Many actors spend over a decade in the industry without gaining fame or wealth. Despite their struggles they wake up every day with the hope that a life-changing opportunity will come their way. One such actress is Chamundeswari Iyer (her real name) who got her big break as the lead in the 2008 horror film 1920. The movie was a box office success and even won her awards. However breaking into the film industry wasn’t easy for her. She auditioned for several roles but faced rejection-sometimes because of her curly hair and other times because casting directors felt she looked too young. Movie 1920 was not only a milestone in her career but also marked director Vikram Bhatt’s first box office hit after six years and 10 films. After 1920 success the actress waited for years to experience the same success she had in 2008. Her big moment finally came in 2023 when she was cast as the lead in The Kerala Story. Made on a modest budget of around Rs 15 crore the film became a massive hit earning approximately Rs 303 crore at the box office. This marked a major turning point in the actress career bringing her back into the spotlight. We are talking about actress Adah Sharma. There’s an interesting story behind Adah Sharmas real name Born into a Tamil Brahmin family in Mumbai Adah was originally named Chamundeshwari by her mother a classical dancer and a devotee of Goddess Chamundeshwari. However as she grew up she found her name difficult for people to pronounce. Teachers and friends at school struggled with it often shortening it to Chamu or Iyer which she didn’t like. By the time she reached class 12 Adah had decided to pursue acting. But she wondered if her long name would work in the film industry. She wanted something short sweet and easy to remember - so she chose Adah Sharma. Adah Sharma used to sit at dance bars Between these two films Sharma also appeared in the second season of Zee5’s popular dark comedy Sunflower. In the show she played the role of a bar dancer. To make her character look authentic the actress spent nights in a real dance bar as part of her research. Recalling the experience she said I wanted to look convincing. It’s not just about dancing; it’s also about how you sit stand and carry yourself even when youre not performing. The bar dancers were kind enough to let me stay and observe them. I tried to capture their confidence while interacting with customers. I would arrive around 9 PM and sometimes stay until 4 or 5 in the morning. Adah’s net worth as of 2023 is 10 Crore as reported by Top Movie Rankings.