She was B-town’s bubbliest belle. From the time Preity Zinta made her acting debut in Dil Se in 1998, she stole hearts with her dimpled smile and perky disposition. A slew of films like Soldier, Kya Kehna, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Koi... Mil Gaya, Veer-Zaara, Salaam Namaste and Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna ensured she was top of the heap. However, our birthday girl was more than everyone’s favourite darling. There were a number of times she found herself hitting the headlines for not exactly the nicest reasons…

The Ness Mess
It was an affair gone wrong but Preity went on to shock the world in 2014, when she filed a complaint against ex-beau Ness Wadia. The charges? Molestation and intimidation! Preity had even submitted four photographs which showed ‘bruise-like’ marks on her right arm to the Mumbai police. She had claimed the ‘injury marks’ seen in the pictures were caused when Wadia allegedly molested her and grabbed her with force. The two have since resolved their differences and continue to be co-partners in the IPL cricket team, Kings XI Punjab.

Botox Babe
Nobody expected Tusshar Kapoor of all people to take a shot at Preity on ‘Koffee With Karan’! But he did, taking Preity’s name when quizzed on which Bollywood actress was synonymous with Botox!

Rakhi to the Rescue
When she became co-owner of Kings XI Punjab, her bonding with Yuvraj Singh became the talk of the town. The duo was seen looking extremely close at parties and events. Amidst insinuations of an affair, a hurt Preity went on to say, “I am amazed when I see so much being written about my life, without being confirmed by me. It has stopped bothering me, but there are a few things which I have taken to heart. When I was linked with Yuvraj Singh and Brett Lee – I will never forget that. They are my brothers. And I have decided to personally visit Lee and Yuvi on Raksha Bandhan and tie rakhis to them.”

Victim of Venom
Preity hit the headlines yet again when she was named by Suchitra Krishnamoorthy as the reason for the break-up of her marriage with filmmaker Shekhar Kapur! Preity had then hit back saying, “It is unfortunate that I am bearing the brunt of someone else’s paranoia. She’s clearly unstable and I wish her a speedy recovery.” Touché!

Now happily married to Gene Goodenough, Preity still hasn't lost her spunk and straightforward attitude to call a spade a spade. And we wish, the loving b'day girl stays the same...always!