Genelia D'Souza was born in Mumbai, where she grew up. Her family hails from the Mangalorean Catholic community, a prominent Christian community in Bombay.
D'Souza made her debut in Bollywood in 2003. Her first Hindi film was Tujhe Meri Kasam opposite Ritesh Deshmukh. She left Bollywood for a while to concentrate on the Tollywood Telugu industry.
She once again appeared in Bollywood in Mere Baap Pehle Aap alongside Akshaye Khanna, which was moderately successful. Her final breakthrough in Bollywood was through the blockbuster, Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na, where she is the heroine in the role of Aditi Mahant aka "Meow".
