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Who is Aneet Padda? Saiyaara star was once an extra in Kajol's film, now the outsider leads Mohit Suri's YRF film
Aneet Padda is making her debut as a lead actor with Mohit Suri's romantic drama, Saiyaara. The film also stars Ahaan Panday.
Yash Raj Films' Saiyaara releases in theatres today. The film, which marks director Mohit Suri's return to the romantic drama genre, features two debutants in the lead - Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda. While a lot has been said and written about Ahaan, Ananya Panday's cousin and Chunky's nephew, Aneet is a largely unknown name outside the core Bollywood circles. And that is when she has done the odd film, just not as the lead.
Who is Aneet Padda?
Born in October 2002 to a middle-class working family in Amritsar, Aneet was raised far away from the world of Bollywood. As a teenager, she began working in advertisements as a model, which led to other offers. She continued modelling while pursuing a Bachelor's degree from Jesus and Mary College, University of Delhi.
Aneet first appeared as an extra in the 2022 Kajol-starrer Salaam Venky. But her big break came last year with the Amazon Prime Video show, Big Girls Don't Cry, where she shared screen space with Pooja Bhatt, Raima Sen, and Zoya Hussain. Aneet calls the show's directors, Nitya Mehra and Karan Kapadia, her 'Bombay parents'. An avid singer, too, Aneet recorded her first song, Masoom, also in 2024. The same year, she appeared in a supporting role in the TV show Yuva Sapno Ka Safar, where she was credited as Aneet Kaur.
Aneet Padda's breakthrough with Saiyaara
In 2025, Aneet was cast opposite Ahaan Panday by director Mohit Suri for his then-untitled romantic drama. The director has said that he was looking for fresh faces for his film. As per reports, Aneet was among the hundreds of girls who auditioned for Saiyaara, but her audition impressed both Mohit and the top bosses at YRF that she was fast-tracked into the role.
About Saiyaara
Saiyaara is a romantic drama with the two young actors in the lead. It features music from Tanishk Bagchi. The film has generated quite a strong buzz at the box office, with its advance booking almost reaching ₹10 crore. According to trade pundits, Saiyaara is likely to take a ₹15-20 crore opening, the fourth-highest for all Hindi films this year so far.
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