Celebrity and Fitness: Nethra Raghuraman

Born 29 November 1976
Nethra Raghuraman is an actress and model from Vadodara, Gujarat India.

Former Femina Miss India Nethra Raghuraman has shunned the big route to stardom in Bollywood.

Having made her mark in Govind Nihalani’s “Thakshak” and Mahesh Mathai’s “Bhopal Express” she is looking forward to her latest film “Avgat” which, she is convinced, will establish her credentials as a mature actress. Directed by Mohan Sharma, “Avgat” is a film that gives insights into the world of politics and it’s nexus with the underworld.

It is the story of a young man Ramakant Navrekar ( played by the Marathi actor Ajinkya Deo) who is drawn into the vortex of crime to fend for his old mother and two siblings. An ambitious politician takes him under his wing and uses him as a pawn to fulfill his nefarious motives.

Nethra’s role in the film is that of a simple girl, Sudha who is secretly in love with Ramakant. Sudha wants Ramakant to change his ways but she is helpless to see him sucked more and more into the whirlpool of netherworld.

Now, being a South Indian Nethra isn’t well versed with Hindi. So to get her diction perfect in “Avgat” Nethra concedes she “read a lot of Hindi books and saw as many Hindi films as possible”. Although the film (released on June 1) hasn’t been publicized in a big way, Nethra is sure her performance will come to the notice of movie aficionados.

Nethra has been inundated by spate of offers from Bollywood’s dream merchants after her debut in “Thakshak” but she hasn’t shown much interest in doing the Barbie doll kind of roles. “I’m happy to be a model and consider a film offer only if the role is good,” concedes this dusky lass from Bangalore.

She has been selected as Look of the Year contest winner for Femina magazine in 1997. She also won the Best female newcomer title at Star Screen Awards in 2000. Her most notable films include Thakshak by Govind Nihalani. She is also the winner of popular TV show Khataron Ke Khiladi hosted by superstar Akshay Kumar.