Katrina Kaif turns 40: Tracing diva's journey in Bollywood

Born in Hong Kong, Katrina started her career as a model after she won a beauty pageant in Hawaii at the age of 14. She worked as a fashion model in the early years of her career.

Kaif made her Bollywood debut with the 2003 movie Boom, alongside megastars Amitabh Bachchan and Jackie Shroff. The movie terribly tanked at the box office and was bashed by critics as well.
 

After she made her debut that went unnoticed, Katrina had some hard days finding her next project because of her British accent. However, Katrina fought through, worked hard, and won. The Hindustan Times reported that after Boom's release, Kaif was written off due to her poor Hindi and thick British accent as a result, filmmakers were hesitant to cast her in their films.
 

While Katrina was doing great as a model and was endorsing big brands, she was still waiting for a big shot in Bollywood, which she got with Salman Khan's Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya? Directed by ace director David Dhawan, the film was successful, and Kaif received the Stardust Award for Breakthrough Performance—Female.
 

In 2006, Katrina starred alongside Akshay Kumar in Raj Kanwar's Humko Deewana Kar Gaye. The film was unsuccessful at the box office, but it marked the first collaboration between Akshay and Katrina. The dynamic duo went on to star in a number of films like Namastey London, Welcome, Singh is Kinng, and De Dana Dan, all of which proved to be super hits at the box office. 
 

Katrina has been one of the highest-paid actresses in Bollywood. In her career of 20 years, She has been part of many blockbuster movies like Singh Is Kinng, Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani Raajneeti, Welcome, and Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.

Her other commercially successful projects that have been ranked as some of the highest-grossing Indian films are Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Dhoom 3 (2013), Jab Tak Hain Jaan (2012), and Bang Bang! (2014).

Apart from acting, Katrina has always stunned the audience with her stunning dancing skills. Time and again, she has swooned the hearts of her fans with her sultry yet terrific dance moves, whether it was her mind-boggling performance in the song ''Kamli'' of Aamir Khan's Dhoom 3 or her sensational dance in ''Sheila Ki Jawani''.
 

Katrina is also an entrepreneur and owns a cosmetic brand named Kay Beauty which she started in the year 2019. She launched her brand in partnership with Nykaa, an online shopping site. And within a short span of just 3 years, the make-up line has become the fastest-growing beauty brand in India.