Shriya Pilgaonkar is an Indian actress popularly known for playing the character of bold and outspoken “Swaragini”, aka “Sweety”, in Mirzapur season 1. Even after being in the showbiz business for quite some time, the actress gained popularity with her role in this Amazon Prime’s popular web show. Since then, there has been no looking back as she has made her Bollywood debut and played pivotal roles in web series across all major OTT platforms.
Let’s learn more about the life and career journey of Shriya Pilgaonkar
Early Life
Shriya is the daughter of famous actors Sachin Pilgaonkar and Supriya Pilagonkar. She was bn on April 25, 1989, in Mumbai, Maharashtra. She is a trained swimmer and has won gold medals in under-7 and under-9 and is a state-level swimmer.
After schooling, she was admitted to St. Xavier’s College to study sociology. She has also studied Japanese to become a translator or linguist. But destiny had something else planned for her, and she became an actor. She has also studied screenplay adaptation at Harvard summer school and took a film appreciation class at the Film and Television Institute of India in Pune.
Professional Career: Actor, Director, and more
The self-made star that Shriya is the result of sheer determination and her honesty towards the art. Despite her parents working in the same industry, she never took advantage of it. Instead, she struggled and made her place in the industry.
Her acting debut on television was made when she was only five. She appeared in the popular Hindi sitcom Tu Tu Main Main as a boy called Bittu. After that, she made her debut in the theatre, performing in a play called Freedom Of Love by Karan Shetty. She acted, danced, and sang in that 10-minute short play.
Then in 2013, she entered the film industry and debuted with a Marathi film titled Ekulti Ek. She bagged six awards for that film. Later she appeared in Akash Khurana Internal Affairs and Common People. In 2015, she got to work with Oscar-winning director Claude Lelouch in his French FIlm Un plus une. Finally, in 2016, she debuted in Bollywood with Aditya Chopra’s Fan.
Although a minor role, it was worth it because Shriya was selected among the 750 girls who auditioned for the same. Moreover, she got the opportunity to work with Shah Rukh Khan. After the film’s release, her role got recognition, but the film did not do very well at the box office. Due to this, she didn’t get the recognition she was worthy of. Apart from being an actor, Shriya Pilgaonkar is also a Director and Producer. She directed a short film titled ‘Painted Signal’ in 2012, another short film titled ‘Dresswala’ in 2013, and a documentary titled ‘Panchgavya” in 2015.
Shriya’s Rise to Fame
It was in 2018 that Amazon Prime India released its original web series Mirzapur which became popular in pan India. Shriya played the role of Sweety Gupta. This role made her popular, becoming a popular name in the OTT world.
Following this, she appeared in films like House Arrest, War, Bhangra Paa le, and Haathi Mere Saathi. In the OTT space, she wrecked in Beecham House, Murder in Agonda, The Gone Game, Crackdown, and Guilty Minds. Her latest release includes ‘The Broken News’ on Zee5. She will be next seen in ‘The Gone Game Season 2’. She has also completed the shoot of her upcoming film ‘Ishq-E-Nadaan’. Her movie, ‘ Abhi Toh Party Shuru Hui Hai’, directed by Anubhav Sinha, is also expected to release in 2022.
Notable Performances
Some notable performances of Shriya Pilgaonkar are
- Neha Singh in Fan (2016)
- Swaragini ‘Sweety’ Gupta in Mirzapur Season 1 (2018)
- Kashaf Quaze in Guilty Minds (2022)
- Radha Bhargava in The Broken News (2022)
Awards and Accolades
- Maharashtra State Film Awards in Best Debut Actress for Ekulti Ek (2013)
- Zee Yuva Sanman Awards in Zee Yuva Tejaswi Chehra (2019)
- In 2020, she was ranked no. 40 in The Times of India’s Most Desirable Women List
