Padmapriya JanakiramanInitial system, simply credited as Padmapriya, is an Indian film actress and model. A classical bharatanatyam dancer, Padmapriya made her acting debut in the Telugu-language film Seenu Vasanthi Lakshmi (2003), following which she appeared in a number of Malayalam and Tamil-language films alongside leading actors. In a span of 5 years, she has appeared in nearly 30 films in Ma...Padmapriya JanakiramanInitial system, simply credited as Padmapriya, is an Indian film actress and model. A classical bharatanatyam dancer, Padmapriya made her acting debut in the Telugu-language film Seenu Vasanthi Lakshmi (2003), following which she appeared in a number of Malayalam and Tamil-language films alongside leading actors. In a span of 5 years, she has appeared in nearly 30 films in Malayalam, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Hindi and has received several major South Indian awards. She is probably best known for her critically acclaimed performances in the Malayalam-language films Kaazhcha, Karutha Pakshikal, Pazhassi Raja and the Tamil-language films Thavamai Thavamirundhu and Mirugam.
Padmapriya was born in Delhi to Tamil parents Janakiraman, a brigadier in the Indian Army, and Vijaya and brought up in Punjab.
She did her schooling at Kendriya Vidyalaya, Trimulgherry, Secunderabad, Andhra Pradesh and studied at Loyola Academy, Alwal, Secunderabad, from which she graduated with a B. Com degree. Later, she pursued an MBA degree in finance at Kirloskar Institute of Advanced Management Studies, Harihar. She was then working for GE Capital as a risk consultant in Bangalore and Gurgaon. After GE she was with Symphony in Bangalore. During her free-time, she ventured into modelling, which would later pave her way to the film business and acting. She has also won Miss Andhra Pradesh in 2001. While studying in 12th class in Andhra Pradesh, Padmapriya did a music album.
She also holds a PG Diploma in Environmental Law from National Law School of India University[citation needed] and Masters in Public Administration from New York University.
Padmapriya made her acting debut in the 2003 Telugu film Seenu Vasanthi Lakshmi, a remake of the Tamil film Kasi, which itself was a remake of the Malayalam film Vasanthiyum Lakshmiyum Pinne Njaanum. She played the role of a sexually exploited poor sister of a blind man in the film. Padmapriya says, she accepted this offer "for the sake of friendship". This made possible her entry into the Malayalam film industry in the same year, starring in the film Kaazhcha alongside superstar Mammootty. For her portrayal of a mother of a young girl, who struggles to accommodate another child, a victim of the Gujarat earthquake, she received rave reviews and the Asianet Award for Best Female New Face of the Year.
In 2005, she acted in her first Tamil-language film, Thavamai Thavamirundhu, a drama that dealt with familial bond, depicting a father-son relationship, in which she was paired opposite actor-director Cheran. She played a simple college girl in the film, which garnered highly positive reviews and won several awards at major Indian award ceremonies, including a National Film Award (for Best Film on Family Welfare). Padmapriya herself was awarded the Filmfare Award for Best Debut Actress for her critically acclaimed performance. She next starred in the Malayalam film Rajamanikyam again alongside Mammootty. The comedy film, featuring also Rahman and Sindhu Menon, was a universal blockbuster, becoming the most popular film of the year, Padmapriya's highest-grossing film till date and even the highest-grosser in the history of Malayalam cinema, after Twenty:20.
