Genelia D'Souza was born In Mumbai. Her parents originally from Goa & later moved to Mumbai. Her father hails from Mangalore while her mother is an East Indian from Mumbai Genelia studied at Apostolic Carmel High School in Bandra, Mumbai. She joined St. Andrews College, Bandra to pursue her Bachelor's Degree of Management Studies.

Genelia starred in the big budgeted Boys by top director Shankar. She starred opposite fellow débutante Siddharth. The film was a box-office hit and launched her career. She went on to star in other successful Telugu films. Genelia made her debut in Bollywood in 2003. Her first Hindi film was Tujhe Meri Kasam opposite Ritesh Deshmukh. Her second Hindi movie was Masti & was also opposite Ritesh. This film was a moderate success.

Her most recent Telugu film, Bommarillu, with Siddharth Narayan, was a major commercial and critical success & she won the Filmfare Award as the Best Actress for her performance. She was also a part of Mani Ratnam's stage show, Netru, Indru, Naalai.

She also appeared in Mere Baap Pehle Aap alongside Akshaye Khanna, which was moderately successful. Genelia finally made her breakthrough in Bollywood starring in the blockbuster, Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na opposite Imran Khan, who is Aamir Khan's nephew. The movie was a success across India and overseas. She was noted for her role as Aditi Mahant & her chemistry with co-star Imran.