Nikolai Nikitin

Naya Rivera was an American actress and singer, best known for her portrayal of Santana Lopez in the television series ‘Glee’.Naya Rivera was an American actress and singer, best known for her portrayal of Santana Lopez in the television series ‘Glee’. A promising entertainer, Rivera’s acting talent was deeply embedded right from the beginning. Even before celebrating her first birthday, Rivera became a part of the world of glitz and glamour. She started doing commercials when she was barely eight or nine months old and by the age of four landed her first acting project—the role of Hillary Winston in the sitcom ‘The Royal Family’. Though her acting career took off instantly, the big breakthrough evaded her until ‘Glee’ came her way. As Santana Lopez, Rivera made a striking impression of a young talented actor who seemed to be the best at her job. Despite playing the mean girl, people adored her. Soon, she climbed the ladder of success and became the talk of the tinsel town with numerous awards coming her way. She featured in various listings of the country’s most attractive people, including, FHM’s ‘World's Sexiest Woman’ list, People en Español ‘50 Most Beautiful’ and thrice in Maxim ‘Hot 100’ list. She was ranked #1 in the 2012 AfterEllen Hot 100 list and #37 in the Men's Health Hottest Women of 2014.

Career

Career

Career

At the age of four, Naya Rivera got the role of Hillary Winston in the sitcom ‘The Royal Family’ sitcom. Though the show opened on a positive note with high ratings and good reviews, it was cancelled following the sudden death of actor Redd Foxx.

Between 1992 and 2002, Rivera bagged numerous guest roles in popular television series including ‘The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air’, ‘Family Matters’, ‘Live Shot’, ‘Baywatch’, ‘Smart Guy’, ‘The Jersey’, ‘House Blend’, ‘Even Stevens’ and ‘The Master of Disguise’.

In 2002, Rivera appeared in the music video for B2K's ‘Why I Love You’. Same year, her single episode guest role in ‘The Bernie Mac Show’ was stretched to ten-episodes that ranged throughout the five seasons. Though the guest appearances kept her busy creatively, she worked part time as a telemarketer, nanny and greeter at Abercrombie & Fitch to sustain herself.

After a bevy of auditions and guest roles, it was in 2009 that Rivera got the big breakthrough of her career. She was cast as Santana Lopez, a high school cheerleader, on Fox’s musical comedy ‘Glee’. The fact that the role gave her an opportunity to sing, dance and act all at the same time was exciting enough for her. Furthermore, she was a big fan of Ryan Murphy’s work.

For her role in ‘Glee’, Rivera took inspiration from her own high school experience. It was during the last nine episodes of the first season of ‘Glee’ that Santana’s character of a mean, headstrong ‘bad’ girl came out explicitly. Her brilliant portrayal of the character earned her a regular spot at the beginning of the second season.

Naya Rivera’s first solo in ‘Glee’ came in the fifth episode of season two, ‘The Rocky Horror Glee Show’. As the second season progressed, Rivera's character underwent a radical change as she was shown as a lesbian. A powerful performer, Rivera portrayed her lesbian character with perfection thus earning favourable reviews from the critics as well as audience. The critical acclamation continued well into the third season as well as Rivera continued to perform excellently.

In May 2011, Rivera signed a deal with Columbia Records to produce a solo album. While working on a debut song, Rivera gave vocals for musical duo 2Cellos second single of their second album, a cover of Muse's ‘Supermassive Black Hole’. Simultaneously, she also starred in its music video.

On September 2013, Rivera came up with her debut single ‘Sorry’, featuring rapper Big Sean. The single underperformed at the charts. The debut album which was under progress was called off. On May 2014, Columbia Records dropped Rivera from their list though her representatives later claimed that the report were falsified but without proof.

A failed musical attempt did not dampen Rivera’s spirit. Instead, she made a strong comeback this time on the big screen with her debut feature film ‘At the Devil’s Door’. The film was premiered by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, Texas. Released in September 2014, the film was widely appreciated and so was Rivera’s performance,.

In 2015, Rivera portrayed the recurring role of Blanca Alvarez for the third season of Lifetime's drama series ‘Devious Maids’.

Who was Naya Rivera?

Who was Naya Rivera?

Who was Naya Rivera?

Naya Rivera was an American actress and singer, best known for her portrayal of Santana Lopez in the television series ‘Glee’. A promising entertainer, Rivera’s acting talent was deeply embedded right from the beginning. Even before celebrating her first birthday, Rivera became a part of the world of glitz and glamour. She started doing commercials when she was barely eight or nine months old and by the age of four landed her first acting project—the role of Hillary Winston in the sitcom ‘The Royal Family’. Though her acting career took off instantly, the big breakthrough evaded her until ‘Glee’ came her way. As Santana Lopez, Rivera made a striking impression of a young talented actor who seemed to be the best at her job. Despite playing the mean girl, people adored her. Soon, she climbed the ladder of success and became the talk of the tinsel town with numerous awards coming her way. She featured in various listings of the country’s most attractive people, including, FHM’s ‘World's Sexiest Woman’ list, People en Español ‘50 Most Beautiful’ and thrice in Maxim ‘Hot 100’ list. She was ranked #1 in the 2012 AfterEllen Hot 100 list and #37 in the Men's Health Hottest Women of 2014.

When she had to pick a name for her film career, she picked ‘Sunny’ while ‘Leone’ was picked by Bob Guccione, the former owner of the ‘Penthouse’ magazineWhen she had to pick a name for her film career, she picked ‘Sunny’ while ‘Leone’ was picked by Bob Guccione, the former owner of the ‘Penthouse’ magazine. She posed for the ‘Penthouse’ magazine and was named ‘Penthouse Pet of the Month’ for the March 2001 issue. She also appeared in other magazines such as ‘Hustler’, ‘High Society’, and ‘AVN Online’.

Karenjit Kaur Vohra, popularly known by her stage name Sunny Leone, is a Canadian-born Indian-American actress, model, and a former adult actressKarenjit Kaur Vohra, popularly known by her stage name Sunny Leone, is a Canadian-born Indian-American actress, model, and a former adult actress. She worked in a bakery before taking a plunge into the adult film industry. After signing a three-year contract with Vivid Entertainment, she stepped into the world of films, and became very popular and successful in this genre. She made her mainstream film debut playing a cameo role in the romantic comedy film ‘The Girl Next Door’. After appearing in two more films, she made her entry into Bollywood with ‘Jism 2’. Directed by Pooja Bhatt, the film was a commercial success. Her popularity increased further with ‘Ragini MMS 2’. She has since appeared in several Bollywood movies, such as ‘One Night Stand’ and ‘Mastizaade’. She is also known for her philanthropic works. She is involved with the American Cancer Society as well as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Career

Career

Career

When she had to pick a name for her film career, she picked ‘Sunny’ while ‘Leone’ was picked by Bob Guccione, the former owner of the ‘Penthouse’ magazine. She posed for the ‘Penthouse’ magazine and was named ‘Penthouse Pet of the Month’ for the March 2001 issue. She also appeared in other magazines such as ‘Hustler’, ‘High Society’, and ‘AVN Online’.

She signed a three-year contract with Vivid Entertainment, after which she entered the adult film industry and starred in movies like ‘Sunny’, ‘Busty Cops 2’, ‘Sunny Loves Matt’ and ‘Its Sunny in Brazil’.

Sunny Leone launched her own studio ‘Sunlust Pictures,’ along with Daniel Weber. Her first independent production was ‘The Dark Side of the Sun’. This was followed by 'Roleplay’ and ‘Goddess’.

Leone was named by Maxim as one of the 12 best female adult film stars; she announced her retirement from the industry in 2013.

Sunny Leone made her mainstream film acting debut with a cameo role in the romantic comedy film ‘The Girl Next Door’ in 2004. The film was about a high school senior who falls in love with the girl next door, only to learn later that she is a former adult film actress. The film was an average success commercially. It received mixed reviews.

She next appeared in ‘Pirate’s Blood’ (2008) and ‘The Virginity Hit’ (2010) before she moved to Bollywood.

She made her Bollywood debut with the 2012 film, ‘Jism 2’ in which she starred alongside Randeep Hooda and Arunoday Singh. It was directed by Pooja Bhatt. The film proved successful made Rs. 35 crore on the box office. It received mixed reviews from the critics.

In 2013, she played a cameo role in ‘Shootout at Wadala’ a biographical film based on the life of Manya Surve, an infamous Indian gangster.

Her next important role was in the comedy thriller film ‘Jackpot’ where she starred alongside veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah. The film received mostly negative reviews.

Her popularity in the Indian film industry increased after she played the lead role in the 2014 film ‘Ragini MMS 2’. It was a sequel to the 2011 film ‘Ragini MMS’. The film was a huge success and received mixed reviews.

She made her Telugu debut by playing a main role in the romantic comedy film ‘Current Theega’ The film was a commercial success. In 2015, she was seen in the thriller drama film ‘Ek Paheli Leela,’ a story about reincarnation which revolves around a woman and her lover. The film was a commercial success and was met with mixed reviews.

She appeared in ‘Kuch Kuch Locha Hai’ in 2015. It was inspired loosely by the Gujarati comedy play ‘Lage Raho Gujjubhai’. The film received negative reviews. The same year, she appeared in the action comedy film ‘Singh is Bliing’, which starred Akshay Kumar and Amy Jackson in the lead roles. The film was a commercial success, though the reviews were mostly negative.

In 2016, she played a dual role in the comedy film ‘Mastizaade’. The film wasn’t very successful commercially. It was met with mixed reviews. She next appeared in the suspense drama film ‘One Night Stand’.

She acted in the film ‘Beimaan Love’ in 2016. The film marked the acting debut of her husband Daniel Weber. In 2017, she played cameo roles in many films, such as ‘Raees’, ‘Baadshaho’ and ‘Bhoomi’. She also played the lead role in the film ‘Tera Intezaar’.