Smriti Irani

Smriti Zubin Irani^[2] (née Malhotra; pronounced [ˈsmɾɪt̪i ɪˈɾaːni]; born 23 March 1976) is an Indian politician, actress, fashion model, and television producer. She received widespread acclaim for her role of Tulsi Virani in the soap opera Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi by Ekta Kapoor, which became the most watched show at its time and won her numerous accolades. An eminent member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Irani has held various significant roles within the Indian Union Cabinet. Before entering politics, Irani had a successful career in the entertainment industry.^[3] In 2025, after nearly 2 decades away from acting, Irani reprised her role of Tulsi Virani in Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi 2.^[4][5]

Her paternal family includes Punjabi and Maharashtrian heritage, while her maternal family has a Bengali heritage.^[6][7] Irani joined as a BJP karyakarta in 2003 and since then has completed more than 22 years in the BJP. With over three-generation family of party supporters, from her grandfather as a swayamsevak, and mother as a BJP booth activist, it highlights that her relationship with the party is familial.

A prominent leader of Bharatiya Janata Party, she had been a member of the Indian parliament from 2011 to 2024, serving in the Rajya Sabha from Gujarat from 2011 to 2019 and from 2019 to 2024 as a member of the Lok Sabha from the Amethi constituency in Uttar Pradesh. She was also the National President of the BJP Mahila Morcha (the party's women's wing) from 2010 to 2013. Apart from this, Irani has been National Secretary (two terms), National-President Women's Wing and National Executive Member for five terms.

In the 2019 elections, she gained the Amethi constituency by defeating opposition leader Rahul Gandhi, then-president of the Indian National Congress, whose family members had represented the constituency for the previous four decades. She is the only non-Gandhi female politician to have completed five years in Amethi constituency. She subsequently lost the constituency to long time Indian National Congress worker Kishori Lal Sharma in the 2024 elections.