Deepika Padukone made her screen debut in the 2006 Indian Kannada-language romantic drama film ‘Aishwarya’ directed by Indrajit Lankesh. The film was a major commercial success. In 2007, she starred as ‘Shantipriya / Sandy’ in the Farah Khan-directed Indian Hindi-language romantic drama thriller film ‘Om Shanti Om.’ The film garnered much praise from critics and performed well at the box office, grossing over ₹149 crores on a budget of ₹30 crores. Padukone also won the ‘Filmfare Award’ for her performance in the film. She next starred in films such as ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ (2008), ‘Chandni Chowk to China’ (2009), ‘Love Aaj Kal’ (2009), ‘Karthik Calling Karthik’ (2010), ‘Housefull’ (2010), ‘Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey’ (2010), ‘Aarakshan’ (2011), ‘Desi Boyz’ (2011), ‘Cocktail’ (2012), ‘Race 2’ (2013), ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ (2013), and ‘Chennai Express’ (2013). Padukone became a recipient of the ‘Filmfare Award’ for her portrayal of ‘Leela Sanera’ in the 2013 Indian Hindi-language tragic romance film ‘Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela’ directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. The film received praise from critics and was a commercial success, grossing over ₹201.4 crores on a budget of ₹88 crores.
She continued to star in films like ‘Kochadaiiyaan’ (2014), ‘Happy New Year’ (2014), ‘Piku’ (2015), ‘Tamasha’ (2015), and ‘Bajirao Mastani’ (2015). In 2017, she starred as ‘Serena Unger’ in the American action thriller film ‘XXX: Return of Xander Cage’ directed by D.J. Caruso. The film opened to a mixed reception but managed to gross over $346.1 million on a budget of $85 million. She next appeared in films like ‘Padmaavat’ (2018), ‘Chhapaak’ (2020), ‘83’ (2021), and ‘Gehraiyaan’ (2022). Padukone last appeared in the 2022 Ayan Mukerji-directed Indian Hindi-language fantasy action-adventure film ‘Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva’ where she made a cameo appearance as ‘Amrita.’ The film received mixed reviews from critics upon release.