Nadhiya

Nadiya was born to Malayali parents and spent her childhood in Sion, Mumbai. She had her primary education from The J.B Vachha High School for Parsi Girls, Mumbai, and her pre-university degree from Sir Jamsetjee Jeejebhoy School of Art. She couldn't continue her college studies after that as she became busy with movies by then. She earned her associate degree in Media Management and B.A. in Communication Arts - Radio & Television, while living in the United States.Nadiya made her debut in the Malayalam film Nokketha Doorathu Kannum Nattu (1984), alongside Mohanlal and Padmini for which she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress – Malayalam. This movie was remade in Tamil as Poove Poochudava in 1985 with Padmini and marked her debut in Tamil.

Nadiya claims she was considered for the role of Revathi in Mouna Ragam, a 1986 Tamil film, but declined due to prior commitments.

She then ventured into Tamil and Telugu cinema and became a popular actress in both industries during the 1980s and 1990s. She was a trendsetter even at those times working on her own terms and starred alongside all the big stars of the time such as Rajinikanth, Vijayakanth, Sathyaraj, Prabhu, Suresh and Mohan.

In the mid-1990s, she made a brief comeback as an actress, before moving to the United States.

After a successful career in the film industry, Nadhiya took a break from acting and focused on her personal life. However, she made a strong comeback to the big screen in the late 2000s and continued to impress the audience with her acting prowess. Nadhiya made a successful comeback in the year 2004 with the movie M. Kumaran Son of Mahalakshmi.

Apart from films, Nadhiya has also appeared in some television serials and shows. She is known for her graceful and elegant screen presence, and her acting skills have earned her a dedicated fan following.