Smriti Zubin Irani was born  in Delhi to a very culturally diverse family. Her father, Ajay Kumar Malhotra was a Punjabi-Mahashtrian businessman, and her mother, Shibani Bagchi, was a Bengali Hindu. Smriti and her two younger sisters were raised in a middle-class household. 

Smriti attended the Holy Child Auxilium School in New Delhi. She then pursued a degree in commerce from the University of Delhi but later dropped out due to her acting career. She hails from the political party Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP). 

Irani was one of the participants of the beauty pageant Miss India 1998 but couldn’t reach the top 9. She had found success as an Indian Television actress. She kicked off her acting journey in 2000 with roles in major television shows like “Aatish” and “Hum Hain Kal Aaj Aur Kal” on the Star Plus Channel. However, she found her big break in 2000 when she was cast as the lead character Tulsi Virani in the hit daily soap opera “KyunkiSaas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi” for which she won five consecutive ITA Award for best Actress Popular and four Indian Telly Awards. Thismade her a household name and her success as an actress, especially her iconic role as Tulsi, paved the way for her transition into politics. by giving her widespread name recognition and a relatable image, 

Smriti Irani’s political journey began in 2003 when she joined the Bhartiya Janata Party ,  that would later prove to be the redefining point in her life’s trajectory.  In 2014 general elections held that year, she unsuccessfully contested against Kapil Sibal. 

During the campaign in 2009 parliamentary elections in the New Delhi constituency she voiced her concern for women’s safety in the city. In early 2010, Irani was appointed National Secretary of BJP and on 24 June, she was appointed All India President of the BJP’s women’s wing, BJP Mahila Morcha. 

In 2011, she was sworn in as a member of parliament from Gujarat to the Rajya Sabha. In 2014 general elections she contested against Rahul Gandhi in Amethi but lost. 

In the same year Prime Minister Narendra Modi appointed her as the Minister of Human Resource Development in his cabinet.

 In July 2016, in a cabinet reshuffle Irani was shifted to Ministry of Textiles from MHRD.

 In 2017, she was given the additional charge of Ministry of Information and Broadcasting.

 In 2019, Irani became a member of parliament for Amethi constituency after winning the Lok Sabha seat in the 2019 general elections from Rahul Gandhi.