She also received critical acclaim for playing a character based on Juliet in Bhansali's Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela (2013) and a headstrong daughter in Piku (2015), winning two Filmfare Awards for Best Actress.

Padukone is the founder of The Live Love Laugh Foundation, which creates awareness on mental health in India, for which she received the World Economic Forum's Crystal Award in 2018.

[10] She subsequently enrolled at the Indira Gandhi National Open University for a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology, but dropped out due to scheduling conflicts with her modelling career.

[18][19] Padukone's fame increased when she appeared in a popular print campaign for the 2006 Kingfisher Calendar;[20] the designer Wendell Rodricks commented, "Since Aishwarya Rai, we haven't had a girl as beautiful and fresh.

[9] In 2006, she gained recognition by featuring in the music video for Himesh Reshammiya's song "Naam Hai Tera" for the album Aap Ka Surroor.

[25] Following much media speculation, the director Farah Khan, who had noticed her in Reshammiya's music video, made the decision to cast her for a role in her upcoming film, then named Happy New Year.

[33] For one of the songs in the film, "Dhoom Taana", Padukone drew upon Indian classical dance, and according to Dorling Kindersley, "mesmeriz[ed] audiences" by using hasta mudras (hand gestures).

[40] Her first release of 2009 came alongside Akshay Kumar in the kung fu comedy Chandni Chowk to China, in which she portrayed dual roles of Indian-Chinese twin sisters.

[52] Padukone's final release of 2010 was Ashutosh Gowariker's period film Khelein Hum Jee Jaan Sey opposite Abhishek Bachchan.

[63][64] Her final appearance that year was in the comedy Desi Boyz alongside Kumar and John Abraham, a role that failed to propel her career forward.

During the script narration, the producer Dinesh Vijan offered Padukone the choice of which woman to play; she decided on Veronica to expand her horizons as an actress.

[89] Padukone next played opposite Ranveer Singh in Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela, an adaptation of the Shakespearean tragedy of Romeo and Juliet from director Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

[105] Following an appearance in Homi Adajania's online video on feminism, entitled My Choice,[106] Padukone took on the role of a headstrong Bengali girl who cares for her hypochondriac father (played by Amitabh Bachchan), in Shoojit Sircar's comedy-drama Piku (2015).

[107] Tanmaya Nanda of Business Standard praised the film's feminist tone, and wrote that Padukone proves "what she is capable of when given something more to do than look pretty and be the crazy-dance girl at parties".

[110][117] The action film XXX: Return of Xander Cage (2017), in which Padukone played the leading lady opposite Vin Diesel, marked her first project in Hollywood.

[122][123] In 2018, Padukone portrayed Rani Padmavati, a Rajput queen who commits jauhar (self-immolation) to protect herself from the Muslim invader Alauddin Khilji, in the period drama Padmaavat; it marked her third collaboration with Bhansali and Singh.

[125] Right-wing Hindu groups speculated that the film portrayed a romantic liaison between Padmavati and Khilji; they protested violently and placed a bounty to behead Padukone and Bhansali.

[136] Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express was appreciative of Padukone for "not just putting the focus on the ravaged-skin [...] but reflecting a mix of pain, anger, resignation" and Teo Bugbee of The New York Times found her "by turns inquisitive, watchful and serene but never maudlin".

[139] Amidst significant political backlash due to Padukone's perceived support for the Citizenship Amendment Act protests, Chhapaak failed commercially.

[168] Padukone then featured alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Prabhas in Kalki 2898 AD, a Telugu science fiction film from filmmaker Nag Ashwin made on a record budget of ₹6 billion (US$69 million).

[170][171] Padukone also joined Rohit Shetty's Cop Universe franchise in the ensemble action sequel Singham Again (2024), starring Ajay Devgn in the title role.

[173] Kalki 2898 AD, Singham Again and Fighter rank among the highest-grossing Indian films of 2024, with the former earning ₹10 billion (US$120 million) worldwide and the latter two having modest returns on their high production budgets.

[188] Padukone subsequently became reticent to discuss her personal life, but in 2017, she fondly spoke of her relationship with her frequent co-star Ranveer Singh, whom she began dating in August 2012.

[215] Padukone became the brand ambassador for the NGO Indian Psychiatric Society and on her foundation's first anniversary, the two organisations collaborated to launch the video and poster campaign #DobaraPoocho dedicated to victims and survivors of depression.

[222] Later that year, Padukone was among several Bollywood actors who were criticised for posting Instagram messages showing solidarity with the Black Lives Matter movement, despite their previous work advertising skin-lightening products which perpetuate colourism.

[67] A reviewer for Rediff.com described her personality as "simple", "grounded", and "accessible", and wrote, "She takes criticism in her stride, acknowledges her limitations and strives to work hard at getting better.

"[226] In the book The Millennial Woman in Bollywood (2020) author Maithili Shyam Rao wrote that Padukone challenges conventional social and sexual mores through her on-screen roles and off-screen persona.

[229] The Indian Express opined that "a few unwise script calls and the public blow up of her high profile relationship with Ranbir Kapoor" had resulted in a brief career setback.

[2] Also in 2023, Namrata Zakharia of The Week analysed that Padukone's acting career, brand endorsements, investments, philanthropy, and marriage to Ranveer Singh were collectively responsible in making her "India's most successful female celebrity".

[238][239][240] From 2014 to 2016 and in 2018, she was the highest ranked woman on the Indian edition of Forbes' "Celebrity 100" list, peaking at the fourth position in 2018 with an estimated annual earning of over ₹1.12 billion (US$13 million).