Archive · 24 Aug 2026
Malini Sharma Leaves Bollywood for a Slower Farmstay Life
Malini Sharma was a model and actor who became known for music videos, television and the movie Raaz.
She also appeared in the show CATS.
After some years in entertainment, she moved toward a quieter kind of work.
She started a project called The Slow Local, involving food, crafts and workshops.
She now lives in the Sahyadri Hills and runs a farmstay.
She grows vegetables and uses some of them to prepare meals for visitors.
Part of the land has been left as a natural forest so animals and plants are not disturbed.
Sharma still works and speaks with fans online, but she says she has chosen a slower life rather than disappearing completely.
Malini Sharma became known through music videos, CATS and the 2002 film Raaz.
She gradually moved away from mainstream entertainment after reportedly reconsidering work behind the camera.
Her venture, The Slow Local, began with local food, crafts, workshops and pop-up events.
Sharma now runs a farmstay in the Sahyadri Hills, growing vegetables and cooking for guests.
She has left part of the property’s forest untouched and continues working through social media, customised oils and a coffee-company role.
- Who
- Actor and former model Malini Sharma.
- What
- She stepped away from mainstream entertainment and now operates The Slow Local, including a farmstay and food-related activities.
- When
- She appeared in Raaz in 2002 and returned to the camera through The Slow Local Diaries after 23 years; she appears to have moved to the farm around 2020.
- Where
- The farmstay is in the Sahyadri Hills, in a village roughly two hours from Pune.
- Why
- She reportedly became interested in work behind the camera and later focused on farming, food, hospitality and a slower connection with nature.
Public framing
Sharma’s framing
Whether she quit Bollywood
Public framing
News coverage commonly describes Sharma as having quit or disappeared from Bollywood after Raaz.
Sharma’s framing
Sharma has said she did not exactly leave, but “steered away” and could return or move away again.
Her current identity
Public framing
Fans and coverage continue to identify her through CATS, Raaz and her earlier music videos.
Sharma’s framing
Sharma presents The Slow Local and her farm life as a new identity centered on food, nature, guests and slower living.
- Best-known film
- Raaz (2002), directed by Vikram Bhatt
- Television show
- CATS, alongside Nafisa Joseph and Kuljeet Randhawa
- Early music videos
- Bombay Vikings’ “Kya Soorat Hai” and Mika Singh’s “Saawan Mein Lag Gayi Aag”
- Lifestyle venture
- The Slow Local, focused on local food, crafts, workshops and pop-up events
- Farm location
- The Sahyadri Hills, around two hours from Pune
- Farm activities
- Growing vegetables, preparing meals, hosting guests and offering retreats
- Other work
- A work-from-home relationship-manager role with a coffee company and sales of customised oils
