While we may know them for their star performance on screen or their famous cricketing endeavors, these celebrities have stepped out of their comfort zone to venture into their name’s power in the retail, restaurant, or investment industries. Below, we have rounded up 5 celebrities who have used their influencer power to branch off into other fields.
1- Sarwat Gilani
The celebrated ‘Churails’ actress has been a part of the entertainment industry for the last 18-20 years. However, she did not confine herself behind the screen. Sarwat is an all-rounded individual dipping her toes in various avenues of society. She has been a known philanthropist advocating for the Special Olympics. She also runs her own Arthouse where she focuses on providing art education to children in different ways.
The “ArtHouse – By Sarwat Gilani” describes itself as “a learning space driven by Art education at its central core, that lends itself to an inquiry-based, explorative education system that helps develop, evenly enhance, cognitive, physical, social-emotional and multisensory skills. In turn, offering opportunities and avenues for multidimensional self-expression that foster confidence, nurture and blossom young learners into future proof, well rounded, adaptive, and competent individuals, prepared to thrive in a rapidly changing global landscape.” It offers programs that cater to all interests in children including arts and crafts, self defense, music, robotics and coding, little chefs, and yoga.
2 – Karan Johar
We may know Karan Johar as the host who sits on the couch sipping coffee, asking celebrities to spill some beans. What some of you may not know is that Karan Johar has stepped into the hospitality business with his restaurant “Neuma” which is a contemporary modern European restaurant in Mumbai. A hallmark of the menu is the focus on local ingredients sourced from nearby farms, resulting in a menu with fresh, wholesome, and clean flavours. The technique-driven menu caters to all palates and features dishes with minimalistic and beautiful presentations, that is still comfort food at its best.
3 – Mahira Khan
Mahira Khan runs her entertainment platform known as Mashion. Mashion is a mix of entertainment, style, and social issues. Mashion uses its platform to shed light on conversations that matter like their Mashadi campaign which brought up the subject of abusive marriages. Mahira also launched her own production house along with her friend Nina Kashif in 2021 by the name of “Soulfry Films”. She produced her first web series, “Barwaan Khiladi” under the banner of Soulfry Films. It is a coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of cricket- is a story about friendships, relationships, unity, failure, success, love, and courage.
4 – Alia Bhatt
Alia Bhatt has effectively proved herself in the entertainment industry and has now stepped into various initiatives which focus on protecting and preserving the environment. She launched her startup named “Ed-a-Mamma” which uses environment-friendly, natural fibers, and plastic-free materials, the social media campaigns reflected the purpose of the brand, and Alia’s vision and initiatives towards the climate emergency.
Another one of her initiatives and also one of her first ventures is Coexist, a platform highlighting issues and efforts around animals and ecological welfare. The platform is a place to raise awareness about issues of wildlife, plants, oceans, and the planet as a whole.
5 – Shoaib Malik
If you need 6s to win in a nail-biter? You call Shoaib Malik. However, we will now be seeing Shoaib Malik in a new avatar in “Ultimate Muqabala”. Malik is all set to host a new game show. The action game show will see the host and contestants in Thailand performing various adventurous tasks. The show brings a group of individuals from the world of television, sports, and fitness, who come together and face their fears. Azam Khan, Farah Butt, Faiza Khan, Mariyam Nafees, Nusrat Hidayatullah, Mahrunisa Iqbal, Neha Khan, Seher Afzal, Imad Wasim, Saeed Ajmal, Kamran Akmal, Fawad Alam, Haroon Shahid and Hammad Farooqi will compete for the survival of the fittest!
6 – Sania Mirza
Indian tennis ace and our favorite bhabhi Sania Mirza has been using her influence to promote good in society in many ways. During the pandemic, she started her initiative of supporting small local businesses in India. She took to her social media and announced ‘#SupportSmallBySania’, calling out to brands, designers, craftsmen, properties, restaurants, etc. Sania will be choosing 20 of her favorite picks out of those and will give them a shoutout, a statement said. Furthermore, she was also the first South Asian woman to be appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for UN Women.
She recently added another feather to her cap by opening the ‘Sania Mirza Tennis Academy in Dubai. According to CurlyTales Sania has tons of plans for her tennis academies and for expanding these everywhere. She already has Sania Mirza Tennis Academy in Hyderabad. And in Dubai, she has launched three academies already; one in Oud Metha, one in Jumeirah Lake Towers, and the most recent center in Space in DIP 2. One more academy is launching very very soon.
7 – Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli is a powerhouse loved and known by all. He is the only Indian to rank as the highest-paid athlete in the world on the Forbes list. Other than being a cricketer Virat has stepped into different areas of the business side. Starting from Goa FC turned out to be the first investment Virat Kohli made as a businessman when he was just 25-years-old. Led by his passion for football and the opportunity to step into the relatively unexplored field of football leagues back then. A London-based tech start-up, Sport Convo was Kohli’s second business venture after Goa FC and it provides a platform for sports fans from a variety of sports to meet and talk about the games and players they adore.
Furthermore, he invested in Blue Tribe, a startup based on plant-based meat products, which aims to manufacture and distribute delicacies like frozen minced chicken, chicken nuggets, keema, sausages, and momos. Though the look, feel, taste, and cooking style would be the same as the original animal-based meat variants but all of these will be based on plant products.
In May 2018, Kohli made the bold move of venturing into the competitive hospitality industry. Opening a South-American restaurant in New Delhi, by the name Nueva. It serves authentic South American food and the menu has some more inspirations from Spain, Italy, Portugal, France, Japan and Asian food. From pan-seared ducks to Peruvian piscos, the restaurant has some unique signature dishes.
8 – Deepika Padukone
Apart from being a full-time actor, Deepika Padukone is a businesswoman too! Honestly, what can she not do? She has recently launched her own self-care brand 82°E. The brand is on a mission to inspire its audience to connect with their truest, most authentic selves through joyful and effective self-care practices. Rigorously sourced, carefully crafted, and clinically tested, 82°E combines age-old traditional Indian ingredients with powerful scientific compounds, leaving you with healthier skin. The brand’s skincare debut includes a cleanser, toner, moisturizer, eye cream, and sunscreen.
Deepika Padukone launched LiveLoveLaugh in 2015 as a result of her own experience with depression and anxiety. The foundation aims to raise awareness of mental health, lessen the stigma attached to mental illness, and provide reliable mental health resources. Through partnerships and collaborations, LLL’s programs enable users to use the platform to request mental health counseling or locate a reputable therapist.
She has also served on the jury at the Cannes Film Festival.
What do you think about these celebrities? Share your thoughts with us!
