Born on August 1, 1984, Ira Dubey hails from Delhi. Daughter of renowned actress Lillete Dubey, Ira's father Ravi Dubey was a former senior vice-president of corporate communications in the Tata Group. He passed away in 2015. (All photos/Ira Dubey's official Instagram account)

Since childhood, Ira has been actively participating in plays, as her mother belonged to theatre.

Reminiscing her childhood memories, Ira had told mid-day, "Mom used to take us to rehearsals. This is the world we have seen from a young age. Even my masi had a children's theatre company in Delhi and I have acted in some of her plays. So some of it is in the genes, while some is the talent you hone. It's a combination."

In picture: The lovely mother-daughter duo - Lillete Dubey and Ira Dubey

Ira Dubey majored in theatre studies at Yale University in the USA. After studying theatre, she established herself as an intelligent and talented actor back home in India, with movies such as The President is Coming, Aisha, Dear Zindagi and plays such as 9 Parts of Desire.

In picture: Ira Dubey, Sonam Kapoor and Lisa Haydon during their film Aisha's promotional event (Picture courtesy/AFP)

Do you know what Ira Dubey does, when she's feeling low? Well, the actress picks up one of Bertie Wooster's hilarious misadventures or reads a few pages of Wodehousian comical mastery and all' set. A well-read girl, Ira revealed to mid-day her love for reading.

Ira Dubey comes from a family of academics. Her grandfather was with the civil service, but both her paternal grandfather and grandmother were respected Hindi novelists. She had even spoken about her maternal grandfather, an engineer, and his love for Shakespeare. 

Ira Dubey, talking about her father late Ravi Dubey, had said, "My dad introduced me to Pablo Neruda when I was ten years old; his poem 'To the Foot, from its Child' was an essential part of my adolescent years."

In picture: (Left to Right) Neha (Ira's sister), Ira, Lillette, and Ravi Dubey

She is 35 and looks fit and fab! Surely, you must be curious to know Ira's fitness mantra. Well, here you go - "Drink enough fluids; Know how much your body can take; Carry 'happy' music; Vary your workout so you don't get bored; Be at peace and be happy, trust me the workout will have better results!," told Ira to mid-day in an interview.

Two things Ira Dubey cannot live without are - Yoga and dance.

Ira Dubey is very strong emotionally, her mother-actress Lillete Dubey had once said, further adding that she thinks her daughter has good intensity. "She's a truthful actor. Ira has the potential for comedy but it's a bit unexplored at the moment," said Lillete Dubey.

As an actress, Ira Dubey wants to explore an opportunity to work in Hollywood and is waiting "for the right projects". The actress, who has worked in a handful of films in Bollywood but made a mark in the theatre industry, belives that Hindi films need to focus on the writing.

"Something is wrong with our writing and we need to focus on our writing. There should be no limitations to our imagination. I think we have to stop imitating the west, we have to stop stealing ideas from West and become more original. We have a lot of talent in this country and we have to focus on our writing," Ira added. Well, we second that Ira!

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Ira Dubey! Your dedication, enthusiasm and insight are really inspiring. We wish you many years of great achievements.