wife in the 1998 film Satya.
• Shefali began portraying mother roles at the age of 21.
• She was practically half Amitabh Bachchan's age (32 years old) when she played his wife in the film 'Waqt: The Race Against Time ' while her on-screen son Akshay Kumar was 37 at the time.
• Shefali has also appeared in the crime-themed TV serial 'Savdhaan India'.
• She has appeared in a number of short films and online series.
• In 2016 she spent three months studying painting at Metàfora - Studio Arts in Spain.
• Shefali frequently exhibits her paintings at various shows and galleries and they are available for purchase online.
• She appeared in the Netflix web series 'Delhi Crime ' which is based on the '2012 Delhi Gang Rape ' in 2019. (Nirbhaya).
• Shefali is conversant in five languages: Tulu Hindi English Marathi and Gujarati.

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