The following year, Kapoor co-starred in Vijay Krishna Acharya's Tashan, where she met her future husband
in actor Saif Ali
Khan. Although highly anticipated by the audience before release, the film underperformed at the box office.[65][66] After providing
her voice for the character of the love interest of a street dog in the Yash Raj Films and Walt Disney Pictures animated
film Roadside Romeo, Kapoor played a mistrustful wife who believed her husband was unfaithful in Rohit Shetty's comedy Gol-
maal Returns. A sequel to the 2006 film Golmaal: Fun Unlimited, the film had an ambivalent reception from critics. The Indian
Express believed the screenplay was derivative, concluding that her character and performance lacked originality.[67] Golmaal
Returns was a financial success with global revenues of ₹793 million (US$9.9 million).[31]
In 2009, Kapoor was cast as Simrita Rai, a surgeon who moonlights as a model, in Sabbir Khan's battle-of-the-sexes com-
edy Kambakkht Ishq. Set in Los Angeles, it was the first Indian film shot at Universal Studios.[68] The film was poorly received by
critics but became an economic success.[31][69] The box-office flop Main Aurr Mrs Khanna came next, following which she played
the leading lady in the dramatic thriller Kurbaan. Starring Kapoor as a woman confined to house arrest after discovering that her
husband is a terrorist, she found the film to be an emotionally draining experience due to how difficult it was to disconnect from
her character.[70] Kapoor received her fourth Filmfare Best Actress nomination.[20] Gaurav Malani of The Economic Times com-
mented that after a long time the actress was given a substantial role with a potential to boost her career,[71] while Subhash K.
Jha described it as her "most consistently pitched performance to date" played with sensitivity.[72]
Kapoor at the premiere of 3 Idiots in 2009
Kapoor's second Filmfare nomination that year came for Rajkumar Hirani's 3 Idiots, based on the novel Five Point Some-
one by Chetan Bhagat, co-starring Aamir Khan, R. Madhavan and Sharman Joshi. Her role is that of Pia, a medical student and
Khan's love interest.[73] The film emerged as the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time up until then, grossing ₹2.03 bil-
lion (US$25 million) in India.[74] It also did well internationally, earning over ₹1.08 billion (US$14 million), the second biggest Bol-
lywood success ever in the overseas market.[75] Deccan Herald opined that Kapoor "brings a dollop of sunshine and feminine
grace to an otherwise masculine tale", taking note of her spontaneity while playing her character.[76] 3 Idiots received several
Best Film recognitions at major Indian award functions, and Kapoor was awarded the IIFA Award for Best Actress, among oth-
ers.[20]
Kapoor began the new decade with a leading role in the poorly received romantic comedy Milenge Milenge (2010). Critics found
the film to be outdated with stereotypical characters.[77][78] A supporting role in We Are Family, an official adaptation of the Holly-
wood tearjerker Stepmom (1998), proved more rewarding. In an attempt to bring her interpretation to the part originally played
by Julia Roberts, Kapoor refrained from watching Stepmom again and was drawn to the complexity of her character.[79] Priyanka
Roy of The Telegraph criticised it for being melodramatic, but praised Kapoor for enhancing the whole film.[80] Kapoor was
awarded the Best Supporting Actress at the 56th Filmfare Awards.[81] She reunited with director Rohit Shetty for Golmaal 3,
which received mixed reviews but earned more than ₹1 billion (US$13 million) domestically.[77] For her performance, Kapoor re-
ceived Best Actress nominations at various award ceremonies including Filmfare.[81]
Further success came to Kapoor in 2011 when she starred as the love interest of Salman Khan's character in Bodyguard, a re-
make of the 2010 Malayalam film of the same name. The film was not well received by critics, though became a financial suc-
cess, with a domestic total of ₹1.4 billion (US$18 million)—India's highest-earning film of the year.[82] A review in Mint dismissed
Kapoor's role as ornamental;[83] Mid-Day argued she "actually manages to bring her caricature of a role alive".[84] She next ap-
peared in the Anubhav Sinha-directed sci-fi film Ra.One, revolving on a villainous videogame character (Shah Rukh Khan) who
escapes into the real world. Made on a budget of ₹1.5 billion (US$19 million),[85] the film became one of the biggest earners of
the year with a worldwide total of over ₹2.4 billion (US$30 million)—despite negative media coverage of its box-office perfor-
mance—and Kapoor's fourth major commercial success in three consecutive years.[86]
Marriage, continued success and motherhood (2012–2017)
Kapoor followed her success in Bodyguard and Ra.One with a role in Shakun Batra's Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu (2012) opposite Im-
ran Khan. Set in Las Vegas, the romantic comedy follows the story of two strangers who get married one night after get
