Personal life and education[edit]
Dia Mirza was born in
Hyderabad. Her father, Frank Handrich, was a German graphic and industrial fair designer, architect, artist and interior designer from
Munich and her mother, Deepa is a
Bengali Hindu who is an interior designer, landscaper and currently does social work as a volunteer to help alcoholics and addicts. They separated when she was four years old.
[3][4] Her father died when she was nine and her mother married Ahmed Mirza, who died in 2003.
[3]She is not a Muslim although she writes her stepfather's last name as her last name.
[3] She believes in
Arya Samaj, a Hindu reformist movement.
[4] She adopted her mother's surname and has recently adopted the last name of her birth-father, becoming Dia Mirza Handrich.
Biography[edit]
Dia Mirza worked when still in college as a Marketing executive for a media firm. At the same time she modelled for print and
TV commercials for brands like
Lipton,
Walls Ice Cream, Emami and many more. She won
Miss Asia Pacific in the year 2000.
[8] She debuted through '
Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein' which could not do well at Box Office. Then she appeared in various movies like '
Dum', 'Deewanapan', '
Tumko Na Bhool Paayenge', '
Tumsa Nahin Dekha - A Love Story', '
Parineeta', '
Dus', '
Lage Raho Munnabhai' etc. She did not see much success as an Actress. But she has garnered a lot of praise for her social work. She has also got an
IIFA 2012 Green Award for her contribution towards green environment. She has done various awareness campaigns on prevention of female foeticide, HIV awareness, the Cancer Patients Aid Association,
PETA,
ADAPT, CRY. She also publicly supported the Naramada Bachao Andolan. She has also written articles for
Hindustan Times and other publications.
Dia started working at the age of 16 years while continuing her college education. She worked as a marketing executive in a multi-media firm called Dr. Neeraj's Multi media studio. She simultaneously modelled for the print and television advertisement campaigns of various brands such as Walls, Lipton, Emami etc.
[9] Mirza wanted to complete her graduation in Arts by correspondence, but decided to postpone it as it was becoming difficult to juggle between the Miss Asia Pacific competition, modelling assignments, travelling and training. She could not complete her graduation due to being busy at work.
Dia married Sahil Sangha on 18 October 2014 at Delhi.
[10]
Film career[edit]
Dia Mirza made her cinematic debut with
Rehnaa Hai Terre Dil Mein opposite
R. Madhavan, which is still remembered as one of the most romantic movies of all time. Later, she appeared in
Parineeta, a
Vidhu Vinod Chopra production. After her acting skills bagged limelight, she became a part of some of the biggest blockbusters. In 2012, Mirza tried her luck into regional cinema with Bengali Filmmaker Pratim Dasgupta's
Paanch Adhyay.
[11] The movie turned out to be a success and was also selected by various Film Festivals within India and across the world.
[12]
She also appeared in the films
Dus and
Fight Club. She was the only female actor among the six key characters in the film,
Acid Factory in which she played a femme fatale who is also a gangster but the film was a failure.
[13] Dia will next be featuring in
Johny Mastana,
Bits and pieces,
Kayanat,
Bidhaatar lekha and
Familywala.
Dia Mirza at the IIFA Rocks fashion show
Dia Mirza was a second runner up at
Femina Miss India, 2000 and was subsequently sent to
Miss Asia Pacific 2000, where she won. She also won Miss Beautiful Smile, Miss Avon and Miss Close-Up Smile in Miss India. When she won the Miss Asia Pacific title on 3 December 2000 in Manila, Philippines, she became the first Indian contestant to win this title in 29 years.
[14] She completed the hat-trick of India winning international pageants in the year 2000;
Lara Dutta won the
Miss Universe title and
Priyanka Chopra won the
Miss World title in the same year.
[15] The win came to her as a golden opportunity and opened the doors of
Bollywood for her.
Dia Mirza has been involved with Cancer Patients Aid Association, Spastics Society of India, and has worked extensively with government of Andhra Pradesh to spread HIV awareness, prevention of female foeticide,
PETA, CRY and most recently the NDTV Greenathon – an effort to find tangible solutions against pollution and book,
"Deke Dheko" by Radio Mirchi (a campaign initiated to collect books for underprivileged children). Her other hobbies include writing, reading, painting, pottery, horse riding and theatre. She has written several articles for the
Hindustan Times and various other publications as a guest writer. She is on the board of the Coca Cola foundation that works towards development in rural India.
[16] She recently adopted two cheetah cubs at the Prince of Wales zoological park in
Lucknow.
[17]
Activism[edit]
Dia Mirza has been actively involved in addressing social issues and has been a part of various campaigns. The actress is an active member of Cancer Patients Aid Association,
PETA, Child Rights and You (CRY),
ADAPT, Greenpeace India, and the Coca Cola foundation. She is also associated with campaigns such as Sanctuary Asia's Leave Me Alone and Female Foeticide.
Dia Mirza, along with
Aamir Khan publicly expressed support for the
Narmada Bachao Andolan, a group protesting the building of a dam. This aroused the ire of political activists from the
Bharatiya Janata Party, who led a protest march against the actress.
[18] Dia also won the Green Award at IIFA 2012 for spreading awareness about environment-related issues.
Along with these, Mirza has endorsed for The Body Shop for their stand on the ban on animal testing and propagation of recycled packaging and natural products.
[19] Also, she is the Eco Ambassador for Panasonic.
[20] Dia Mirza has been facilitated at various award functions for her active involvement in the Social and Environmental Issues
- 2002
- 2005
- Winner, Great women achiever award for Beauty
- 2011
- Winner, Green Globe Honor for Extraordinary Work by a Public Figure
- Winner, Women's Achievement Award
- 2012
- Winner, The Jaipur International Film Festival for Best Actress award : Paanch Adhyay
- Winner, IIFA Green Award for Contribution Towards a Greener Environment
- 2013
- Winner, The Sixth Geospa Asiaspa India Awards for Eco Crusader of the Year
Filmography[edit]
References[edit]
- Jump up^ "Sahil Sangha Biography". Oneindia Entertainment.
- Jump up^ "Love Breakups Zindagi – Sweet and honest sans drama". indiaglitz.
- ^ Jump up to:a b chttp://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/hindi/bollywood/news-interviews/I-took-my-surname-Mirza-from-my-step-father-Dia-Mirza/articleshow/36494630.cms
- ^ Jump up to:a b http://movies.ndtv.com/bollywood/dia-mirzas-wedding-to-be-a-private-affair-679137?utm_source=taboola
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza – 2000-1991! – Miss India Winners 2009-1964 – Archives – Femina Miss India". Indiatimes. Retrieved 2 June2011.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza gets engaged to boyfriend Sahil Sangha in New York". IANS. news.biharprabha.com. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza married to Sahil Sangha". Retrieved 20 October2014.
- Jump up^ "Diya Mirza ( Miss Asia Pacific 2000 )". Smartsurat.com.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza Biography".
- Jump up^ "Inside Dia Mirza, Sahil Sangha's Wedding". NDTV Movies. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza debuts in Bengali films with 'Paanch Adhyay'". IBNLive.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza's PAANCH ADHYAY selected for Mumbai Film Fest". glamsham.com.
- Jump up^ "I am a femme fatale who is also a gangster".
- Jump up^ "ENDURING BEAUTIES". The Times of India.
- Jump up^ "Miss India Winners 2000 - 1991 - Indiatimes.com". Feminamissindia.indiatimes.com. Retrieved 30 November2011.
- Jump up^ "I adopt anywhere between two to four cancer patients every year".
- Jump up^ "Actress Dia Mirza adopts leopard cubs". The Times of India. 13 April 2010.
- Jump up^ "BJP blasts Dia Mirza for anti-dam stand".http://www.rediff.com/. Retrieved 24 May 2006.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza appointed Body Shop's brand ambassador". The Navhind Times.
- Jump up^ "Dia Mirza's Look at the Launch of Panasonic campaign, 'Celebrations for Life'". Glamcheck.
- Jump up^ http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmmbd559aEI
External links[edit]
 | Wikimedia Commons has media related to Dia Mirza. |
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Awards and titles for Dia Mirza
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_at_the_IIFA_Rocks_fashion_show.jpg)
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