Nayanathara or Lady Superstar as she is fondly referred, has turned a year older today. It is her 35th birthday and her fans across the globe are celebrating this special day. Netizens have shared heart-warming birthday messages for her across social media platforms. Nayanthara has worked in across South Indian film industries, but she is primarily known for her works in Kollywood. Although she was born in a Malayali Christian family as Diana Mariam Kurian, in 2011 she embraced Hinduism and that’s how her stage name Nayanthara became official. Nayanthara Poses With Vignesh Shivan, Boney Kapoor and Khushi in the US (View Pic).

Nayanthara has had her own hits and flops in her acting career. But today, she is not only one of the most sought after heroines down South, Nayanthara is hailed as Lady Superstar. She has fought against all odds and earned that label. From playing girl next-door role to doing women-centric films to taking the risks of doing films without heroes, Nayanthara has made smart choices in her career. KayByKatrina: These Stills of Nayanthara and Katrina Kaif from the Beauty Campaign Are a Must See!

Debut – Nayanthara made her acting debut with the Malayalam film Manassinakkare. She had initially rejected the offer, but eventually accepted it. The film turned out to be commercially successful and since then there has been no looking back. She started to receive amazing offers from filmmakers.

Entry In Kollywood – Nayanthara made her Kollywood debut with the film Ayya that released in 2005. But it was Vishnuvardhan’s directorial Billa that helped her gain success as a star. The drop-dead gorgeous actress slowly started making her path to stardom in the Tamil film industry.

Experimented With Roles – Nayanthara never feared from taking up challenging roles and experimenting with her roles. She is known to be risk-taker and that’s what impressed all the filmmakers. When Nayanthara was at top of her league, she took up risky roles and changed the image of a heroine-centric role.

Debutant Directors – Nayanthara never hesitated to work with new directors. She whole-heartedly worked with first-time filmmakers. For example, director Gopi Nainar made his directorial debut with Aramm in 2017 with Nayanthara as the lead actress.

Nayanthara Worked With Male Superstars – Nayanthara has shared screen space with the leading actors of Kollywood. Yet, she managed to shine through with her impeccable performance. She has worked with superstars such as Rajinikanth, Thalapathy Vijay, Chiranjeevi, Ajith Kumar and many others.

No Promotions – In an age where actors and actresses go out for promotional activities of their films, Nayanthara has maintained a strong policy of ‘no promotional activities’. She does not promote her films and yet there are many who come to watch first day first show of her movies. That proves her strong impression in the competitive world of showbiz.

Fan Clubs – Nayathara is not active on social media, yet she has a strong fan club. Her fans give her immense support across social media platforms and that simply shows the mark Nayathara has created amongst Kollywood lovers and others. She is the Lady Superstar for them!

Nayanthara has had an impeccable acting career and we salute her for being so headstrong in such a male-dominant industry. Even without a male co-star she can beautifully pull-off a film and that she has proved already. We wish her all the love and luck in her career and personal life. Happy Birthday, Nayanthara.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 18, 2019 12:01 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).