Top 10 Bollywood Actors You Did Not Know Had Indian Roots

1. Tom Alter

Known as the “Blue-eyed Sahib with impeccable Hindi”, Tom Alter grew up in the town of Mussoorie, Uttarakhand and studied at Woodstock International School. He has worked with renowned filmmakers like Satyajit Ray and was applauded for his performances in movies like 'Kranti', 'Junoon', 'Sardar', 'Shatranj ke Khiladi' etc. The Indian Government honored him with the Padma Shri in 2008.

2. Helen

The Dance Queen of India, Helen was born in 1938 to an Anglo-Indian father and Burmese mother. She took the Bollywood industry by storm with her amazing dance moves and her divine beauty.Helen officially retired from the movies in 1983 and has appeared in guest roles in a few movies after that. She later married Salim Khan, a prominent Bollywood screenplay writer and the father of Bollywood superstar, Salman Khan.

3. Hazel Keech

Born in Essex, London to an Indian mother and English father, Hazel Keech came to Mumbai at the age of 18 and pursued her career in Bollywood. She has played prominent roles in movies like 'Bodyguard', 'Billa' and 'Heer and Hero'. Hazel recently married the Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh and also changed her name to Gurbasant Kaur.

4. Sunny Leone

Karenjit Kaur Vohra, popularly known as ‘Sunny Leone’ was born in Ontario to Sikh Punjabi parents. She first made her debut in the Indian industry with reality show “Big Boss” and has acted in some Bollywood movies since then. She also has some popular Bollywood item songs to her name such as ‘Laila mai Laila,’ ‘Paani waala dance’ and ‘Baby Doll’.

5. Lisa Haydon

Lisa Haydon who was born as Elisabeth Marie Haydon, comes from the southern part of India. She is now a popular Indian model and actress, and also appeared as the host and head judge of ‘India’s next Top Model.’ The model-actress is known for her astounding beauty and was praised nationally for her performance in the Indian blockbuster “Queen.” She also starred in the web series called “The Trip.” The Indian beauty is expecting her first child with husband Dino Lalvani.

6. Lisa Ray

Lisa Rani Ray was to a Bengali father and a Polish mother in Toronto. She is now a successful model and actress. She made her debut in 1994 with Tamil movie 'Nethaji'. Ray has also worked in 'Kasoor' and 'Veerappan'. In 2012, she paired with Satya Paul to create a range of wedding sarees, which were auctioned to raise money for cancer research.

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7. Freida Pinto

Freida Pinto is an Indian actress who has mainly worked in American and British film. She became an overnight success with her movie “Slumdog Millionaire”. She has also worked in movies like 'Trishna', 'Immortals', and 'Miral'. Rumors have it that the actress is all set to sign a Bollywood movie.

8. Mandana Karimi

Manizhe (aka Mandana) Karimi is an India based model and actress of mixed Indian and Iranian ethnicity. She has done TV commercials with some of the biggest Bollywood stars and has acted in movies like 'Roy', 'Bhag Johnny' and 'Main Aur Charles'. She also participated in the 9^th season of Indian reality show “Big Boss” and was one of the third finalists of the show.

9. Monica Dogra

Monica Dogra made her Bollywood Debut with the Aamir Khan-produced film “Dhobi Ghat” and made a guest appearance in Rock On. The actress has achieved success in India as well as overseas. She has made her mark around the world as a singer and an actress of an Indian descent.

10. Russell Peters

Very few know that the Canada-based comedian and actor is of Indian descent. He has been performing worldwide ever since he started in 1989. He played the role of Sonu Singh in the movie 'Speedy Sighs', which is also known as “Breakaway.”