Meet Dipika Kakar: From Highest-Paid TV Actress to Household-Centered Entrepreneur

Might 16, 2025 – Mumbai, India

Dipika Kakar Ibrahim, as soon as hailed as one in all India’s highest-paid tv actresses, has captivated audiences along with her on-screen attraction and off-screen resilience. Finest identified for her iconic function as Simar in Sasural Simar Ka (2011–2018), Kakar commanded ₹70,000–₹110,000 per episode at her peak, incomes her a spot amongst TV’s elite earners. Her journey—from a Jet Airways air hostess to Bigg Boss 12 winner and now a YouTube vlogger and entrepreneur—displays a mix of ambition and flexibility. Married to her Sasural Simar Ka co-star Shoaib Ibrahim since 2018, Kakar has largely stepped away from performing to give attention to household, together with their son Ruhaan, born in 2023, and new ventures like her trend model, Label DKI. With a web price estimated at ₹40–41 crore, she stays a family identify, inspiring followers along with her evolving profession and private selections.

Early Life and Profession Beginnings

Born on August 6, 1986, in Pune, Maharashtra, Dipika Kakar grew up in a household formed by her father’s Indian Military service, ultimately settling in Pune. She graduated from the College of Mumbai and pursued a childhood dream of turning into an air hostess, working for Jet Airways for 3 years. Well being points pressured her to resign, prompting a pivot to leisure. Her performing debut got here in 2010 with Neer Bhare Tere Naina Devi, the place she performed Lakshmi, adopted by a supporting function as Rekha in Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hello Kijo (2011).

Her breakthrough arrived with Sasural Simar Ka, a Colours TV cleaning soap opera that aired from 2011 to 2018, the place she portrayed Simar Bhardwaj, a dancer navigating household drama and supernatural twists. The present’s huge viewership—12.33 million impressions in week 52 of 2015—made Kakar a family identify and one of many highest-paid actresses, reportedly incomes ₹70,000 per episode by 2015, with some sources citing as much as ₹110,000 at her peak.

Rise to Fame and Earnings

Kakar’s portrayal of Simar, the “adarsh bahu” (perfect daughter-in-law), resonated with audiences, notably moms and married ladies, as she famous in a 2016 Tellychakkar interview. The present’s dramatic but relatable storytelling cemented her standing, incomes her nominations just like the 2015 Indian Telly Award for Finest Actress. By 2015, she was listed amongst India’s top-earning TV actresses, alongside Sakshi Tanwar (₹1.25 lakh per episode) and Drashti Dhami (₹1 lakh), along with her ₹70,000 per episode rivaling male stars like Ram Kapoor.

Her fame soared additional with actuality TV. In 2017, she competed on Nach Baliye 8 with Shoaib Ibrahim, ending fourth, and in 2018, she received Bigg Boss 12, taking residence ₹30 lakh. Her calm demeanor and strategic gameplay endeared her to viewers, solidifying her star energy. In 2019, she returned to fiction with Kahaan Hum Kahaan Tum, taking part in Sonakshi, however the present ended after 9 months. Her stint on Superstar MasterChef in 2024, the place she was a top-paid contestant, ended early attributable to a shoulder damage, an emotional exit that sparked blended reactions on-line.

Kakar’s earnings prolong past performing. Her YouTube channel, Dipika Ki Duniya, with 3.94 million subscribers, generates an estimated ₹7.3 lakh month-to-month, whereas Instagram posts (3.9 million followers) fetch as much as ₹5 lakh every. Her trend model, Label DKI, launched in October 2024, sells ethnic put on, mixing custom and trendy fashion. These ventures, alongside model endorsements, contribute to her reported web price of ₹40–41 crore, outpacing her husband’s earnings and making her one in all TV’s richest actresses.

Private Life: Marriage to Shoaib Ibrahim

Kakar’s romance with Shoaib Ibrahim, her Sasural Simar Ka co-star, started on set, blossoming into one in all TV’s most celebrated love tales. Their relationship confronted scrutiny, as Kakar was married to pilot Raunak Samson from 2011 to 2015. Studies counsel her closeness with Ibrahim contributed to the divorce, although Kakar clarified they weren’t courting throughout her marriage. In 2017, Ibrahim proposed to her on Nach Baliye 8, and on February 22, 2018, they married in a grand Bhopal ceremony. Kakar transformed to Islam, adopting the identify Faiza Ibrahim, a call that sparked trolling however which she has defended as private.

The couple welcomed their son, Ruhaan, in June 2023, after a miscarriage in 2022. Kakar has embraced motherhood, sharing household moments in vlogs and gifting lavish gadgets, like a ₹19,000 BMW HP4 ride-on bike to Bharti Singh’s son in 2024. Their 5BHK Mumbai residence, a merger of two flats, displays their opulent way of life, full with a contemporary kitchen and a BMW X4 automotive. Ibrahim, identified for roles in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 10 and Ajooni, helps Kakar’s ventures, and their manufacturing home, Qalb, launched in 2023, alerts future inventive initiatives.

Stepping Away from Performing

In Might 2023, throughout her being pregnant, Kakar introduced her determination to give up performing, expressing a need to dwell as a housewife and mom. “I began working at a younger age and continued for about 10–15 years. As my being pregnant journey started, I instructed Shoaib that I don’t need to work,” she instructed StarsUnfolded. Whereas she later clarified she hasn’t dominated out performing fully, her focus has shifted to household and entrepreneurship. Her absence from TV since Kahaan Hum Kahaan Tum (2019) has left followers looking forward to a comeback, with X posts like @TellyTalkIndia’s Might 10, 2025, ballot asking, “Will Dipika Kakar return to TV in 2025?”

Her Superstar MasterChef look showcased her cooking ardour, rooted in her YouTube vlogs, however trolling over her “homemaker” picture persists. Responding to critics, Kakar instructed decide Farah Khan, “Some folks will all the time discover fault, however my followers help my journey.” Her emotional exit attributable to damage highlighted her vulnerability, with netizens break up—some empathized, whereas others mocked her, saying, “She cooks every day at residence, why cry now?”

Legacy and Influence

Dipika Kakar’s rise from a non-industry background to TV stardom, and not using a “godfather,” as famous by Mid-Day, evokes aspiring actors. Her means to outearn her husband, a rarity celebrated by shops like BollywoodLife and Instances of India, challenges gender norms in Indian TV. Her private selections, together with her conversion and profession pivot, have sparked debate but in addition admiration for her authenticity.

With a lavish way of life, thriving digital presence, and new enterprise ventures, Kakar stays a cultural power. Whether or not she returns to performing or continues as a content material creator and designer, her journey—from the highest-paid TV actress to a family-focused entrepreneur—displays a lifetime of reinvention, grounded in love and ambition.

Sources: DNA India, India.com, Wikipedia, IBTimes India, Way of life Asia, BollywoodLife, StarsUnfolded, Mid-Day, India TV Information, Instances of India