Her ethereal beauty, her overnight success as a model, her provocative work in a eminently forgettable Kaizad Gustad film, Boom (2003), and her being romantically linked to actor Salman Khan, gave Katrina Kaif instant recognition. Though the last two factors were not so positive, she managed to make her presence felt in the industry as a ‘beauty with brains’. Her no-nonsense approach to work overhauled the early suspicions she had evoked in the media. Katrina had come to Mumbai to work in Boom and, perhaps, seek a career in modelling. While Boom didn’t really work to her advantage, her modeling career took off pretty well, thanks to renowned glamour photographer Atul Kasbekar, who led her to some important assignments. Her presence in the Lakme commercial got her rave notices and she was in business. Film offers, however, took time in coming. Katrina still had to live down the Boom fiasco. She had been lured into it by the presence of big names like Amitabh Bachchan and Jackie Shroff (whose wife Ayesha produced the film). Luckily, she treated it as a learning experience and moved on. Her looks and professionalism kept her in the running for some important projects, and  succeeded too, not letting her personal life cloud her professional decisions. In spite of Salman being a strong influence in her life, Katrina didn’t resist teaming up with other saleable actors who mattered, especially Akshay Kumar, with whom she has made a very popular pair. As she puts it, her biggest asset is her fearlessness. "I don't get intimidated easily, so there aren’t any restrictions on what I should do or shouldn't". As she moved on, she worke hard to smoothen out her affected Hindi diction, and spoke her lines in Namastey London. She also did a rigorous course in Kathak dancing, realising that Hindi film is all about song and dance.

 Wth hits like Namastey Londan, where she had a substantial part, Partner, Apne and Welcome, she emerged as one of the major stars of 2007.