Early work and expansion (2007–2019) Gabbi made her film debut at the age of thirteen with a brief role in
Imtiaz Ali's
Hindi romantic comedy
Jab We Met (2007), playing the cousin of
Kareena Kapoor's character. She admitted to feeling uncertain about her future in the film industry while working on the picture, as she did not come from an acting family like Kapoor. In a review for
Mumbai Mirror,
Karan Anshuman commended Gabbi as "the standout" in a mediocre film. It emerged as a commercial failure, after which she admitted to almost giving up acting due to consistent rejections. Later that year, Gabbi made her debut into
Punjabi cinema alongside
Amrinder Gill and
Yo Yo Honey Singh in the comedy film
Tu Mera 22 Main Tera 22. It was a box-office success. Her subsequent roles in the Punjabi romances
Ishq Brandy (2014) and
Ishq Haazir Hai (2015) generally went unnoticed. In
Bhale Manchi Roju, Gabbi expanded to
Telugu cinema opposite
Sudheer Babu as a woman abducted on her wedding day. Made on a
shoestring budget, the film was a box-office success. She next made her debut into
Tamil cinema in 2016 with the romantic drama
Maalai Naerathu Mayakkam, opposite
Balakrishna Kola. She was drawn to the character as it was a departure from the "chirpy" roles she had portrayed previously in her Punjabi films. Despite criticising the film's regressive themes, a critic for
The New Indian Express labelled Gabbi "a talent to watch out for". In 2017, she debuted into
Malayalam cinema with the sports comedy
Godha opposite
Tovino Thomas. To prepare for her role as a Punjabi wrestler, she trained for the sport in
Amritsar and lived with her coach for a month. In the film's climactic combat scene, Gabbi sustained physical injuries throughout her entire body.
Godha emerged as a
sleeper hit at the box-office. Gabbi ended the year with the commercially successful Punjabi spiritual sequel
Nikka Zaildar 2, for which she earned her first nomination for Best Actress (Critics) at the
Punjabi Filmfare Awards. Parahuna was Gabbi's sole 2018 release. In 2019, Gabbi had five releases—four of which were Punjabi. She began the year as part of an ensemble that included
Prithviraj Sukumaran and
Mamta Mohandas in the Malayalam science fiction film
9. In a mixed review for Film Companion, Neelima Menon wrote that Gabbi was "scintillating as the mysterious stranger". She followed this with the unremarkable Punjabi features
Nadhoo Khan and
Dil Diyan Gallan. Gabbi returned to the
Nikka Zaildar franchise for its
third instalment, as a struggling poetess caught in a love triangle with
Ammy Virk and Sonia Kaur's characters. Gurnaaz Kaur of
The Tribune was appreciative of her addition to the film. It emerged as a commercial success.
Doorbeen—a drama centred on the illegal drug trade in Punjab—cast Gabbi as the love interest of
Ninja's character.
Mainstream work (2020–present) In
Galwakdi (2020), Gabbi played a free-spirited woman who falls in love with a librarian (played by
Tarsem Jassar) that struggles with
obsessive–compulsive disorder. In 2021, she returned to Hindi cinema after eight years with
Kabir Khan's sports drama
83, starring
Ranveer Singh. She had a supporting role as cricket player
Madan Lal's wife; Gabbi acknowledged that her role was brief but chose to sign the film regardless out of admiration for Khan. She next made her foray into streaming with the crime drama series
Grahan, in which she played Manu, a Sikh girl who becomes romantically involved with a Hindu boy (played by
Anshuman Pushkar) during the
1984 anti-Sikh riots.''''
Shweta Keshri of India Today'' wrote that Gabbi and Pushkar "do proper justice while bringing alive the 80s romance to screen", but
The Quint's Shefali Deshpande bemoaned that Gabbi's "fake freckles and Instagram filter like make up" detracted from the character's authenticity and also criticised the pair's poorly written roles. promoting
Jubilee in 2023 In 2022, Gabbi featured in two series—''
Mai: A Mother's Rage and Modern Love Mumbai—
which were released on to Netflix and Amazon Prime Video, respectively. In the former, she played a mute girl whose mother (played by Sakshi Tanwar) investigates the circumstances surrounding her death. Gabbi admitted that the intense role took a significant emotional toll on her, and she often broke down crying after filming several scenes; however, she deemed it essential for the audience to experience such scenes that reflect reality. The Indian Express''
Shubhra Gupta took note of her "eloquent use of sign language". In
Vishal Bhardwaj's segment of the latter anthology series, she essayed a young Gujarati woman navigating her relationship with an
Indo-Chinese man (played by
Meiyang Chang). She said she was drawn to exploring a different culture through the character as most of her previous characters did not offer this opportunity. Reception to the series was generally favourable; Anuj Kumar of
The Hindu wrote that, "Wamiqa and Chang fit effortlessly into their parts". The year 2023 proved to be a
breakthrough for Gabbi, during which she appeared in six projects. She started the year in Bhardwaj's
Fursat, a short film about a scientist (played by
Ishaan Khatter) who discovers an artefact that transports him to the future. Filming for
Fursat took place on the
iPhone 14 Pro in collaboration with
Apple Inc. Bhardwaj was initially sceptical of Gabbi's dancing abilities and considered simplifying the choreography for her but was impressed by her skills during the first rehearsal. In preparation, she learnt contemporary dance steps for her role in only nine days due to commitments to other projects.
India Today's Roktim Rajpal took note of Gabbi's ability to "convey a lot through silence and expressions" and appreciated her chemistry with Khattar given the duration of the film. However, reviewers of the film generally felt that the film prioritised showcasing the capabilities of the iPhone at the expense of the script's quality. Gabbi's next release, the Punjabi crime drama
Kali Jotta, premiered within a week of
Fursat. She played a lawyer who investigates the disappearance of her former school teacher (played by
Neeru Bajwa). The film was met with critical acclaim upon release; Sukhpreet Kahlon of
The Indian Express wrote that Gabbi brought "a carefree exuberance to her performance".
Kali Jotta emerged as a major commercial success, ranking as the
third highest-grossing Punjabi film of the year. A turning point in Gabbi's career came in
Vikramaditya Motwane's period series
Jubilee, in which she appeared among an ensemble cast. Motwane cast Gabbi in the role for her understanding of the nuance and emotion required by directors, along with her "gorgeous screen presence". Upon release on to Amazon Prime Video,
Jubilee received critical acclaim as did Gabbi's performance. Critic Udita Jhunjhunwala observed that while her performances in
Grahan, ''Mai: A Mother's Rage
, and Modern Love Mumbai
demonstrated her versatility to a certain extent, it was Jubilee'' that truly showcased her capabilities as an actor. In May, Gabbi featured once again in the
Modern Love franchise for its Tamil iteration,
Modern Love Chennai; she cited her aspiration to collaborate with director
Thiagarajan Kumararaja as the primary reason for accepting the project. She portrayed a woman tasked with helping her ex-boyfriend (played by PB) recover his memory following a car accident, the segment that
Firstpost's Bhuvanesh Chandar considered the series' highlight. The following month, Gabbi reunited with Bhardwaj for their third collaboration in
Charlie Chopra & the Mystery of Solang Valley, a thriller series adapted from
Agatha Christie's
The Sittaford Mystery. Based on the character of Trefusis, Gabbi played a detective who attempts to prove the innocence of her fiancé (played by
Vivaan Shah) in the murder of his uncle, a role she described as "my most ambitious yet" and spent two months preparing for. The series also required her to break the
fourth wall, a technique which she modelled after
Phoebe Waller-Bridge's character in
Fleabag. Citing the series as one of Bhardwaj's weaker projects,
Mashable India's Sanyukta Thakare thought that the weak writing had constrained Gabbi's performance, but still felt that she "showed great promise in deep emotional moments". She gained further attention for her role in Bhardwaj's spy thriller
Khufiya co-starring
Tabu and
Ali Fazal. In a mixed review of the film,
WION's Shomini Sen praised Gabbi for holding her own in the presence of Tabu and Fazal, despite being a relatively new actor. She earned her first award for Best Supporting Actress in a Web Original Film at the
Filmfare OTT Awards and earned an additional nomination for Best Actress at the ceremony. Describing her frequent collaborations with Bhardwaj, she called it a "privilege" to work with him and revealed that he instilled confidence in her as an actor at a time when she considered quitting. Gabbi next featured in the Hindi action film
Baby John (2024) starring
Varun Dhawan in the title role. She was initially hesitant in accepting the role as it was her first time doing action sequences.
Sukanya Verma of
Rediff.com bemoaned that "the charismatic Wamiqa Gabbi is wasted" in a poorly written role. It failed to recoup its estimated investment. The following year, Gabbi starred opposite
Rajkummar Rao in the fantasy film
Bhool Chuk Maaf, about a man who is stuck in a time loop on his wedding day. The film faced several delays in its release due to the
2025 India–Pakistan conflict and issues between distributers. In a scathing review of the film for
Scroll.in, Nandini Ramnath wrote that Gabbi was "a misfire as the sometimes coquettish, sometimes feisty, and all-times grating Titli". Against expectations,
Bhool Chuk Maaf emerged as a successful financial venture. In 2026, Gabbi featured in a dual role in
Priyadarshan's Hindi horror comedy
Bhooth Bangla opposite
Akshay Kumar. In the film's action sequences, she performed her own stunts. Critics were unimpressed by the 32-year age gap between the lead pair, and Shubhra Gupta wrote that the worst aspect was Gabbi's "cringey romantic track", complete with "forced pouting". Regardless, it emerged as a commercial success.
Upcoming projects Gabbi has several upcoming projects across multiple languages. In Tamil cinema, she will star in the fantasy film
Genie alongside
Jayam Ravi and the romance
Iravaakaalam opposite
S.J. Suryah, which has been completed since 2018 but is yet to be picked up for distribution. Additionally, she will feature in
Raj & DK's Netflix fantasy miniseries
Rakt Brahmand: The Bloody Kingdom alongside
Samantha Ruth Prabhu,
Aditya Roy Kapur, and Ali Fazal. ==Filmography==