Pooja Hegde

Pooja Hegde (/puːdʒɑː hɛɡdeɪ/ born 13 October 1990) is an Indian actress who appears in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil films. The second runner-up at the 2010 Miss Universe India beauty pageant, Hegde is one of South India's highest-paid actresses and has received four SIIMA Awards.
Hegde accepted offers to join the Indian film industry following her pageant wins. Her acting debut came in the Tamil film Mugamoodi (2012). She had her first Telugu release in Oka Laila Kosam (2014) followed by her first Hindi film in the poorly received Mohenjo Daro (2016).
Hegde won the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu for her performances in Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020) and Most Eligible Bachelor (2021). She was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Telugu for Oka Laila Kosam, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo and Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava (2018). Her other commercially successful films include Duvvada Jagannadham (2017), Maharshi (2019), Gaddalakonda Ganesh (2019) and Housefull 4 (2019). This success was followed by several poorly received films.
Pooja Hegde was born on 13 October 1990 and states she was raised up in Mumbai, Maharashtra in a Tulu-speaking Bunt family. Her father, Manjunath Hegde, is a criminal lawyer and her mother, Latha Hegde, is a Immunologist and entrepreneur. They are originally from Udupi, Karnataka. Her elder brother Rishabh Hegde, is an orthopaedic surgeon. Besides Tulu, she is fluent in English, Hindi, Marathi and Kannada. She later learnt Telugu following a career in her respective cinema. She considers Bengaluru as her home town, and maintains strong connections there. She did her schooling in Maneckji Cooper Education Trust School, Mumbai. She went to M. M. K. College, graduating with a Bachelor of Commerce degree. She trained in classical dance and music for ten years and showed an interest in traditional dance forms, including Bharatanatyam. Hegde has said that she was shy and introvert child. "When I got into college, I wanted to change that about myself. So I enrolled in every single extracurricular activity there was", she added. Someone from Miss India met Hegde at one of her college events and suggested her to participate in a pageant.
Hegde competed in the Miss India 2009 competition, but was eliminated in an early round despite winning the Miss India Talented 2009 honour. She re-applied the following year and was the second runner-up in the Miss Universe India 2010 competition. She rejected offers of several projects from big production banners over three years before debuting in Mugamoodi. She accepted the project by her mother's suggestion.
After noticing still photographs of her pageant win, Mysskin offered Hegde her debut in his Tamil superhero film Mugamoodi (2012) opposite Jiiva. She portrayed the female lead character of Shakthi, a fun-loving girl who inspires the male lead to change his outlook on society. Hegde practised Tamil dialogues for the film by writing and memorising words in English, adding similarities between Tamil and her mother tongue Tulu. Prior to its release, the film garnered high expectations due to its novel theme of a superhero in Tamil cinema, and had a strong opening at the box office in August 2012. She earned nominations for the SIIMA Award for Best Female Debut – Tamil and Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South.
Expanding to Telugu cinema in 2014, Hegde starred opposite Naga Chaitanya in the romantic comedy Oka Laila Kosam. The success of the production house Annapurna Studios and director Vijay Konda's previous ventures prompted her to sign the project. She learned Telugu language to play the female lead. Her portrayal of Nandana received positive reception. Ranjani Rajendra of The Hindu was appreciative of Hegde's screen presence. While Suresh Kavirayani of Deccan Chronicle lauded her debut. Around the same time, she was nominated for Best Actress at the 62nd Filmfare Awards South. The film proved to be a commercial success. Hegde was next cast opposite Varun Tej in Srikanth Addala's drama Mukunda. Reviewers of the film were generally pleased with the chemistry between the lead pair. Hegde has said that the song "Gopikamma" marked a major breakthrough in her career. The film became yet another successful financial venture for her.
In 2016, Hegde made her Hindi film film debut as the female lead opposite Hrithik Roshan in Ashutosh Gowariker's period film Mohenjo Daro, set against the backdrop of the Indus Valley civilisation. She was selected after Gowariker's wife, Sunita Gowariker, spotted her in an advertisement and called her for an audition, which she successfully completed. As a result of her commitment to the Hindi film, she revealed that she would take a break from appearing in regional Indian films until its release and rejected an opportunity to work in a film directed by Mani Ratnam. Shubha Shetty Saha from India Times that "Hegde is pretty and makes quite a confident debut". Lisa Tsering of The Hollywood Reporter dismissed her performance as "forgettable blandness".
In 2017, she starred in Harish Shankar's Telugu action comedy DJ: Duvvada Jagannadham, opposite Allu Arjun. Hegde described her role as an outgoing and modern girl, unlike her previous roles in Telugu films, which she considered traditional. Manoj Kumar R from The Indian Express wrote that "Hegde has convincingly done the given job that is to look stunning in every frame of the film". DJ opened to commercial success grossing over ₹1.5 billion (US$18 million) emerging one of the highest-grossing Telugu film.
In 2018, Hegde featured in three Telugu films. She began the year with an item number "Jigelu Rani" for the period action Rangasthalam. She next starred opposite Bellamkonda Sreenivas in the fantasy action Saakshyam, portraying the role of a middle-class Brahmin girl who was a spiritual leader. Murali Krishna C H from Cinema Express found that she "gets more screen time in this film compared to her last outing DJ and she does a good job". Vyas of The Hans India wrote that she "has once again grabbed the attention with her performance and glamour show".
In her final appearance that year, she played the titular character in Aravinda Sametha Veera Raghava directed by Trivikram Srinivas, which opened to positive reviews and had a strong opening worldwide. She played the role of Aravinda, who significantly influenced Veera Raghava Reddy, the protagonist portrayed by N. T. Rama Rao Jr., to challenge the deep-rooted enmity and seek a path of non-violence and self-discovery. She felt that the role was an amazing opportunity to explore a new aspect of dubbing for herself. Hemanth Kumar CR of Firstpost noted that "Hegde makes a good impression with her role, and for a change, she becomes an intrinsic part of the narrative". Sangeetha Devi Dundoo from The Hindu credited her role as "impressive" and wrote that she "gets to be more than a glam doll and enjoys her role". The film was the second-highest-grossing Telugu film of the year and grossed over ₹1.8 billion (US$21 million) worldwide attaining a blockbuster status.
In 2019, Hegde had two three roles. Her first film was Vamshi Paidipally's Maharshi, an action drama film co-starring Mahesh Babu. The film was awarded the Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment at the 68th National Film Awards. Her second Telugu film in the same year was the Harish Shankar-directed Gaddalakonda Ganesh, a remake of the 2014 Tamil-language film Jigarthanda, co-starring Varun Tej and Atharvaa alongside her. Lauding her chemistry with Tej, Hemanth Kumar from Firstpost noted that she "fits into her character quite well". She suffered sunburn during the filming of the song "Elluvochi Godaramma", in the middle of the river at Yanam. Hegde returned to Bollywood after a gap of three years with Sajid Nadiadwala's comedy film Housefull 4, directed by Farhad Samji, the fourth instalment of the Housefull franchise, featuring her as Rajkumari Mala and Pooja (reincarnated). The film received predominantly negative reviews, but was one of the highest grosser of the year, earning ₹2.9 billion (US$34 million).
In 2020, she reunited with both Arjun and Trivikram in Telugu action drama film Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo, in which she portrayed the role of a travel company head Amulya, a self-made businesswoman. Murali Krishna C H of The New Indian Express wrote that "she plays her part effortlessly and strikes up palpable chemistry with Allu Arjun." Neeshita Nyayapati of The Times of India noted that "Hegde manages to bring in spunk into a character that is nothing more than a manic pixie dream girl, but she sure is a delight to watch on-screen". Her performance fetched her several awards, including the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu. Hegde's dance performance in the song "Butta Bomma" received wide response. The film became the first South Indian film to achieve ₹2 billion (US$23 million) nett in single language and was ranked among the highest-grossing Telugu films of all time, grossing over ₹2.8 billion (US$33 million).
In 2021, Hegde starred in Most Eligible Bachelor, directed by Bommarillu Bhaskar opposite Akhil Akkineni, in which she played the role of a stand-up comedian. To prepare for the role, she met several stand-up comedians to learn how they prepare their punchlines. Her performance in the film received positive reception and won her the SIIMA Award for Best Actress – Telugu. Srivathsan Nadadhur from OTTPlay and Ram Venkat Srikar from Cinema Express lauded her well-written role and her performance, which does justice to that writing, highlighting a notable achievement in Hegde's career.
She began 2022 by playing the leading lady opposite Prabhas in the multilingual period romance film Radhe Shyam, directed by Radha Krishna Kumar. Set in 1970s Europe, the film is a love saga of two individuals with different approaches to life: Vikramaditya (Prabhas), who follows fate and destiny, falls for Dr. Prerana (Hegde), who deeply believes in the power of science. It is one of the most expensive Indian films produced. Hegde shot and dubbed her portions in Telugu and Hindi languages. Monika Rawal Kukreja from Hindustan Times praised her performance and noted that "she performs the emotional sequences with a lot of maturity and conviction". Divya Nair of Rediff.com found she "looks fantastic in every frame and delivers even the silliest of scenes with grace". Radhe Shyam broke Tollywood's record for the highest opening-day earnings, but was a financial failure, failing to recoup its ₹3 billion (US$35 million) budget.
Hegde next starred alongside Vijay in Tamil action comedy Beast, directed by Nelson. Produced by Sun Pictures, the film marked her return to Tamil cinema after a gap of 9 years. While Divya Nair of Rediff.com and Jose K George of The Week wrote that Hegde looks pretty and does a decent job, Sowmya Rajendran of The News Minute opined that she is gorgeous in "Arabic Kuthu". Hegde's #ArabicKuthuChallenge went viral on social media, and many recreated her signature step. Despite mixed reviews, Beast broke the record for the highest opening-day earnings for a Tamil film. In the same year, she took on a brief role in the Telugu-language action drama film Acharya, starring Chiranjeevi and Charan. She performed her second dance number in the film, F3: Fun and Frustration alongside Venkatesh and Tej in the party song "Life Ante Itta Vundaala". In her final release of 2022, Hegde played one of the female leads opposite Ranveer Singh in Rohit Shetty's poorly received Hindi period comedy drama film Cirkus, an adaptation of the William Shakespeare's play The Comedy of Errors. The film was a commercial failure.
In 2023, she starred opposite Salman Khan in Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, directed by Farhad Samji. The film was released coinciding with the Eid festival. She played the role of a Telugu girl who transforms the life of the protective and solitary Bhaijaan (played by Khan), bringing love, family unity, and a new purpose to his existence. Ronak Kotecha of The Times of India, wrote, "Pooja Hegde has a meaty role, which she pulls off confidently, but could have dialed down over-the-top filmy antics." Additionally, Avinash Lohana from Pinkvilla opined that "Hegde really shines in her role of Bhagya, which has the right mix of quirks, entertainment, humour, charm and emotions. She portrays all of it and more, effortlessly". The film also underperformed commercially. Following a year hiatus, Hegde starred opposite Shahid Kapoor in the 2025 Hindi action thriller Deva. Vinamra Mathur from Firstpost stated that she was "severely underutilized". While ET Now's Eshita Bhargava commended her for bringing "emotional depth" to her role. It had poor box-office returns.
She will next star in the romantic action film Retro, directed by Karthik Subbaraj and reunite with Vijay in Jana Nayagan in their second collaboration after Beast. She will also have a special appearance in Lokesh Kanagaraj's Coolie starring Rajinikanth. Hegde will also star alongside Varun Dhawan in romantic comedy Hai Jawani Toh Ishq Hona Hai. She will next star in the Muni film series sequel Kanchana 4 co-starring Raghava Lawrence.
Hegde is considered among the most popular actors of Telugu cinema. She stood at the 7th place on Forbes India's Most Influential Stars on Instagram in South Cinema for the year 2021. As of August 2024, she is one of the most-followed actors on Instagram in Tollywood.
Hegde topped the India Today's "Heroines who ruled Telugu cinema in 2022". In 2024, Goutham S listed her among "Beautiful Tamil actresses who are ruling the silver screen". She has frequently featured in Times' Most Desirable Woman list. She was the Hyderabad Times' Most Desirable Woman of 2017. In the same list, she stood 5th in 2019 and 3rd in 2020. Hegde was one of the most searched actresses on Google, for several times. She also became one of the most searched Asian on Google in 2022.
Hegde is also one of the highest-paid South Indian actress. She is a prominent celebrity endorser for brands and products. Hegde has represented many brands, including Citra, pTron, Garnier, IGP and Maaza; she was the first brand ambassador of Bhima Jewellers. In February 2022, she performed at Expo 2020 in Dubai for the "Da-Bangg Tour", alongside Salman Khan. She served as a judge at Miss World 2023.
Hegde supports various causes through her foundation "All About Love", which works towards providing support to unprivileged children across the country in the areas of education and health.