Tanushree Dutta

Tanushree Dutta Biography

Tanushree Dutta (born 19 March 1984) is an Indian former actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder. She was born in Jamshedpur, then in Bihar and now in Jharkhand, into a Bengali Hindu family. She won Femina Miss India Universe 2004 and represented India at Miss Universe 2004 in Ecuador, where she placed in the top 10. Her younger sister, Ishita Dutta, is also an actress.

Her first screen appearance was in the Marathi film Anahat (2003). She made her Hindi debut in 2005 with Aashiq Banaya Aapne, followed the same year by Chocolate: Deep Dark Secrets and the Telugu film Veerabhadra. Her best-known films include Bhagam Bhag (2006) and Dhol (2007). Aashiq Banaya Aapne brought her debut-category nominations at the Filmfare, Star Screen, Stardust, IIFA and Zee Cine awards. She appeared mostly in Hindi films between 2005 and 2010, with a later television appearance in SuperCops Vs Super Villains (2013). In a 2013 interview she said she had experienced depression after being traumatised on the set of Horn ‘Ok’ Pleassss, and had taken an extended break that included time at an ashram and the study of meditation in Ladakh.

On 26 September 2018 Dutta gave an interview to Zoom TV in which she alleged that actor Nana Patekar had sexually harassed her on the set of Horn ‘Ok’ Pleassss. She had first raised the complaint with the Cine & TV Artists Association (CINTAA) in 2008 and repeated it in a 2013 interview. Her 2018 statements are widely credited as the catalyst for the #MeToo movement in India; CINTAA subsequently apologised for not having addressed the harassment grievance in 2008, while stating that the case was more than three years old and could not be reopened. The journalist Janice Sequeira publicly said she had witnessed the incident. In June 2019 Mumbai police filed a B-Summary closure report that cleared Patekar, and Dutta said her lawyers might approach the Bombay High Court to have the case reopened. The allegations have not been established in court.

Basic Details

• Full name: Tanushree Dutta
• Date of birth: 19 March 1984
• Birthplace: Jamshedpur, then Bihar and now Jharkhand, India
• Age: 42 (2026)
• Nationality: Indian
• Profession: Former actress and model; beauty pageant titleholder
• Title: Femina Miss India Universe 2004; top 10 at Miss Universe 2004
• Years active: 2005–2010, 2013
• Sister: Ishita Dutta, actress

Career Highlights