Sushmita Sen was born into a Bengali Baidya family in Hyderabad on November 19, 1975. Her father, Shubeer Sen, was an Indian Air Force Wing Commander, and mother Subhra Sen is a jewellery designer and owner of a Dubai-based store. Sush has two siblings, a sister - Neelam, and a brother - Rajeev. (All photos: Sushmita Sen's Instagram account)

Sushmita Sen studied at St Ann's High School in Secunderabad and also attended the Air Force Golden Jubilee Institute in New Delhi, but did not pursue higher education.

At the age of 18, Sushmita Sen won the Miss Universe 1994 title. Last year, she clocked the silver jubilee of achieving the feat. 'I was 18 years old when India won Miss Universe for the very first time on 21st May 1994. I am 44 now, still a 'Miss' with a 'Universe' inside of me [sic],' she mentioned in one of her posts on social media.

In 1996, Sushmita Sen made her acting debut with Mahesh Bhatt's Dastak. She then starred in Ratchagan, a Tamil film, which released in 1997.

Sushmita Sen has starred in films such as Sirf Tum, Biwi No. 1, Kyo Kii... Main Jhuth Nahin Bolta, Aankhen, Filhaal..., Vaastu Shastra, Main Hoon Na, Chingaari, Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?, Zindaggi Rocks, Karma Aur Holi and No Problem.

Though Sushmita Sen's acting career didn't touch great heights, the actress has been an active stage performer and has stood up for social causes. She was even honoured at the Mother Teresa Awards 2013 for her social work.

On the personal front, Sushmita Sen is a single mother to two daughters. In 2000, at age 25, Sushmita adopted a baby girl, whom she named Renee. In 2010, she adopted another baby girl, whom she named Alisah.

The mother of two only seems to be growing younger and fitter with each passing day. Let's have a look at some of her scintillating pictures from recent times.

If you thought 'fab at 40' was just a saying, these pictures of Sushmita Sen will make you believe in it as well. Sushmita Sen has always managed to look fabulous - on-screen and off-screen. Don't you agree?

Lauded for her confidence and for making style statements, Sushmita isn't a fashion-conscious person. 'I don't know if I am fashion conscious, because I don't follow the seasons. I have no rules for fashion. If green is in fashion, you'll probably find me in orange. So I would not call myself fashion conscious, but I am fashion-aware,' Sushmita Sen told IANS earlier.

Sushmita Sen says if she chooses to follow a trend, she would probably be good at it. Why? 'Because I love shopping and I love being aware of fashion trends... But I don't necessarily follow it,' she added.

Talking about her beauty secret, Sushmita Sen said, 'I think people give too much importance to the age factor. Ageing isn't a new thing and everybody has to go through it at some point in time. I want to age gracefully and enjoy the process.'

At 45, Sushmita Sen is surely setting fitness goals with her stunning pictures. Sen says the word 'stylish' can be associated more with her. 'I definitely have a style of my own... Fashion-conscious, not so much,' she said.

On the film front, Sushmita Sen was last seen onscreen in 2010 in the Bollywood film No Problem and in a Bengali film Nirbaak (2015). On her comeback in the film industry, Sush said, 'I have been saying this for quite a long time... When I will be back on the big screen, the audiences should be happy. They should say, 'Now that's called a comeback and we really like her'. So, fingers crossed. This year, we should make that happen.'

Sushmita Sen says that nowadays, the Hindi film industry is not based on an artiste's look and age but on talent. She believes that age only adds experience to the actor's career. 'No, I don't agree with that, not today...if you had asked me this when I joined the film industry, I would have said a resounding yes! but at this stage, when you look at an 'English Vinglish', you look at Sridevi, you think wow,' Sushmita Sen had told IANS in an e-mail, when asked if she thinks the Indian film industry is based on looks and age and not on an actor's talent.

Sushmita Sen says that it would be a tragedy if an actor's career gets over at the age of 25. 'It's a fantastic time for women actors in the film industry because I have seen in the last few years alone, the whole concept of a woman-centric film being the centre of all the attention,' Sushmita Sen told IANS.

'We're a lovely film-going nation. I do feel very strongly that more and more opportunities such as these should arise through a good script, great makers and an audience that is willing to learn and enjoy different kinds of cinema,' said Sushmita Sen.

Sushmita Sen said, 'It is a beautiful thing to grow and then to depict that in cinema...So I, disagree with that... We are definitely headed in the right direction and there is a roll and a script for everyone...We just need the right directors to come up with them.'

Asked if it was a conscious decision to stay away from the big screen, Sushmita Sen said, 'As far as a conscious decision goes, it's really an amalgamation of a lot of things... It's just that I made a choice this time.'

Sushmita Sen also said the kind of scripts and films that came her way was another reason why she preferred to stay away from doing movies.

'It's the kind of scripts and the films that were coming my way... I chose to utilise my time more productively. I understand and respect the need for us to constantly follow a system of films after films, but the truth of the matter is, I had to choose and prioritise, and I chose... this - being a mum,' Sushmita Sen said.

As they say, better late than never! Sush made her acting comeback with a fierce avatar in the web series Aarya. The show is about how the protagonist, Aarya, is pulled into the narcotics business when her family is threatened.

The series streamed on Disney+ Hotstar VIP. Sushmita is now looking forward to the second season of the show. "The response to Aarya has been overwhelmingly great. An entire team of fantastic people put this show together and we knew we were creating something magical with Aarya. However, even we could not fathom the kind of response it has received. It has been a really heart-warming journey," Sushmita told IANS.

Sushmita Sen, who raised two adopted daughters, is happy that people are now more open to the idea of adoption. She says it's high time people get over the thinking that blood ties create a family.

Sushmita Sen expressed her views when she became a part of the TV show Vh1 Inside Access. She said, 'I think people need to get out of this zone which is really just a zone... where they believe that blood and bones create a family. That we are truly not marrying an absolute stranger and it has nothing to do with your bloodline and suddenly become your everything that you will even take his last name.'

Sushmita Sen further added, 'Do you know 45 per cent of children are no longer in the orphanages anymore? If not in India, then globally people are adopting. I cannot tell you how amazing that makes me feel to know that this world, despite all its social media distractions, has a heart as large as that. That's awesome.'

Sushmita Sen has some advice for her daughters. 'There is a difference between reputation and being honourable. Reputation is what others think of you or know of you. Being honourable is what you know of yourself. It's okay if you have a bad reputation, always be honourable. That's really important,' she said.

The former Miss Universe judged the Miss Universe pageant held in Manila in 2017. Sharing her experience, Sushmita Sen said, 'It was a fantastic experience. After 23 years, it was feeling of going back to the roots. Being a judge of Miss Universe pageant was an exemplary experience and I am very proud of the fact that they had an Indian judge.'

Sushmita Sen's tips for budding models are - 'Be sure you want to do it. Don't do it because everyone else is doing it. Find your own expression of your body type. Don't become too skinny and starve, you have got to live your life in that body. So respect that. No profession should tell you otherwise.'

Talking about the #MeToo movement in India, Sushmita Sen is of the opinion that the movement will work only if people listen to the victims.

Sushmita, who is known for raising her voice for social issues, told mid-day, 'Though the #MeToo movement is copied from the West, it doesn't mean we will overlook it. It feels great that women are coming out and speaking about the harassment.'

'As a part of society, people should listen to their stories and not judge them. Instead of ignoring them, we should encourage them. This movement will work only if we start listening to the victims,' Sen added further.

Sushmita Sen also said she doesn't find the revelations coming up in the context of the #MeToo movement shocking at all as people were aware of these things for a long time.

'It is going to be shocking every single time, but we are also not ignorant people. It's not like we didn't know these things were happening in India and in the world. I think what is more shocking is that we did not listen to it for so long and that we didn't do anything about it. This is the start, and you have to listen, believe and let justice prevail,' Sushmita said.

In May 2020, Sushmita Sen made a shocking revelation of suffering from an Auto-Immune Disease called Addison's Disease.

"After I was diagnosed with an Autoimmune condition called Addison's disease in September 2014, it left me feeling like, I had no fight left in me...A fatigued body filled with immense frustration & aggression," said Sushmita, and went on to describe the symptoms and how traumatic the aftermath was.

She added, "The dark circles under my eyes can't even begin to explain the dark times I endured for 4 long years :) To have steroids substitute cortisol & to live with its innumerable side effects took its toll. There is NOTHING more tiring than to live with a chronic illness. Enough was enough, I had to find a way of strengthening my mind, allowing my body to follow suit. I meditated with Nunchaku." Nunchaku is an Okinawan martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks connected at one end by a short chain or rope. And this is what the actress has been practising to help herself combat this disease.

Sushmita Sen's truly setting some tough benchmarks out there for women across all age groups! What do you think?

Here's wishing a belated happy birthday to Sushmita Sen!