Happy Birthday Katrina Kaif! Bollywood Bombshell Turns 30 [PHOTOS]

Bollywood star Katrina Kaif celebrates her 30th birthday on Tuesday. The glamorous Hong Kong-born actress is a British national who works in India on an employment visa and began modelling at 14, in Hawaii.

Few celebrity entertainers have so global and exotic a background and Kaif made the most of that, debuting in the Indian films in 2003 with Kaizad Gustad's Boom, a film on the seedy underbelly of the country's fashion industry.

The film unfortunately flopped and Kaif's performances were not particularly well received by critics. The actress persevered though and finally broke through with Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya (Why I Fell in Love) in 2005, opposite established actors Salman Khan and Sushmita Sen.

One of the highest paid actresses in the industry - as of January, Forbes estimates her net earnings to be Rs 62.25cr (roughly £7m) - Katrina Kaif is also the only Indian actress to have inspired a Barbie doll range.

On a personal front, the actress is believed to be dating fellow actor Ranbir Kapoor (her co-star from Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (2009; The Unique Story of a Strange Love) and Rajneeti (2010; a political thriller).

The actress and her 30-year-old boyfriend have tried to keep their relationship under wraps but photographs of the two of them at a party on the island of Ibiza may have given them away.

She was earlier romantically linked to another co-star, Salman Khan. And although that relationship ended rather dramatically, the actress remains close to the 47-year-old veteran.

"I believe behind every successful person there's destiny, then there's God," she said, "Then there's your hard work, your talent... your team. And people who have been an important part of my journey. He [Salman Khan] has had a huge role in my career. There's no doubt about that. I value his opinion. But as a person, Salman has had the biggest impact on my life."

Check out photographs of the Katrina Kaif over the years, as the actress celebrates her birthday