Preity Zinta was born as Pritam Singh Zinta on January 31, 1975 to a family from Rohru in Shimla district, Himachal Pradesh. Her father, Durganand Zinta, was an officer in the Indian Army. Her father died in a car accident when she was 13. The tragic situation also involved her mother, Nilprabha, who was severely injured and consequently remained bedridden for two years. Zinta called the tragic accident and her father's death a significant turning point in her life, which forced her to mature rapidly. (All photos/Preity Zinta's official Instagram account, AFP and mid-day archives)

Preity Zinta, who describes herself as having been a tomboy as a child, has emphasized her father's military background that gave her a lasting impression on how family life has to be conducted. He asserted the importance of discipline and punctuality to the children. As a student, she developed a love for literature, particularly the works of William Shakespeare and poetry. Preity Zinta has also been a sports enthusiast, and she has also confessed to participating in various sports as a child, especially in basketball.

Not many know that Preity Zinta has also earned a postgraduate degree in criminal psychology, but switched her ways and took up modelling. Zinta took up her first-ever television commercial for a famous chocolate brand after meeting with a director at a friend's birthday party in 1996. The director persuaded Zinta to audition on the spot, and she was selected. Ever since then, there was no turning back for the dimpled lady. Afterwards, she also appeared in other catalogues and commercials, including one for the soap Liril.

In addition to acting, Zinta has written a series of columns for BBC News Online South Asia. The actress is a versatile talent - she is a social activist, a television presenter, and a regular stage performer. She is the founder of the production company PZNZ Media, a co-owner of the Indian Premier League cricket team Kings XI Punjab since 2008, and the owner of the South-African T20 Global League cricket team Stellenbosch Kings since 2017.

Well, this is one of the reasons we don't see her on-screen often being such commitments in her personal life. Later, in 2013, the actress made a comeback with self-produced film, Ishkq in Paris, which failed to leave a mark.

Preity Zinta is known in the Indian media for publicly speaking her mind and consequently has sparked the occasional controversy. These controversies include her being the only witness not to retract in court her earlier statements against the Indian mafia during the 2003 Bharat Shah case, for which she was awarded the Godfrey Phillips National Bravery Award.

Preity Zinta made her debut in 1998 with a supporting role in the drama Dil Se.. and also starred in the commercially successful thriller, Soldier. For the films, she won a Filmfare Award in the Best Female Debut category. Zinta featured in four films in 2003. Her first role of the year was opposite Sunny Deol in Anil Sharma's drama The Hero ,the most expensive Bollywood film to that point. She played a negative role in the romantic drama Armaan, which saw her portray a rich, schizophrenic woman. Following this, she starred in two blockbusters ,the science fiction film Koi... Mil Gaya and the drama Kal Ho Naa Ho. For the latter, she won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress.

Preity Zinta married her US-based boyfriend Gene Goodenough on February 29, 2016. The couple took this photo while ringing in their New Years. Goodenough is Senior Vice-President for Finance at NLine Energy, a US-based hydroelectric power company. Don't they look adorable together?

We take a look at some more candid pictures of Preity Zinta, from her younger days and with her friends!

In picture: Preity Zinta with cricketer KL Rahul

Aamir Khan and Preity Zinta speak to reporters in front of a portrait of Aamir Khan at a press conference in Calcutta on August 12, 2001. The stars were speaking about their newly released big-budget film Dil Chahta Hai.

Zayed Khan, Malaika Arora, Shah Rukh Khan, Preity Zinta and Saif Ali Khan pose at a press conference in Hong Kong, on November 30, 2004.

Preity Zinta entertains some 10,000 fans at the Temptations 2004 Worldwide tour in Sun City on November 28, 2004. The troupe toured Atlanta, New York, London, Dubai and Hong Kong.

Preity Zinta and business tycoon Vijay Mallya pose with calendar models during the launch of the 'Kingfisher Swimsuit Special Calendar 2007' in Mumbai, on December 3, 2007.

Preity Zinta plays a shot during a friendly match after the IPL Twenty 20 match between Deccan Chargers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab at The Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on May 21, 2011.

King's XI Punjab co-owner and actress Preity Zinta walks back with cricketer Yuvraj Singh after losing a toss against the Bangalore Royal Challengers for their IPL Twenty20 match at The Kingsmead Cricket Stadium in Durban on April 24, 2009. Bangalore Royal Challengers won the toss and decided to bat first against King's XI Punjab.

Preity Zinta and Salman Khan perform onset during Indian television's new show Guinness World Records - Ab India Todega in Mumbai on March 26, 2011.

Preity Zinta reacts in joy for best actress at the 5th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Awards in Singapore on May 22, 2004.

Preity Zinta's friend circle in Bollywood is actually quite big. The actress never fails to catch up with her old buddies from the industry whenever she is in the country. This picture was taken by Preity when she was in town and met her former co-stars Bobby Deol and Aamir Khan.

This one's too, the craziest selfie of the lot! Preity Zinta and Sonam Kapoor celebrating Halloween.

Preity Zinta has been close friends with Rani Mukerji. The duo has shared screen space several times.

On one of the evenings of the Filmfare Awards, Preity was seen posing with Jaya Bachchan, Kajol and Tanishaa Mukerji. She captioned it - 'Here is how you take a selfie, check it out and of course retake it.'

Preity Zinta is close to her brothers Deepankar and Manish. She makes it a point to meet them and their families, including her two nieces.

Gym selfies? Of course yes! Preity Zinta is posing with her friend and trainer Yasmin Karachiwala.

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Preity Zinta!