Somy Ali is a Pakistani-American actress, model, and activist who has appeared in Bollywood films. She is the founder of the non-profit organisation No More Tears.
Early Life and Education
Somy Ali was born on March 25, 1976, in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan, into a wealthy and privileged family. Her mother, Tehmina, is from Iraq, while her father, Madan, is from Pakistan. She migrated to South Florida in the United States with her mother and brother after studying at the Convent of Jesus and Mary in Karachi until the age of nine.
During an interview, Ali disclosed that she was sexually molested by her domestic workers between the ages of 5 and 9 while living in Karachi, and that when she moved to Florida, she was ridiculed at school and raped by a neighbourhood boy at the age of 14. Her mother had also been the victim of domestic violence in Pakistan, which she and her brother had to witness.
After dropping out of school, Ali persuaded her father to let her relocate to Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, at the age of 16, due to her teenage crush, Bollywood actor Salman Khan. While in Mumbai, she participated in modelling projects and appeared in Hindi films. Between 1991 and 1998, she appeared in 10 Bollywood films as a leading lady alongside renowned Bollywood actors.From 1991 to 1999, she was in a relationship with Bollywood superstar Salman Khan. She returned to South Florida in December 1999 to pursue her studies.
She returned to Florida and received her GED before enrolling at Nova Southeastern University in Davie, Florida, where she majored in psychology and completed her undergraduate degree in two years. She also developed a strong interest in media and opted to pursue a master’s degree in broadcast journalism at the University of Miami. She later dropped out of graduate school to attend the New York Film Academy, where she earned a degree in film production, direction, scripting, and editing. Her early work featured short films about abortion, domestic violence, and adolescent suicide. In 2004, she earned a broadcast journalism credential from the Connecticut School of Broadcasting in Florida.
Career
Somy Ali became interested in South Asian women’s rights concerns. She tried to raise awareness of the predicament of rape and domestic abuse victims. Ali has written about rape victims Shazia Khalid, Sonia Naz, and Mukhtaran Mai in her articles. “My goal is to help all of these women and make sure that every girl/woman in my country and universally is able to obtain an education and has her basic human rights,” she said. So-Me Designs’ revenue is dedicated to her non-profit organisation No More Tears, which she founded in 2007.
Awards and Recognitions
Somy Ali received the American Immigration Council’s American Heritage Award in 2011 for her work with No More Tears. The Daily Point of Light Award on April 15, 2015, by President George H. W. Bush, and the National Domestic Violence Month “A Proclamation” by President Barack Obama for her work with No More Tears. She and her non-profit organisation No More Tears appeared in the Discovery+ docuseries Fight or Flight in 2022.
Filmography
- Krishan Avtaar (1993) as Sonia Sawant
- Anth (1994) as Priya
- Yaar Gaddar (1994) as Shashi
- Teesra Kaun? (1994) as Priyanka
- Aao Pyaar Karen (1994) as Sonu Rai
- Andolan (1995) as Anita
- Mafia (1996) as Kiran Pawar
- Chupp (1997) as Asha Narang
- Fight or Flight Discovery + & Amazon Prime (TV Series) (2022) as Herself