Keep in mind CATS, the early-2000s tv collection that includes Nafisa Joseph, Kuljeet Randhawa and Malini Sharma? Whereas Joseph and Randhawa tragically died by suicide, Sharma steadily distanced herself from the leisure trade. As we speak, she leads a life that appears very totally different from her Bollywood days — surrounded by farms, timber, homegrown produce and company at her property within the Sahyadri Hills.Sharma first grew to become acquainted to audiences as a mannequin, that includes within the Bombay Vikings music video “Kya Soorat Hai”, which went on to turn into massively common. She later appeared in Mika Singh’s “Saawan Mein Lag Gayi Aag”, one other much-loved music video from that period.Her modelling profession was already flourishing when she joined CATS. The present ultimately helped her transition into movies, and he or she landed a key function in Vikram Bhatt’s Raaz (2002), starring alongside Dino Morea and Bipasha Basu.Raaz grew to become a serious box-office success, establishing its lead actors as family names. Whereas Sharma had a comparatively smaller half, she made an affect, notably by way of her look within the tune “Aapke Pyaar Mein”, which grew to become one of the crucial memorable components of her quick Bollywood stint.Throughout this era, Sharma was married to actor Priyanshu Chatterjee, who had made his debut with Tum Bin in 2001. Their marriage led to divorce a number of years later. Across the similar time, Sharma started steadily withdrawing from the general public eye.She reportedly walked out of the movie Encounter simply 48 hours earlier than its scheduled shoot in 2002. Based on India As we speak, Sharma had begun pondering past performing and modelling and needed to discover alternatives behind the digital camera. The mission ultimately featured Naseeruddin Shah, Dilip Prabhavalkar and Tara Deshpande.For years afterwards, Sharma largely stayed away from mainstream leisure protection. Nonetheless, somewhat than disappearing utterly, she channelled her power into making a enterprise of her personal.On social media, she operates underneath the identify The Sluggish Native, somewhat than utilizing her superstar identification. The initiative started almost a decade in the past in Versova and initially centered on domestically produced meals, crafts, workshops and pop-up occasions.By way of The Sluggish Native, Sharma organised actions for kids, together with storytelling workshops, and offered merchandise comparable to do-it-yourself bread, South Indian espresso, granola, jams, peanut butter and totally different kinds of oils. The enterprise additionally featured plant exhibitions, handmade ceramics, crochet, decoupage, desserts and different do-it-yourself meals merchandise.Over time, the mission advanced into one thing a lot nearer to the countryside.Sharma now operates a farmstay within the Sahyadris, roughly two hours from Pune. She grows greens on the property and makes use of the farm’s produce to arrange meals for guests. In certainly one of her Instagram movies, she opened up in regards to the issue of rising sufficient greens to satisfy the calls for of the property.“After I began The Sluggish Native Diaries, I confessed I did a shoddy job with the vegetable produce however this yr, the produce has been higher. The problem is to provide sufficient for meal after meal,” she mentioned.Sharma has described the property as being in a small village within the hills, round two hours from Pune. The farm is surrounded by intensive greenery, and he or she has consciously chosen to protect a lot of the pure atmosphere as an alternative of growing it.“We now have principally grown fruit timber on the farm .. the land got here with nice abundance once we purchased it .. a number of arjun and harad timber, we even have a number of kokum, an historical Palash, shikakai and nonetheless discovering extra,” she mentioned.She has additionally spoken about studying extra in regards to the medicinal properties of the crops and timber rising on the land. The property is giant sufficient to incorporate a part of a mountain, however Sharma has intentionally stored that part untouched.“We now have left the jungle be within the mountain, we don’t need to disturb the habitat. It’s our personal little forest,” she mentioned.Her imaginative and prescient for the farm has been to offer organically grown meals for company whereas creating an atmosphere the place guests can disconnect from the tempo of city life. Sharma seems to have moved to the property round 2020. A 2025 publish about her go to to the Kaas Plateau provided a clue in regards to the timeline, as she talked about discovering the vacation spot round 4 years earlier, after shifting to the farm.“Just lately visited the kaas plateau… its a 3.5 hour drive from the farm .. there have been few varieties in bloom however extra will come about because the season progresses.. all the time needed to go to the valley of flowers in uttarakhand as I didn’t find out about kaas .. i examine kaas 4 years again when i moved to the farm .. .lastly noticed it .. would like to go once more earlier than seson ends in Oct,” she wrote.Regardless of years of hypothesis about why she stepped away from Bollywood, Sharma has typically averted discussing her resolution intimately. As a substitute, she sometimes interacts with followers in Instagram feedback, the place she has confirmed that she is certainly the Malini Sharma who appeared in Raaz and shared occasional particulars about her private life.In a single change, a fan wrote: “Ma’am mai Muslim hoo lekin apka bahaut bada followers hu!” Sharma responded: “I’m half Muslim too… I’ve married a Pathan.” When the fan requested if she was married to Priyanshu Chatterjee and whether or not they remained involved, Sharma replied: “In no way.”She has additionally pushed again towards the concept that she utterly deserted Bollywood. When a fan requested whether or not she regretted leaving the trade, she replied: “Who mentioned I left, solely steered away, can steer again and away once more perhaps.”And when one other follower prompt that she ought to create social media accounts underneath her actual identify as a result of followers struggled to search out her, Sharma responded: “They’ll discover me such as you did.”Her resolution to doc her life by way of The Sluggish Native Diaries additionally means that she has not utterly turned her again on the digital camera. The video diary affords glimpses into her life on the farm and marked her return to showing on digital camera after years away. Introducing the mission, she wrote: “Dealing with the digital camera once more after very lengthy… this time the true me, no make-up, no dialogues, capturing from the center.”Within the launch video, Sharma addressed the thriller surrounding her disappearance herself.“Hello, that is Malini, going through the digital camera once more after 23 years of Raaz. For these of you questioning the place I disappeared, properly, I’m alive. I’m right here to current The Sluggish Native Diaries,” she mentioned.The video additionally featured a nostalgic contact — the background music was her personal “Aapke Pyaar Mein” from Raaz.Her life on the farm has not meant a whole break from skilled commitments. Sharma not too long ago revealed that she works from house as a relationship supervisor for a espresso firm.She additionally sells customised oils, whereas her farm property doubles as a retreat. Her 3BHK villa within the forest is obtainable for month-to-month leases, with packages that embrace lodging, meals and periods with psychologists in collaboration with psychological well being professionals. The property additionally incorporates a library and is designed round a slower tempo, providing personalised meals, nature walks and conversations away from the bustle of metropolis life.When SCREEN approached Sharma for an interview, she declined, explaining that she most popular to speak by way of her Instagram web page each time she felt the necessity. In some ways, that response displays the life she has chosen right now.As soon as accustomed to Bollywood’s cameras and a focus, Sharma now seems extra on the planet she has created than in revisiting the one she left behind. She has not erased her previous because the mannequin and actor from CATS, Raaz and among the period’s most recognisable music movies. As a substitute, she appears to have merely chosen to construct a life the place these chapters are not the centre of the story.
