Bollywood is undoubtedly challenged by the South Indian film industry. Numerous South Indian actresses have worked their charm in Bollywood and are well-known to everyone. However, let’s switch gears right away and talk about North Indian women who worked in Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, and Telugu movies. So, here’s a list of North Indian actresses who are held in high regard in South Indian cinema.
- Bhumika Chawla
Bhumika Chawla’s performance with Salman Khan in “Tere Naam” is still well-known. There is nothing else to highlight her career in the Bollywood industry, but Tollywood is where she found success. She has worked in more than 50 films over the course of her 20-year career, including Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam. With the 2010 release of “Thakita Thakita,” she has also entered the world of production.
- Hansika Motwani
Hansika began her acting career at a young age and landed a number of roles. Her breakthrough performance came in the Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta-starring film “Koi Mil Gaya.” Later on, Govinda and Himesh Reshammiya, who were twice her age at the time, were cast opposite her. The actress gave South Indian films a shot and won the Filmfare Best Female Debut award for her work in “Desamuduru.”
- Taapsee Pannu
Taapsee is one of the few actresses who achieved success in both Tollywood and Bollywood. She played a pivotal part in the critically acclaimed film “Pink,” but even before that, she had worked on several Tamil and Telugu movies. At the time she decided to make her acting debut in the 2010 film “Jhummandi Naadam,” she was a student at Guru Tegh Bahadur Institute of Technology, where she was majoring in computer science engineering.
- Tamannaah Bhatia
At the age of 15, Tamannaah Bhatia made her acting debut in the Telugu movie “Sri.” Her Hindi film “Chaand Sa Roshan Chehra” struggled miserably at the box office that same year. But she received favorable reviews for the Telugu film “Happy Days,” which also did well at the box office. With movies like “Baahubali” under her belt, the actress hasn’t looked back since and has progressed to become one of the most successful actresses of her generation.
- Kajal Aggarwal
With the 2004 film “Kyun! Ho Gaya Na,” Kajal made her big-screen debut, playing the sister of Aishwarya Rai. Despite having little success in Bollywood, she moved on to Tollywood and experienced great success there. With more than 50 films to her credit, the actress got recognition for her work in blockbuster films like Chandamama, Thuppakki, and Magadheera.
- Jyothika Sadanah Saravanan
To date, the actress’s only Hindi film is Priyadarshan’s “Doli Saja Ke Rakhna,” which she starred in in 1998. However, her career in the Tamil, Telugu, and Malayalam film industries in South India has been very successful. A few of her critically acclaimed films include Chandramukhi, Perazhagan, and Snegithiye.
- Shalini Panday
Before making her big-screen debut, Shalini had a previous career as a theater performer. Her debut movie in Tollywood, “Arjun Reddy,” became a huge hit. It was such a massive phenomenon that it even received a Hindi remake starring Shahid Kapoor, titled “Kabir Singh.”
