Ameesha Patel in no mood for shortcuts at 38

Ameesha Patel, a gold medalist in economics from Boston, a trained Bharatnatyam dancer since the age of five, and a promising actress, was born and brought up in Mumbai. Here is a pictorial journey of her life and career so far on her 38th birthday.

Here, Ameesha making her debut at the 66th Cannes Film Festival this year in a Manish Malhotra lehenga choli.

Ameesha Patel is the daughter of Amit Patel and Asha Patel and elder sister of actor Ashmit Patel. She studied at the Cathedral and John Connon School in Bombay and went abroad to study Economics at Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts.

Before venturing into films, Ameesha worked as an economic analyst in a firm in the US and also actively participated in theatre.

Ameesha Patel made a full-fledged acting debut in Kaho Naa… Pyar Hai, opposite Hrithik Roshan in 2000. The film was directed by her father's schoolmate and Hrithik's father Rakesh Roshan. The film became a smashing hit at the box office escalating both the actors to the top spot.

The actress didn't stop there and ventured down South for her second film. Her risk didn't go futile and the film Badri too became a blockbuster hit, grossing more than Rs 120 million in India.

Then came the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. The India-Pakistan 1947 partition saga was a huge success and earned the title of the biggest hit of the 21st century, grossing Rs 973 million in India alone. Ameesha Patel's performance was loved by both critics and audiences and won her the Filmfare Special Performance Award.

The success was followed by a series of films such as Yeh Zindagi Ka Safar (2001), Kranti (2002), Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002), Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage (2002) and Yeh Hai Jalwa. But all of these that tanked at the box-office.

Her spell of duds was broken by the 2002 film Humraaz that saw her in the female lead opposite actors Akshay Khanna and Bobby Deol. Ameesha played the role of a manipulative woman with shades of grey in her character. The Abbas-Mustan film ended up being a hit and her performance even earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Best Actress Award.

Films, however, started falling out of her hands and in 2003, Ameesha appeared in just two films as compared to six in 2002. She kept the flame burning by acting in Tamil film Pudhiya Geethai opposite Vijay, which ended up being a box-office failure. Then she was seen in Bollywood film Parwana opposite Ajay Devgn, which again didn't do well.

Even 2004 couldn't break the spell of flops in Ameesha's career. Films such as Suno Sasurjee opposite Aftab Shivdasani and Tamil film Naani opposite Mahesh Babu, were both duds.

In 2005, the actress was seen in forgettable roles in films such as Vaada, Elaan, Zameer and Telugu film Narasimhudu.

She heaved a sigh of relief with the critical acclaim she bagged for her make-up free look in the 2005 film Mangal Pandey: The Rising . A period-drama based on the Indian Mutiny of 1857, it saw Ameesha in the role of Jwala, a Bengali widow, rescued from committing Sati by a British commanding officer.

Film projects followed suit and Ameesha appeared in six films in 2006, but none worked at the box-office. These were Mere Jeevan Saathi, Humko Tumse Pyaar Hai, Teesri Aankh: The Hidden Camera, Tathastu, Ankahee and Aap Ki Khatir.

2007,however, proved to be the year of resurrection for Ameesha Patel. Her dwindling film career got a breather with the success of films such as Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd. and Bhool Bhulaiyaa. Though she didn't have meaty parts in the films, her performances didn't go unnoticed. In the following year, Ameesha reinvented herself with the item number Lazy Lamhe for the film Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic. Her newly acquired toned figure catapulted her transition from girl-next-door to a femme fatale.

That didn't really work well in fetching future projects and what followed was a two-and-a-half-year sabbatical for the actress. She was then seen Telugu film Parama Veera Chakraand Bollywood film Chatur Singh Two Star, both of which tanked at the box office in 2011.

Box office failures didn't bog down Ameesha, who changed gears and turned producer with the launch of her production company Ameesha Patel Productions, in collaboration with her friend and business partner Kuunal Goomer in 2011.

Ameesha's career got a new streak of life with director-duo Abbas-Mustan's multi-starrer film Race 2, which proved to be 2013's first movie to cross the Rs 100 crore mark. Ameesha played the role of Anil Kapoor's assistant in the film.

Five of Ameesha's films are up for release this year including the like of Shortcut Romeo, Run Bhola Run, Bhaiyyaji Superhitt and home production Desi Magic. The actress is also taking a leap of faith by playing a negative character in Shortcut Romeo, which also features actors Neil Nitin Mukesh and Puja Gupta.

All work and no play hasn't left the actress devoid of friends in the industry. Though her relationship status is currently single, she has dated filmmaker Vikram Bhatt and London businessman Kanav Puri in the past.

We wish Ameesha Patel a very happy and successful year ahead on her birthday.