Birth Date:29 October 1981
About Me
Reema Sen Biography: Early Life, Career, Major Films, and Unknown Facts!
Reema Sen is an Indian actress and model who left a lasting impression across South Indian cinema (Tamil and Telugu) as well as Hindi and Bengali films. Renowned for her striking screen presence, expressive acting, and versatility in taking on both charming romantic leads and complex grey characters, she established herself as a top star in the 2000s.
Profile Snapshot
Attribute Details
Full Name: Reema Sen
Date of Birth: October 29, 1981
Birthplace: Kolkata, West Bengal, India
Schooling: St. Thomas Girls School, Kidderpore, Kolkata
Spouse: Shiv Karan Singh (m. 2012)
Children: Rudraveer Singh (b. 2013)
Debut Film: Chitram (Telugu, 2000)
Breakout: Tamil Hit Minnale (2001)
Key Accolades: Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South (Minnale), Ananda Vikatan Cinema Award for Best Female Villain (Aayirathil Oruvan)
Early Life & Entrance into Modeling
Born into a Bengali family in Kolkata, Reema completed her schooling at St. Thomas Girls School in Kidderpore. Following her high school years, her family relocated to Mumbai, where she embarked on a modeling career.
She caught the attention of print advertisers, television commercial casting directors, and music video producers. Her early appearance in popular 1990s music videos like Shamsa Kanwal's "Chandni Raatein" helped her build initial visibility before transitioning to feature films.
[1998: Entry into Modeling & Music Videos ('Chandni Raatein')]
│
▼
[2000: Blockbuster Telugu Debut in 'Chitram' (Filmfare Best Debut)]
│
▼
[2001: Iconic Tamil Debut in Gautham Vasudev Menon's 'Minnale']
│
▼
[2004–2006: Peak Stardom in Commercial Hits ('Chellamae', 'Thimiru', 'Vallavan')]
│
▼
[2010: Critical Triumph as Antagonist in Selvaraghavan's 'Aayirathil Oruvan']
│
▼
[2012: Final Acclaimed Roles ('Gangs of Wasseypur') & Retirement Post-Marriage]
Career Trajectory: Stardom Across Languages
1. Telugu Debut & Instant Success (2000)
Reema made her silver screen acting debut in Teja’s romantic drama Chitram (2000) opposite Uday Kiran. The low-budget movie turned into a massive box-office hit, earning Reema the Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut – South. She reunited with Uday Kiran for another blockbuster, Manasantha Nuvve (2001).
2. Tamil Breakthrough & The 'Vaseegara' Phenomenon (2001–2005)
In 2001, she made her Tamil debut in Gautham Vasudev Menon’s directorial debut Minnale alongside R. Madhavan. Her character, Reena, and the iconic track "Vaseegara" became cultural touchstones in Tamil pop culture.
She cemented her status as a mainstream heroine in Tamil cinema through romantic and action entertainers like Dhool (2003) co-starring Vikram and Jyothika, Chellamae (2004) opposite Vishal, and Giri (2004) alongside Arjun Sarja.
3. Exploring Grey & Antagonist Roles (2006–2010)
Rather than limiting herself to conventional romantic roles, Reema earned critical acclaim by taking on challenging, multi-layered characters:
• Vallavan (2006): Played Geetha, a possessive antagonist, earning wide praise for her performance alongside Silambarasan.
• Thimiru (2006): Delivered a performance praised for its comedic and expressive range.
• Aayirathil Oruvan (2010): Directed by Selvaraghavan, this epic action-adventure saw her portray Anitha Pandian. Her transition from a government archaeologist to a ruthless antagonist won her the Ananda Vikatan Cinema Award for Best Female Villain and nominations at the Filmfare South Awards.
4. Hindi Cinema & Career High Notes (2001–2012)
In Hindi cinema, she appeared in films like Hum Ho Gaye Aapke (2001), Aan: Men at Work (2004), and Priyadarshan's comedy Malamaal Weekly (2006). Her most critically acclaimed Hindi role arrived in Anurag Kashyap's cult masterpiece Gangs of Wasseypur (Parts 1 & 2, 2012), where she portrayed Durga, the second wife of Sardar Khan (Manoj Bajpayee).
Selected Filmography
Year Film Title Language Character / Role Key Notes
2000 Chitram Telugu Janaki Film Debut; Won Filmfare Best Debut
2001 Minnale Tamil Reena Joseph Tamil Debut; Hit romantic film
2001 Manasantha Nuvve Telugu Anu Blockbuster romantic drama
2001 Hum Ho Gaye Aapke Hindi Chandni Gupta Hindi Debut
2003 Dhool Tamil Swapna High-grossing action entertainer
2004 Chellamae Tamil Mythili Hit romantic thriller
2004 Iti Srikanta Bengali Rajlakshmi Bengali debut; critically praised
2006 Malamaal Weekly Hindi Sukmani Priyadarshan comedy hit
2006 Thimiru Tamil Srimathy Major commercial hit
2006 Vallavan Tamil Geetha Acclaimed negative role
2010 Aayirathil Oruvan Tamil Anitha Pandian Won Ananda Vikatan Best Female Villain
2010 Aakrosh Hindi Jhamunia Directed by Priyadarshan
2012 Gangs of Wasseypur Hindi Durga Screen Award for Best Ensemble Cast
2012 Sattam Oru Iruttarai Tamil Kausalya Raman Final film before retirement
5 Interesting Facts About Reema Sen
1. Award-Winning Debut Streak: Reema Sen achieved the rare distinction of scoring a blockbuster hit with her very first film in Telugu (Chitram, 2000) and her very first film in Tamil (Minnale, 2001).
2. Breakthrough Negative Roles: Unlike many mainstream leads who avoided grey roles during the 2000s, Reema proactively took on complex negative roles in Vallavan and Aayirathil Oruvan, receiving some of the highest critical acclaim of her career.
3. Multi-Lingual Filmography: Over her 12-year active career, Reema worked across six different language industries: Telugu, Tamil, Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, and Malayalam.
4. Marriage & Departure from Cinema: In March 2012, Reema married Delhi-based restaurateur and businessman Shiv Karan Singh. Following her marriage and the birth of her son Rudraveer in 2013, she chose to retire from acting to focus on her family life.
5. Critically Celebrated Final Bollywood Venture: Her performance as Durga in Anurag Kashyap's two-part crime saga Gangs of Wasseypur (2012) served as her final major Hindi project, earning widespread applause and a Screen Award for Best Ensemble Cast.
Reema Sen's films' availability: You can watch Reema Sen's films on B4U Movies Channels of India, UK, USA, Canada, and UAE. You can check country-specific schedule pages here.
- B4U Movies India
- B4U Kadak India
- B4U Movies UK
- B4U Movies USA
- B4U Movies Canada
- B4U Movies UAE
