Rati Agnihotri is a veteran Indian actress. Her portfolio mainly includes films in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.
Agnihotri was born in Bareilly Uttar Pradesh in a punjabi family. She had her first modelling stint at age 10. When she was a teenager, her father relocated the family to Madras, Tamil Nadu because of his job. There, she attended Good Shepherd's Convent School and acted in a scho...Rati Agnihotri is a veteran Indian actress. Her portfolio mainly includes films in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Kannada.
Agnihotri was born in Bareilly Uttar Pradesh in a punjabi family. She had her first modelling stint at age 10. When she was a teenager, her father relocated the family to Madras, Tamil Nadu because of his job. There, she attended Good Shepherd's Convent School and acted in a school play.
Bharathiraja, one of Tamil film's prominent directors, was in the audience and was searching for a heroine to star in his new film. He met with Rati's father and promised the film would wrap in a month. Her father reluctantly agreed, and a sixteen-year-old Rati was very excited to star in her first film, Puthiya Vaarpugal (1979).
It was also her hero Bhagyaraj's first film, and he coached her with her lines by teaching her Tamil. The film became a blockbuster, with Rati an overnight sensation. Bharathiraj soon directed her in her second film, Niram Maaratha Pookkal (1979). Even though she was Punjabi, South Indian audiences embraced her as one of their own. She reciprocated by calling herself "Tamilian at heart" and calling Madras her home. She also starred in Telugu and Kannada films and made 32 films in just three years. She is popular in Karnataka due to her hot rain songs with Vishnuvardhan that are frequently shown in the Midnight Masala TV program.
Rati's marriage to businessman and architect Anil Virwani on 9 February 1985, coupled with her father's death, convinced Rati to leave Hindi films when she was at the top. On 28 November 1986, she gave birth to her only son, Tanuj Virwani, and she concentrated on raising him and focusing on other creative interests like architectural creations for her husband. In 2015, she separated from Virwani after thirty years of marriage.
After 16 years of saying no to films, Rati finally said yes realizing that her son is growing up and she had more time for herself. Her family supported her decision. Her comeback started with playing Kajol's glamorous mother in Kuch Khatti Kuch Meethi (2001). More film offers came in, and she took them, such as Yaadein (2001) and Dev (2004). After a 20-year absence from South Indian films, she returned in the Tamil film Majunu (2001). She made her Malayalam debut in Anyar (2003), English debut in An Ode to Lost Love (2003), and Bengali debut in Aaina-te (2008). She has acted on stage in plays such as Please Divorce Me Darling (2005) and television serials, such as Sixer (2005). Besides acting, she devotes time to social causes like cancer and AIDS. Her son Tanuj Virwani followed in her footsteps by becoming an actor.
