Dino Morea

Dino Morea (born 9 December 1975) is an Indian actor, model, and film producer known for his work in Hindi cinema, who has also appeared in several Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam and Telugu films. Morea initially established himself as a fashion model before making his film debut in the 1999 film Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi. He got his big break with Raaz in 2002, which turned out to be a major hit.

He had a busy decade following the success of Raaz and worked in films such as Gunaah (2002), Plan (2004), Holiday (2006), Dus Kahaniyaan (2007), Bhram (2008) and Acid Factory (2009). After consecutive commercial failures, he made sporadic appearances in film during the 2010s.

He then acted in web series Mentalhood (2020), Hostages (2020), Tandav (2021), and Kaun Banegi Shikharwati (2022). For his role in The Empire (2021), he won the Indian Television Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Drama OTT. Subsequently, he expanded himself professionally by producing Jism 2 (2012) and co-producing Helmet (2021).

Early life and background

Dino Morea was born in Bangalore to an Italian father and an Indian mother. His mother hails from Kalamassery in Kochi, Kerala. He spent the first 11 years of his life in Italy. He is the second of three brothers: Nicolo Morea is his older brother and Santino Morea his younger brother. He initially attended Bangalore Military School, graduated from St. Joseph's College in Bangalore and also went to Clarence High School. He was noticed while modelling for a fashion company and soon received his first film offer.

Career

Modeling career

He started his career as a model for various fashion companies. In 1995, he won the Gladrags Manhunt Contest and went to the Singapore for Manhunt International, where he won second place. He won the Gladrags supermodel contest in 1999.

Acting career

1998-2002: Early work and breakthrough

Morea made his acting debut in the TV series Captain Vyom, where he appeared as "Sonic". His movie debut was in Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi, opposite Rinke Khanna, which was a moving romantic movie among the teens. The movie earned him a nomination for Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut, but the award was won by Mukesh Tiwari for China Gate.

He had his breakthrough role in Rajiv Menon's Tamil film Kandukondain Kandukondain, which adapts Jane Austen's novel Sense and Sensibility.

In 2002, Morea starred in the year's most successful horror thriller, Raaz. Directed by Vikram Bhatt, it established Morea in the Hindi film industry. His portrayal of Aditya Dhanraj received positive reviews from the critics. Shah Rukh Khan praised Morea's performance and said "Your film is really doing well". He won a Zee Cine Award in the category of Dynamic Duo with Bipasha Basu. Raaz was both a commercial and critical success, and served as the best film of his career.

Amol Shetge's 2002 thriller Gunaah was a flop, but Morea was praised for his performance.

2003-2019: Decline

Following the success of Raaz, Morea worked in consecutive box office failures for the rest of the decade with the exception of Aksar and Tom Dick and Harry (both 2006) having been moderate successes.

Morea performed the lead role in three 2003 films. He starred in the psychological thriller Baaz: A Bird in Danger, which was produced by Tinu Verma. His next release was Chal:The Game of Death. Later that year, he starred in the horror thriller Sssshhh..., for which he was nominated for the Superstar of Tomorrow – Male.

In 2004, he starred in four films. The first was Ishq Hai Tumse directed by G. Krishna, which was a remake of the Telugu film Sampangi. Later he featured in Sanjay Gupta's action thriller Plan, in which his performance was praised by audiences. He next appeared in action drama Insaaf: The Justice opposite Namrata Shirodkar. His portrayal of IPS officer Abhimanyu Singh was generally well received. He then appeared as Sunny Trehan in Mahesh V Manjrekar's supernatural horror film Rakt. He teamed up with Bipasha Basu, Sanjay Dutt, Suniel Shetty, Amrita Arora and Neha Dhupia in the film. His performance was appreciated by critics, with Shruti Bashin from Planet Bollywood praising his performance. Rediff.com stated that, "Dino as abusive husband has done a good job".

His only film in 2005 was Chehraa, directed by Saurabh Shukla. Co-starring alongside Bipasha Basu, Preeti Jhangiani, and Irrfan Khan, he played Akash Mehta, a medical student.

His first film in 2006 was Anant Mahadevan's thriller Aksar with Udita Goswami and Emraan Hashmi. The film was a profitable production, but met with negative reviews from critics. He then appeared in Pooja Bhatt's romantic dance film Holiday, which is a remake of the 1987 American film Dirty Dancing. The following year, Morea featured in Sohail Khan's period action-drama Fight Club – Members Only with an ensemble cast that included Suniel Shetty, Zayed Khan, Sohail Khan, and Ritesh Deshmukh. The picture, which depicted the rise of organised crime in Mumbai, saw Morea play Karan Chopra as a gangster. For his performance, Morea earned positive reviews from critics. His next release that year, Tom, Dick, and Harry was directed by Deepak Tijori. The screenplay combines the plots of two different films with similar titles: the 1941 American classic Tom, Dick and Harry and the 1993 Hong Kong hit Tom, Dick and Hairy. The following year he made his Kannada debut with Julie opposite Ramya. It was a remake of the 1975 Hindi-language film, but it failed to attract audiences. Morea's final film release that year was Dharmesh Darshan's romantic comedy Aap Ki Khatir alongside Priyanka Chopra, Ameesha Patel and Akshaye Khanna. It proved to be one of the year's biggest flops.

He had four releases in 2007, all of which drew mixed reviews. His first film of the year, Life Mein Kabhie Kabhiee, failed at the box office. He depicted Rajeev Arora, an aspiring CEO who is eager to become a billionaire. That year, he also made a special appearance in Farah Khan's film Om Shanti Om, performing in the song "Deewangi Deewangi" with Malaika Arora and Salman Khan. He was featured in a segment of the anthology film Dus Kahaniyaan. His final release of the year was Deha.

In 2008, he appeared in nine films. His first release was the suspense thriller Bhram, in which Morea appeared as Shantanu Rawal, a supermodel. He then appeared in Anant Mahadevan's unreleased film Meeting Se Meeting Tak.

Pyaar Impossible! (2010) marked his last major film role until 2017's Solo. He was a contestant on the reality show Khatron Ke Khiladi in 2010. In 2012, he produced the erotic film Jism 2 (2012) which starred former pornstar Sunny Leone in her film debut and turned out to be a success. He made cameo appearances in Happy New Year (2014) and Alone (2015).

2020-present: Streaming Ventures

He returned to film production in 2021 when he co-produced Helmet. Since the beginning of 2020s, Morea has worked in films Agent and Bandra (both 2023). He had supporting roles in various web series. Mentalhood (2020) and Kaun Banegi Shikharwati (2022) on Zee5, Hostages (2020) and The Empire (2021) on Hotstar, Tandav (2021) on Amazon Prime Video, and Rana Naidu (2024) on Netflix. He won the Indian Television Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor Drama OTT for Empire.

Off-screen work

Philanthropy

In addition to acting, Morea is a football and basketball enthusiast who supports charities and organisations. Morea and Lara Dutta traveled to watch the Los Angeles Lakers in action, and on 8 April 2009, saw the NBA inaugurate a refurbished basketball court in a Mumbai suburb. In 2022, he attended the FIFA World Cup final in Qatar.

He is the captain and midfielder of the All Stars Football Club, a celebrity football club that raises money for charity. In March 2013, he played a game to raise funds for the Magic Funds Organisation, an NGO for underprivileged children. In 2016, he officially joined Pet Fed as he was on board as an investor.

Brand endorsement

Morea has also been engaged as a brand ambassador to represent sport leagues, charity organizations, and Indian states. He has endorsed prominent brands including Bisleri Vedica, 7 Up, Close up, Monte Bianco, Colgate Fresh, Live (in), Paisabazar, Close-up, Polo, Calida, Lakmé, Siyaram, Hero Honda CBZ, Monte Carlo, Oscar Underwear, Yepme, Nykaa Fashion, Raymond, Chronotech. In May 2008, Dino Morea signed up as the brand ambassador for Bangalore Marathon. In September 2009, he became the brand ambassador of Goa Pro Soccer League. He is also a brand ambassador and investor of Pet Fed in India.

Backstage performances

Morea is a frequent stage performer and has participated in several world tours and concerts. In 2010, he teamed up with Priyanka Chopra and performed a concert in Suva, Fiji. Along with Shah Rukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, and Dia Mirza, he performed in the Airtel-Bindass concert in 2011. In 2014, he performed with Snoop Dogg in Pune.

Business

Morea is a successful businessman in India. In 2012, along with cricketer MS Dhoni, he launched a merchandising company called Cool Maal. In 2013, he launched his own production company called Clockwise Films. In 2019, Morea along with Ketan Kadam jointly received the "Innovative Business Award" from People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals for a business venture that would replace horse-drawn carriages for tourists in Mumbai with battery-powered electric carriages. Along with Nandita Mahtani, he runs a company called Playground.

In 2013, he started several fitness stations in Wadala and Bandra. These were inaugurated by Hrithik Roshan and Aditya Thackeray.

He is co-founder of The Fresh Press and board director of Gruhas Collective Consumer Fund (GCCF).

Personal life

Morea resides in Casa-morea, Bandra, Mumbai. He is a fitness enthusiast who maintains a strict regimen. He is a Roman Catholic. He is fluent in English, Hindi, Italian, Urdu, Kannada, French and Portuguese.

Relationship

In 1996, he began dating Bipasha Basu. They were featured in many films together. They also worked in many modelling assignments together. In 1998, an ad for the Swiss undergarment manufacturer Calida which featured both of them caused controversy because it showed him biting her underwear. It was eventually taken down. He broke up with Bipasha Basu after the release of their successful 2003 film Raaz.

He briefly dated Lara Dutta from 2008 to 2009. Later, he dated Nandita Mahtani from 2010 to 2017.

In the media

Legacy

In Indian media, he is often referred to as "Chocolate Boy" due to his pretty and handsome looking. He is well known for his devotion to his work and his ability to commit heavily to each role. He is also known for his versatile acting skills and heartthrob status. Onkar Kulkarni from Times of India described Morea as a stylish superhero. In February 1999, he appeared as a cover model on the World edition of Elle magazine. In Times' 50 Most Desirable Men list, Morea ranked 13th in 2009, 30th in 2010, 45th in 2011, 42nd in 2012, 35th in 2013, and 34th in 2014. He was listed in GQ's Best Dressed Men in 2010, 2012, 2015 and 2017. Morea was inducted into the Gladrags Hall of Fame.

Wealth and assets

Morea is one of the wealthiest and most powerful celebrities in India. In 2023, his net worth was estimated at over US$10 million. He owns several properties in India and abroad.

Awards and nominations

Filmography

Films

Television

Web series

See also

• List of Bollywood actors
• List of Indian television actors
• Lists of Indian actors
• Italians in India

References

External links

• Dino Morea at IMDb
• Dino Morea at AllMovie
• Dino Morea at Bollywood Hungama
• InsideDesi Interview with Dino Morea Archived 17 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine