Uma Padmanabhan

Some Lesser Known Facts About Uma Padmanabhan

• Uma Padmanabhan is an Indian socialite and actress who works predominantly in the Tamil film and television industry. She has been working as a TV news presenter since 1993.

• Uma was schooled for a year in New York when her father received the Rockefeller Foundation grant and had to spent a year in the United States. In an interview, Uma recalled that it was there that she realised her father was an artist. She said, ^[2]The New Indian Express
  

  Appa was doing drawings on egg cartons. He also did acrylic paintings, tapestry work and fibre weaving. I was seeing this for the first time.”

• After her mother’s demise in 2005, Uma became the caretaker of her father who lived in Baroda (now Vadodara) and was ill. Reportedly, she would spend two weeks with her husband, Padmanabhan, and the rest of the month in Baroda, taking care of her father.

• After completing her graduation from S.I.E.T., Uma applied for a job as an anchor at the SUN TV, a Tamil entertainment channel, six months after the channel was founded in 1993. She initially worked there as a newsreader for a short period and was eventually shifted to host the Tamil morning show ‘Vanakkam Tamizhakam.’ The show went on to become the state’s one of the most-watched breakfast program.

• In addition to hosting almost every show on SUN TV, Uma has also worked with Vijay TV, Jaya TV, and other Tamil channels.

• She debuted on the silver screen with the Tamil movie Unnidathil Ennai Koduthen in 1998. After this big Kollywood break, the actress did not get much work in the industry for almost four years.

• Kailasam Balachander (KB) was responsible for shifting Uma Padmanabhan’s career from a TV newscaster to an actress. ^[3]The Hindu

• In 2002, she made her comeback and got a breakthrough role in the Tamil film Yai! Nee Romba Azhaga Irukke. Her performance was recognised and appreciated by the audience and the critics alike. This role landed many more acting offers in her lap.

  

• Uma is one of the actresses who has worked across different genres in her acting career including romance, comedy, drama, and action. She likes working in films with a lot of comedy-based acting. ^[4]Femina

•  The Tamil star has also shared the screen with some popular actors like Rajinikanth, Dhanush, Silambarasan, Jiiva, Prithviraj, Udhayanidhi Stalin, Vijay, Srikanth, and Vikranth.

• In 2013, Uma became the “Pink Ambassador” from Chennai for the organisation “India Turns Pink,” which helps create awareness surrounding breast cancer.

• She took a decade long break from TV soaps and made a comeback in 2016 with the serial Vinnai Thandi Varuvaya in which Uma played the role of the leading actor’s mother. According to Uma, her long-term commitment to work in TV serials prompted her to take this break. In an interview, when Uma was asked about her comeback, she said, ^[5]The Times of India
  

  I was thinking of doing a television project for quite some time now. It was around this time, I got a call for this serial. Also, the channel and the production house are big names — so it is a win-win for me.”

• The Kollywood actress dubs her own lines in Hindi and other languages.

  

• Apart from being an actor and a TV presenter, Uma also has a flair for singing. She has sung some Tamil songs and has also been a performer in the Tamil devotional poem, Marghazhi Thingal, along with other actresses; moreover, Uma has also appeared in a few Tamil TV commercials.

• The anchor-turned-actress diligently follows the TV reality show Big Boss Tamil, hosted by her friend and actor Kamal Haasan. She regularly tweets about the controversies related to the show.

  

• Her Tamil TV show “Poove Poochudavaa” touched a milestone of 1000 episodes in February 2021.