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Deepa Sahi Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 4, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth30 November 1962

Age61 Years

BirthplaceDehradun, Uttarakhand, India

ProfessionFilm Actress; Producer; Director; Script and Story Writer

NationalityIndian

Marital statusMarried

SpouseKetan Mehta

Deepa Sahi Biography

Deepa Sahi is an Indian actress, producer, writer and director known for her National Award–winning performance as Maya in Maya Memsaab. Trained at the NSD

Early life and background

Deepa Sahi was born on 30 November 1962 in Dehradun, Uttarakhand, and grew up in an army family. She was the youngest child in her household. After the death of an elder sister when Deepa was young, she has said that the experience changed her outlook on life and strengthened her determination to live fully and without compromise.

Her family later moved to Canada, but Deepa remained in India to pursue her education and creative ambitions. She attended Indraprastha College for Women and the Delhi School of Economics, where she earned top honours, including a gold medal in sociology. She went on to study at the National School of Drama in New Delhi, a decision that set the foundation for her later work in theatre and film.

Career

Deepa Sahi first entered the film world as an actress. Her screen debut came with the film Party (1984). Acting opportunities continued, and she became widely known for the lead role of Maya in Maya Memsaab (1992), a film she also co-produced. For that performance she was awarded the National Film Award for Best Actress.

Over the course of her career she worked in multiple capacities in the film industry: as an actress, producer, screenplay writer and director. Her credits include producing Maya Memsaab (1992), contributing the screenplay for Oh Darling! Yeh Hai India (1995), and making her directorial debut with Tere Mere Phere (2011). She received a Filmfare nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her work in Hum (1992).

Although she acted in roughly eighteen films, Deepa has said that her primary interest was always direction. While a student at the National School of Drama she directed stage work and stepped into acting on occasion when circumstances required it. She has described acting as something that happened alongside her ambition to direct rather than a career she sought out for its own sake.

Beyond feature films, Deepa has been involved in animation and production through Cosmos-Maya, a studio that became known for the popular animated sitcom Motu Patlu. Under her stewardship, Cosmos-Maya emerged as a leading homegrown animated franchise in India.

In 2001 Deepa and her husband, filmmaker Ketan Mehta, founded MAAC, a training institute focused on 3D animation and visual effects. The couple later launched Maya in-studio Training at Film City in Mumbai to provide advanced, studio-ready training modules.

After a long hiatus from acting, Deepa returned to the screen in 2015 with a cameo role as Indira Gandhi in Manjhi – The Mountain Man.

Public profile

Deepa Sahi is married to Ketan Mehta; she was previously married to Nataranjan Bohidar. She has lived and worked primarily in Mumbai and is recognized both for her on-screen performances and for her behind-the-scenes roles as a producer, writer and director.

Her physical characteristics as reported include a height of approximately 173 cm (5 ft 8 in), brown eyes and brown hair. She has described an early fascination with computers and the ways technology can reduce manual labour, an interest that informed her later work in animation education and studio training.

Latest updates

Highlights from later stages of her career include launching industry training initiatives (MAAC in 2001 and Maya in-studio Training in 2009), producing and developing the Cosmos-Maya animation business, and returning to acting in 2015 for a cameo in Manjhi – The Mountain Man. Her contribution to Indian animation through Motu Patlu helped establish Cosmos-Maya as a notable homegrown franchise.

Deepa’s body of work spans acting, filmmaking, writing and education, reflecting a long-standing commitment to both creative practice and building technical skills in India’s media industries.
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Recent Work

Manjhi – The Mountain Man

Returned to acting in a cameo role as former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi (2015).

2015
Tere Mere Phere

Made her debut as a film director.

2011
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Career Highlights

  1. National Film Award for Best Actress for Maya Memsaab (1993)
  2. Filmfare Best Supporting Actress nomination for Hum (1992)
  3. Co-founder of MAAC, a 3D animation and VFX training institute (2001)
  4. Producer and driving force behind Cosmos-Maya and the animated franchise Motu Patlu
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Deepa Sahi born?

30 November 1962

What is Deepa Sahi known for?

Film Actress; Producer; Director; Script and Story Writer

What is Deepa Sahi’s marital status?

Married

Who is Deepa Sahi married to?

Ketan Mehta