Diana Mariam Kurien, known as Nayantara is an Indian film actress who mainly appears in Tamil films along with Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada films. With her attractive looks and talent, it is no wonder that she is one of the most popular and sought-after actresses in the South Indian film industry. Having starred in lots of popular movies like Chandramukhi, Ghajini, E etc, she became a crowd favorite with her roles in Billa and Yaaradi nee Mohini. If she was oomph personified in Billa, she became a household favorite for her role as Keerthi in Yaaradi Nee Mohini.
Early Life of Nayanthara
Nayantara was born as Diana Mariam Kurien in a Malayali Nasrani (Syrian Christian) family to an Indian Army Officer father, Kurien Kodiyattu, and Omana Kurien, in Bangalore, Karnataka. She has a brother, Leno, who resides in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
After her father’s retirement the family settled down in Kerala where she continued her college studies but she did her schooling in several schools in Chennai, Jamnagar, Delhi, and Gujarat.
Career of Nayanthara
From a naive young girl in Ayya, Nayanthara has grown as a mature actress in Kollywood.
Nayanthara made her acting debut in the 2003 Malayalam film Manassinakkare with Jayaram. During the year 2003, while still in college, she was spotted by director Sathyan Anthikkad who cast her in this movie.
Two years later, she went on to act in Tamil and Telugu movies. She made her debut in Tamil cinema with Ayya (2005) and Telugu with Lakshmi (2006). Both were successful. After this she had numerous commercially successful Tamil and Telugu films like Chandramukhi (2005), Dubai Seenu (2007), Tulasi (2007), Billa (2007), Yaaradi Nee Mohini (2008), Aadhavan (2009), Adhurs (2010), Simha (2010), Boss Engira Bhaskaran (2010), Sri Rama Rajyam (2011), Raja Rani (2013), Arrambam (2013), Thani Oruvan (2015), Maya (2015), Naanum Rowdy Dhaan (2015), Babu Bangaram (2016) and Iru Mugan (2016).
As she became popular she also appeared in Kannada language movies. She has acted with stars like Rajini, Vijay, Ajith and Surya.
Profile of Nayantara
- Name: Diana Mariam Kurian
- Other Names: Nayan, Mani, Nayantara, Nayanthara
- Born: November 18, 1985
- Star Sign: Scorpio
- Birth Place: Thiruvalla, Kerala, India
- Height: 5 feet 2 inches
- Education: B.A. in Literature
- Profession: Actress
- Citizenship: India
- Language: Hindi
Family of Nayanthara
- Parents: Omana Kurian, Kurian Kodiyattu
- Siblings: Lenu Kurian
Personal Life Nayanthara
During September 2010, Prabhu Deva, publicly declared his love for her, even though he was married to Ramalath and had three children. After a bitter and contested court battle, the couple was divorced in July 2011.
On 7 August 2011, she converted to Hinduism at the Arya Samaj Temple in Chennai. She has gone through Shuddhi Karma, a procedure involving a Vedic purification and a Homam where Nayanthara chanted the hymns from Veda and Gayatri Mantra under the guidance of the priest. After the purification ceremony, a Certificate of Conversion to Hinduism was issued to her and her stage name, Nayanthara, became her official name.