Tabu

Known for her beauty and willingness to stretch beyond the trappings of lighter Bollywood fare, acclaimed Indian actress Tabu has managed to carve out a niche making serious movies that highlight her dramatic skills. Although she has starred in some popular features such as the anti-war epic "Border" (1997) and the comedy "Biwi No. 1" (1999), her best-known work has been in smaller, more dramatically substantial productions. In 1996, Tabu played one of the leads in the political thriller "Maachis," a film set during the 1984 Punjab riots and the makings of a terrorist. A year later, Tabu co-starred in the family drama "Virasat" (1997), for which she was nominated for the Hindi Filmfare Award for best actress. Her role in another drama, "Hu Tu Tu" (1999), did finally land her the Filmfare Award, and in 2000 for her role in "Astitva," she walked away with the critics' award for best actress. She later starred opposite actors Irrfan Kahn and Pankaj Kapoor in an Indian version of "Macbeth" (2003). The majority of her work has been in her homeland, but Tabu ventured into Hollywood filmmaking with Mira Nair's "The Namesake" (2006) and Ang Lee's stylish "Life of Pi" (2012).