Birthday Special: Neerja, Sonam Kapoor’s Best Contribution to Indian Cinema

Sonam Kapoor is one of the most stylish actresses in the industry today. From her chic party looks to her charming appearances at events, she has mesmerized everyone. Not just in India, Sonam has even made a mark globally with her stunning appearances, especially at Cannes. Besides this, she has even been a leading celebrity endorser for multiple brands and products.

Sonam had already won everyone’s heart with her charming personality. Earlier in 2o16, she worked on a biographical thriller titled, Neerja. The film was based on the life of 22-year-old Neerja Bhanot a flight attendant, who died just before her 23rd birthday in 1986 while rescuing a number of passengers on a hijacked Pan Am flight. 

The movie garnered wide critical praise, and several critics considered Neerja as Sonam Kapoor‘s best performance till date. 

Sonam took this film as a huge responsibility and did a lot of preparation for the same. Sonam was extremely attached to the film and went through the training of an actual Air hostess for two months. She even heard a lot of recordings of Neerja Bhanot making flight announcements. Besides this Sonam even went through a number of advertisements done by Bhanot during her modelling days. The 32-year-old actress also met the friends and family members of Neerja Bhanot.

We can safely say that all of Sonam‘s preparation and hard work paid off really well as the film didn’t only receive great appreciation from the audience but the movie did really well when it came to critical appreciation too – and the Box Office Numbers only reflected that!

Neerja earned 75.61 Crores at the Indian box office making it the highest women-centric grosser of all time. Made in a budget of 21 crores, Neerja became the second most profitable film of 2016 after Dangal. The movie grossed around 135 crores worldwide. Neerja was even declared tax free by the Government of Maharashtra and the Government of Madhya Pradesh.

In addition to numerous other accolades, Sonam was appreciated at every award function for her role. She won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress, Stardust Editor’s Choice Best Actress of the Year and even won a National Film Award for Special Mention. Sonam was extremely honoured as she said: “I tried to do everything thinking what would a girl, who was all about humanity and mankind, do in a situation like that.” The Raanjhanaa actress also added, “Neerja speaks about the triumph of the human spirit.” 

After Neerja, Sonam has shown her interest in working in films which are more content driven. She will next be seen in Padman along with Akshay Kumar and Radhika Apte. The film is based on the life of Arunachalam Muruganantham, the man who found a cost-effective and hygienic solution for sanitation for women during their menstruation period. 

She also has the Sanjay Dutt biopic lined up, which is being directed by Rajkumar Hirani. Reports suggest that Sonam will be seen portraying the role of Tina Munim.

Looks like Miss Kapoor is treading the perfect path in Bollywood!