Smriti Zubin Irani is an Indian politician and the new Textiles Minister under the Narendra Modi government. She served as the Union Minister for Human Resource Development (HRD) before the reshuffling of the Cabinet took place on July 5. She is the member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Irani is a former model and a television actress who worked for a considerable number of daily soaps (TV serials). She is also a producer and has an entertainment company by the name of Ugraya Entertainment.
Smriti Irani |
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|---|---|
| Elected from | Gujarat |
| Age | 40 |
| DOB | March 23, 1976 |
| Political Party | Bharatiya Janata Party |
| Father's Name | Shri Ajay Kumar Malhotra |
| Mother's Name | Smt Shibani Bagchi |
| Delhi Address | C-1/2, Lodhi Garden, New Delhi 110003 |
| Telephone No. | 9013181198 |
| Permanent Address | A-602 Neptune Apartment, 4th Cross Lane, Lokhandwala Complex, Andheri (W), Mumbai, Maharashtra. 400053 |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Spouse | Zubin Irani |
| Children | 1 son(Zohr) 1 daughter(Zoish) 1 step daughter (Shanelle) |
| Portfolio | Minister of Textiles |
| Education | Educated at Holy Child Auxilium, Delhi and School of Correspondence and Continuing Education, University of Delhi, Delhi |
| Profession before joining politics | Model, TV Actress |
| Positions Held | Aug. 2011 Elected to Rajya Sabha Sept. 2011 - May 2014 Member, Committee on Coal and Steel Aug. 2012 - May 2014 Member, Parliamentary Forum on Disaster Management Member, Consultative Committee for the Ministry of Urban Development 27 May 2014 onwards Minister of Human Resource Development |
| Achievements |
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| Term | 19/08/2011 to 18/08/2017 |
| Memeber of | Rajya Sabha |
Family and Personal Background of Smriti Irani :
Smriti Irani was born in a cross-cultural middle class family in Delhi to a Punjabi father and a Bengali mother on March 23, 1976. Smriti was the eldest among three sisters. To help her family financially she started working after class 10 and earned Rs 200 a day by the promotion of a beauty product. But destiny had something else in store for her. The world of glamour attracted her and she decided to break free from the middle-class norms. She decided to participate in the Miss India contest in 1998 but could not reach the finals. Finally she decided to go to Mumbai and try her luck. To support herself financially, she worked at McDonald's. In the meantime, she started giving auditions in the entertainment industry.
In 2001, Smriti married a Parsi entrepreneur named Zubin Irani. The couple has two children - a son Zohr who was born in October 2001. Two years later, the couple was blessed with a daughter who was named as Zoish.
Acting Career of Smriti Irani
Irani had to go through tough times before fortune finally decided to favour her and she got the chance to host an episode of 'Ooh La La La'. She replaced the famous actress Neelam Kothari as the show's host. There was no looking back from there for Irani as she had caught the eye of famous producer Ekta Kapoor. She got to play the character of Tulsi Virani in a superhit TV serial titled 'Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' aired on Star Plus.
Her popularity kept soaring high and she became a household name in virtually no time. She won many awards for her character of Tulsi in the serial. Apart from working in serials, she also produced shows under her company Ugraya Entertainment. She also hosted the dance reality show named, 'Yeh Hai Jalwa' in the year 2008 along with Sakshi Tanwar (Irani's contemporary and another famous TV actress). She also proved her skills as a comedian in a show called Maniben.com (2009-2010), telecast on SAB TV.
Smriti Irani also acted in a Bengali film. The under-production movie 'All Is Well' will mark her Bollywood debut.
Political Career of Smriti Irani
In the year 2003, Smriti Irani joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). In the subsequent year, she was appointed as the Vice-President of the Maharashtra Youth Wing. She contested as a BJP candidate against Kapil Sibal from Chandni Chowk constituency in 2004 general elections. Though she lost the elections, the party acknowledged her hard work by appointing her as an executive member of its central committee. Irani continued on climb the ladder of success. She became the national secretary of the party and the President of the party's women's wing in 2010.
Looking at her leadership skills and her dedication, the BJP gave her the ticket to contest against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi, UP in 2014 Lok Sabha elections. She lost to Gandhi with a very narrow margin. Looking at her determination and the leadership qualities, she was appointed as the HRD minister in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Council of Ministers. She, thus, became the youngest member of the cabinet.In a Cabinet expansion and reshuffle that took place on July 5, Smriti Irani was shifted to the Ministry of Textiles.