Sharma says she originally wished to make it big in the modeling world but had no strong aspirations for films. She began her modeling career at the Lakme Fashion Week as a model for Wendell Rodricks's Les Vamps Show and was picked to be Rodricks's finale model at the Spring Summer '07 Collection. Since then she has done campaigns for Silk & Shine, Whisper, Nathella Jewelry and Fiat Palio.
Her first acting role was in Aditya Chopra's Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008) opposite Shahrukh Khan. The film was a huge success and her performance was appreciated. Film critic Taran Adarsh said, "Anushka looks the character and surprises you with a confident performance. It's no small achievement to share screen space with an actor of the caliber of SRK and Anushka manages it very well from start to end." Her second film, Badmaash Company, also under Yash Raj Films, was released on May 7, 2010. She was praised for breaking out of the shell of the conservative and homely Taani to play the feisty and independent Bulbul, and her performance was applauded. Harshita Kohli of StarBoxOffice.com said, "Anushka Sharma goes from Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi housewife to super hot chic in Badmaash Company...Her acting is under stated and there are no histrionics that you normally associated with females in Bollywood films which makes it a pleasant surprise.
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