Rashami Desai is an Indian actress and model born on 13 February 1986 in Nagaon, Assam, into a Gujarati family. She has a brother, Gaurav Desai. Her family relocated to Mumbai when she was young. She attended St. Joseph High School, Mumbai, and holds a degree from Mithibai College, Mumbai. She began her career as a model and made her television debut with Ssshhhh...Koi Hai (Star Plus, 2001). Her national breakthrough came with the role of Tapasya Raghuvendra Singh in Colors TV's iconic daily drama Uttaran (2009–2015), a character whose journey from antagonist to complex heroine across nine years made her one of India's most recognised television faces. She won Nach Baliye 3 (2007) with ex-husband Nandish Sandhu (married 2012, separated 2014). Other notable credits include Dil Se Dil Tak (Colors, 2017), Naagin 4 (Colors, 2019–20, as Shalaka), and Bollywood appearances in Yamla Pagla Deewana (2011) and Tutak Tutak Tutiya (2016). She was an original contestant on Bigg Boss 2 (2008) and returned for Bigg Boss 13 (September 2019). She was evicted early but re-entered the house on Day 39 as a returnee, going on to complete all 140 days and finish as fourth runner-up on 15 February 2020. Her relationship with co-contestant Arhaan Khan (whom she had dated before the show) attracted significant controversy after revelations made on-air during the season. She subsequently appeared in Bigg Boss 14 (2020) as a 'Toofani Senior'.
Her nine-year portrayal of Tapasya in the iconic Colors TV serial Uttaran (2009–2015), for which she became a household name across India; her role in Dil Se Dil Tak (2017) alongside Sidharth Shukla; winning Nach Baliye 3 (2007) with her then-husband Nandish Sandhu; her role as Shalaka in Naagin 4; being a double winner on Bigg Boss — she completed the full season of Bigg Boss 13 (2019–20) finishing fourth, and previously appeared in Bigg Boss 2 (2008).