SAMIR SONI

SAMIR SONI - TV/Film Actor

Samir Soni (born September 29, 1968) was born to a Hindu family in Delhi and attended school at St. Xavier's School, Delhi. He graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles in Economics.

Prior to his Bollywood career, Samir was an investment banker with one of the bulge bracket firms on Wall Street in New York, before coming back to India to start modeling. He has attended acting courses in New York and Los Angeles.

Soni made his acting debut in the 1995 Hindi serial Samandar based on Navy officers. Later that year, he appeared as Ashok Mathur in Doordarshan's A Mouthful Of Sky, based on Ashok Banker's script and directed by Mahesh Bhatt. Soni became more prominent on television with his performances in popular TV shows Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin and Saakkshi, with both airing on Sony. He also showcased his skills in the popular TV show Kumkum on STAR Plus, portraying the negative role Yash Thakur.

Soni's main success came on television serials like Jassi Jaissi Koi Nahin (2003), Saaksshi (2004) and Parichay (2011). He was also featured as a participant in the fourth season of Bigg Boss in 2010. Soni is currently playing the lead role in Ekta Kapoor's Indian soap opera Parichay - Nayee Zindagi Kay Sapno Ka on Colors TV, which earned him prestigious the Indian Telly Award for Best Actor, Boroplus Gold Award for Best Actor (Jury), ITA Award for Best Actor - Drama (Popular) and others in 2012.

In 2010, Samir Soni was featured as one of the contestants in the season 4 of reality television show Bigg Boss. He was evicted from the house a week prior to the grand finale. In 2011, Soni earned his first lead role in TV serial Parichay on Colors TV, portraying the protagonist Kunal Chopra, a lawyer opposite Keerti Nagpure. Soni has become popular for his work on Parichay that has won him numerous awards including the prestigious Indian Telly Award for Best Actor.

After working in television, Soni made his film debut as a lead actor opposite Mamta Kulkarni in China Gate (1998), though it was followed by forgettable cameos in films. Like majority of television stars, Soni flopped in movies but managed to get lead roles in Basti (2003) and Kahan Ho Tum (2003). Soni has played supporting roles in many successful movies including Baghban (2003), Vivah (2006), Fashion (2008) and I Hate Luv Storys (2010).

In 2003, Samir shot to fame by appearing in the film Baghban opposite legendary artists Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini. Baghban became the first hit movie of Soni's career. He then played his first solo lead roles in Basti and Kahan Ho Tum. Samir continued his movie career with supporting roles in blockbuster movies including Vivah, Fashion and I Hate Luv Story's.

Through modeling, he met his ex-spouse, Rajlakshmi Khanvilkar. The two were married for six months before they divorced. Reasons for divorce are not known.  On 24 January 2011, he married former actress Neelam Kothari.