The 15 Hottest Female Celebrities From India

India: once the Jewel in the Crown of the British Empire, a land of amazing beauty and history. A popular destination spot, it gets bad press for some of its slums but still some of the most amazing sights imaginable. It also gets attention for providing the world with some of the most attractive people imaginable. Something about this land lends itself to adding a spark to the DNA and allowing some incredibly gorgeous woman to come out and be huge stars. Models, singers and especially actress in the booming Bollywood, ladies of Indian descent just have something special to set them apart.

Many of them have been huge in their native land and others spreading that fame across the world. True, many have to put up with cliché roles of “ethnic lady” or almost a goddess part but they have the talent to make them shine above that nicely. No matter their chosen field, these ladies provide alluring beauty, sex appeal and an overall charisma that can’t be touched. There are so many to choose from that it’s hard to narrow down but here we are with the fifteen most beautiful and sexy ladies from India and how this nation continues to provide the world with beauty beyond its borders.

15. Freida Pinto

Born in Mumbai, Pinto was inspired to get into acting after seeing Charlize Theron’s performance in Monster. After making money as a model, she made a major debut in the Oscar-winning smash Slumdog Millionaire, launching her to instant stardom. Since then, she’s bounced between India and Hollywood in films from Rise of the Planet of the Apes to Immortals and goes out of her way not to play only “Indian roles.” She doesn’t show off too much but still a gorgeous presence and her talent adding to her appeal to make her one of the best young breakouts from her nation.

14. Mallika Sherawat

Her name means “Queen” and it certainly fits for the “darling of drama.” With her bountiful chest adding to her lovely form, Sherawat has been a rising starlet for several years in India, first as a sex symbol but then winning critical acclaim for movies like Side Effects of Love to add to her presence. She’s tried to crossover to American fare to little success (Hisss and Politics of Love) but did star as the centerpiece for an Indian version of The Bachelorette which naturally got plenty of attention as many a man would love a shot with his regal presence.

13. Samantha Prabhu

At only 28, she’s already earned three of India’s prized Filmfare Awards and is one of the highest-paid actresses in the country. Her roles have ranged from drama to comedy to some action movies and has proven herself expert at balancing between critically acclaimed parts like Eega and major box office hits. It helps that she’s a gorgeous figure and even when she had to take a break in 2012 due to a harsh illness, she came back still beautiful, doing various sponsorships and her own charity. Her star is high and looks to be getting even bigger to keep her high in demand in both movies and many an admirer’s face.

12. Riya Sen

The daughter of legendary Bollywood beauty Moon Moon, Sen began as a model at 16 and quickly rose to fame with various film roles to show her beauty off. She caused a mini-scandal in 2004 when she posed partially nude for a calendar but it ended up a best-seller and she was featured in more as well as various magazine covers. That’s not to mention a rather racy tape with her then boyfriend that pushed her sexy presence up more and Sen has used that well to prove heat runs in her family.

11. Anushka Sharma

The daughter of an army officer, Sharma says that being a “military brat” actually helped her in becoming an actress by exposing her to so many places and people. She intended to just be a model and was instantly good at it with her lush hair and curves getting her on the cover of numerous magazines. She made her film debut in the hit A Match Made By God with good reviews for herself and followed it with the sleeper hit Band Baaja Baaraat to push her more to prominence. Sharma has added numerous successes, including PK, the highest-grossing Indian film of all time. Sadly, she followed it with the epic flop Bombay Velvet but bounced back with the musical success Let the Heart Beat which showcased her fantastic dance moves. Still hard at work, Sharma is ready to maintain her success and set herself up as one of the current biggest stars of her native land.

10. Sonali Bendre

One of the most revered stars of the Bollywood world, Bendre has been an actress since the ‘90s, one of the few to work for all of the industry’s iconic “Four Khans.” She’s starred opposite the most famous leading men in Bollywood as well as showing off her terrific dance moves. She moved onto TV work as judge on India’s Got Talent and other programs, taking a long break from movies to concentrate on her family. She remained a presence in TV shows and red carpet events, not to mention promotional work, her stunning beauty always helping her stand out and making her one of the most famous ladies in the country. But she seems to be making a comeback, prepping various projects and proving age has not slowed her down but ready to remind the newcomers why she’s an icon of the business as well as one of the most gorgeous.

9. Sunny Leone

Born in Canada, Sunny soon moved to her parents’ home of India and became a rising starlet in the Bollywood world. Of course, she’s better known for her work in the adult entertainment industry, a former Penthouse Pet of the Year and various films for Vivid Video. While that’s not made her as hugely popular in the more traditional Indian film world, she has gotten more mainstream roles and her amazing body and charm ensures that, with or without clothes, Leone is always sunny on screen.

8. Sonam Kapoor

Her father, Anil, is one of India’s most famed actors with his role in Slumdog Millionaire and Sonam is following in his footsteps nicely. Her first breakouts weren’t successes at the box office but she was hailed as a firecracker ready to take off and she soon found she was better suited to dramas than more comedic roles and received praise for movies like Receive a Treasure Called Love, one of the bigger hits of recent times in Bollywood. At only 30, she’s on the rise nicely and looks to showcase herself as one of the best new actresses around.

7. Chitrangada Singh

While pushing 40, Singh looks as hot as she did in her 20’s, if not more so. Her dark skin and eyes have been a presence in several major Bollywood hits, her debut in Kal winning her several awards. She’s added to it with singing and modeling and her movies may not be as plentiful as others but still include some major hits and her presence always shines on the red carpet with her dazzling smile and proof women get sexier with age.

6. Katrina Kaif

Born in Hong Kong, Kaif emigrated to her parents’ homeland to soon get work as a model with her lovely looks and alluring air getting her film work. Some filmmakers were wary due to her poor grasp of Hindi and while she had several romantic hits, she was criticized for playing the same role a lot. She answered with her turn in the drama New York as a woman marrying a terrorist and has added huge hits like Dhoom 3 to her resume. While she’s guarded about her personal life, she’s a standout on the red carpet and regularly cited as one of the best ladies to watch in all of Bollywood.

5. Alia Bhatt

Only 22, this youngster is starting a very large rise, the daughter of filmmakers, she made her debut as a child in some of their productions. She’s grown up very nicely with a lovely smile, great body and huge acclaim for her part as a girl attracted to her kidnapper in the hit Highway. She also sings the songs for some of her films and a hot attraction for magazine covers. She’s young but looks to be starting a career to put her among the best of the hottest of India’s lovely ladies.

4. Archie Panjabi

Technically she was born in England but to Hindi immigrants and it’s clear with her amazing looks. Rising as an actress in England, Panjabi leapt to stardom with her role as bisexual, leather clad investigator Kalinda on The Good Wife. Her cool demeanor but sultry feel pushed every scene she was in, winning her an Emmy award and one of the best parts of the show to the point her leaving it had many fans also exiting. She’s played roles in movies and the British series The Fall and wherever she looks to land next, is sure to make waves as a lovely lady with scorching sex appeal to spare.

3. Priyanka Chopra

A Miss World 2000, Chopra quickly established herself as one of the top stars of Bollywood, starring in several box office hits and bringing her terrific sex appeal to her projects to help enhance them nicely. She’s a top source for endorsements as well as writing columns for various magazines and newspapers in India on top of her work for charities. American audiences have quickly found her thanks to her starring role on the hit drama Quantico that’s shown her sexy side off very nicely and how she’s a hot lady no matter where she plies her craft.

2. Padma Lakshmi

She got her start as a model which is quite obvious with her tall and smooth build and lovely features. However, Padma soon became more famous as the author of various cookbooks, mixing her classic Indian style for mainstream American audiences. The Food Network soon came calling to boost her to fame as a chef and hostess and since the beginning, she’s been the star judge of Top Chef. She also gets attention for such things as a bikini photo that rocked many viewers and her smooth and silky voice making the various challenges worth watching.

1. Aishwarya Rai

Regularly topping lists of the Most Beautiful People in the world, Rai was the winner of the Miss World pageant in 1994 and used that to push herself to entertainment. Since then, she has been one of the biggest stars in all of Bollywood with her lush mane of dark hair, gorgeous deep eyes and numerous film awards. She’s moved from just Bollywood to mainstream fare in the United States like the popular Bride and Prejudice and Pink Panther 2. In every shot, she is the epitome of glamour with a beauty that almost seems unearthly and gorgeous not just for her own nation but any one and gorgeous in a way few can top.