Happy birthday, Tanushree Dutta: Lesser-known facts about her 

Tanushree Dutta might be away from the glamor world at the moment, but she continues to rule over the hearts of her fans even today. The 39-year-old model-turned-actor debuted in Bollywood in 2005 with Aashiq Banaya Aapne and Chocolate. On the occasion of her birthday on Sunday, here are some interesting facts about Dutta that her fans should know.

Yes, you read that right! Dutta is the elder sister of actor Ishita Dutta, who rose to popularity with Ajay Devgn and Tabu starrer Drishyam and its sequel Drishyam 2. Ishita is six years younger than her elder sister, and they both were born and brought up in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand. Like Dutta, her younger sister is also a model-turned-actor.

Dutta has been part of several Bollywood films and songs. In 2008, she shot for a dance number for the 2009 movie Horn 'Ok' Pleassss. Soon after that, however, Dutta took a break from work and stayed at an ashram for a year and a half after allegedly being traumatized on the sets. She later went to Ladakh to learn Buddhist meditation-related breathing techniques.

Many would not be aware that Dutta is a green card (permanent resident) holder in the United States of America. According to reports, a few years ago, she moved her base to the US after she took a break from the film industry. Although she did return to India in the year 2019, Dutta continues to hold a green card from the US.

Before making her mark in the film industry, Dutta was a model. She also reportedly won two beauty pageants, Femina Miss India and Femina Miss India Universe, in 2003 and 2004, respectively. She also represented the country at the Miss Universe 2004 pageant and was one of the top 10 finalists. Interestingly, Dutta dropped out of college to pursue a career in modeling.