# Pepsi Uma
**Pepsi Uma** is the professional name of Uma Maheswari, also listed as S. Uma [Maheswari](https://www.edgepedia.org/maheswari), an Indian television presenter born in 1974 in Chennai.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) • [3](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/tamil/fan-sent-a-strange-gift-parcel-to-tamilnadu-famous-tv-anchor-pepsi-uma-104511.html) She took the name from the Pepsi soft-drink brand that sponsored her show and became one of the most recognized television presenters in [Tamil Nadu](https://www.edgepedia.org/tamil-nadu) during the 1990s and early 2000s.[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) She hosted the program for about 15 years, a length no other Tamil television show matched, and by 2000 it was Sun TV's longest-running program with 325 episodes.[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) • [11](https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/eyecatchers/story/20001016-uma-maheswari-rated-best-anchor-pepsi-ungal-choice-completes-325-episodes-761661-2012-07-05) She was voted best anchor in Tamil Nadu in a 2000 poll and received the Golden Icon of Television award in 2023.[4](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Uma Maheswari; also listed as S. Uma Maheswari[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) |
| Birth year | 1974, Chennai, per most sources; one Malayalam-language report gives 1988[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) • [3](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/tamil/fan-sent-a-strange-gift-parcel-to-tamilnadu-famous-tv-anchor-pepsi-uma-104511.html) |
| Tenure | About 15 years hosting the same show, a length no other Tamil television program matched[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) |
| Episode count | By 2000 the show was Sun TV's longest-running program, with 325 episodes[11](https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/eyecatchers/story/20001016-uma-maheswari-rated-best-anchor-pepsi-ungal-choice-completes-325-episodes-761661-2012-07-05) |
| Recognition | Voted best anchor in Tamil Nadu in a 2000 poll; received the Golden Icon of Television award in 2023[4](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html) |
| Spouse | Sukesh, a Punjabi former model[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) |
## Pepsi Ungal Choice
Uma had already worked in television before joining it: she began presenting on [Doordarshan](https://www.edgepedia.org/doordarshan) while still in school, and hosted 104 episodes of the phone-in program *Varungal Vazhthuvom* before moving to Sun TV.[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) • [5](https://mahalakshmisiyengar.blogspot.com/2014/07/uma-maheswari-popularly-known-as-pepsi.html)
**Why the name stuck.** Because the show carried Pepsi's sponsorship, viewers began calling its host Pepsi Uma, and the nickname became her professional identity.[12](https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/radio-and-tv/the-fizz-is-intact/article4765708.ece) She hosted the program for about 15 years, longer than any other Tamil television presenter had hosted a single show, and Indian Express Tamil writes that no one has filled her place since.[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) A MouthShut review noted it was the only show in India with the same concept, hostess, lead music, and sponsor running on the same channel for more than 10 years.[6](https://www.mouthshut.com/product-reviews/ten-best-tv-shows-serials-reviews-925040888-page-3)
Her appeal rested on presentation rather than format. Commentators describe her clear Tamil diction, resonant voice, and habit of wearing a silk sari on every show, which distinguished her from other video jockeys of the period.[1](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/) Her spontaneous "Oh.." while speaking became a signature phrase fans remembered.[4](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html) Popularity reached an unusual extreme: fans planned to build a temple for her at Kumili, and she intervened to stop them.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) In a 2000 poll she was voted the best anchor in Tamil Nadu.[11](https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/eyecatchers/story/20001016-uma-maheswari-rated-best-anchor-pepsi-ungal-choice-completes-325-episodes-761661-2012-07-05)
## Later career
Uma left Sun TV for Kalaignar TV when that channel started, and left Kalaignar TV in March 2008.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) She returned briefly to Sun TV around 2007 and quit after a year, then came back on Jaya TV, where she hosted the hour-long celebrity show *Album* in 2013.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) After that she did not host any further shows for many years.[4](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html)
In 2023 a photograph of Uma with fellow former Sun TV presenters Vijaya Sarathy and Rathna Sivaraman went viral after the two presented her with the Golden Icon of Television award at a [Behindwoods](https://www.edgepedia.org/behindwoods) ceremony. Asked where she had been all those years, she told fans she had been there all along and would meet them soon on television.[4](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html) • [7](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil-television-pepsi-uma-re-entry-in-tamil-television-show-soon-651334/)
## Declined film and advertising offers
At the height of her fame Uma turned down every film offer she received. These included two films offered by [Rajinikanth](https://www.edgepedia.org/rajinikanth), among them *Muthu*, a [Subhash Ghai](https://www.edgepedia.org/subhash-ghai) project opposite [Shah Rukh Khan](https://www.edgepedia.org/shah-rukh-khan), and offers from the directors K. Balachander and Bharathiraja; she declined them out of lack of interest in acting.[5](https://mahalakshmisiyengar.blogspot.com/2014/07/uma-maheswari-popularly-known-as-pepsi.html) She also declined a Pepsi advertisement with the cricketer Sachin Tendulkar because she did not want to wear the costume provided, even though she was modeling for other products at the time.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) Her screen presence was influential enough that Asin's television-anchor character in the 2007 film *Vel* was described as modeled on her show.[8](https://www.filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2007/asin-miranda-meenakshi-vel-020807.html)
## Personal life
Uma is married to Sukesh, a Punjabi man she met while shooting an advertisement; she has said that religion and language never came between them. He too received film offers and declined them.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) She holds an MBA and is a trained classical dancer; she now manages a firm, described in one account as her husband's company.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) • [9](https://tamil.asianetnews.com/cinema/pepsi-uma-felt-in-political-attack)
Her birth date is reported inconsistently. Most English-language profiles, including Nettv4u and WikiCelebs, give 18 August 1974 in Chennai, while a Malayalam Filmibeat profile gives 1 August 1988, also in Chennai.[2](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma) • [3](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/tamil/fan-sent-a-strange-gift-parcel-to-tamilnadu-famous-tv-anchor-pepsi-uma-104511.html) • [10](https://www.wikicelebs.com/pepsi-uma-wiki/)
## References
1. [சச்சின் டெண்டுல்கருடன் நடிக்கும் வாய்ப்பை நிராகரித்த பெப்ஸி உமா, Indian Express Tamil (2019)](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/lifestyle/pepsi-uma-sun-tv-pepsi-ungal-choice/)
2. [Tamil Anchor Pepsi Uma Biography, Nettv4u](https://nettv4u.com/celebrity/tamil/anchor/pepsi-uma)
3. [Fan Sent A Strange Gift Parcel To Tamilnadu Famous TV Anchor Pepsi Uma, Malayalam Filmibeat](https://malayalam.filmibeat.com/tamil/fan-sent-a-strange-gift-parcel-to-tamilnadu-famous-tv-anchor-pepsi-uma-104511.html)
4. [Pepsi Uma Gives Re-Entry After 25 Years? New PIC With Hosts Vijaya Sarathy & Rathna Sivaraman Goes Viral, Filmibeat (2023)](https://filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2023/pepsi-uma-gives-re-entry-after-25-years-new-pic-with-hosts-vijaya-sarathy-rathna-sivaraman-goes-v-350190.html)
5. [Uma Maheswari, popularly known as "Pepsi Uma", Mahalakshmi S. Iyengar blog (2014)](https://mahalakshmisiyengar.blogspot.com/2014/07/uma-maheswari-popularly-known-as-pepsi.html)
6. [Ten Best TV Shows/Serials review of Pepsi Ungal Choice, MouthShut](https://www.mouthshut.com/product-reviews/ten-best-tv-shows-serials-reviews-925040888-page-3)
7. [மேடைக்கு வந்த பெப்சி உமா, Indian Express Tamil (2023)](https://tamil.indianexpress.com/entertainment/tamil-television-pepsi-uma-re-entry-in-tamil-television-show-soon-651334/)
8. [Asin to play Miranda Meenakshi, Filmibeat (2007)](https://www.filmibeat.com/tamil/news/2007/asin-miranda-meenakshi-vel-020807.html)
9. [அரசியல் தொல்லையால்... பெப்சி உமா, Asianet News Tamil (2018)](https://tamil.asianetnews.com/cinema/pepsi-uma-felt-in-political-attack)
10. [Who is Pepsi Uma? Wiki, Age, Biography, WikiCelebs (2020)](https://www.wikicelebs.com/pepsi-uma-wiki/)
11. [Uma Maheswari rated best anchor, Pepsi Ungal Choice completes 325 episodes, India Today](https://www.indiatoday.in/magazine/eyecatchers/story/20001016-uma-maheswari-rated-best-anchor-pepsi-ungal-choice-completes-325-episodes-761661-2012-07-05)
12. [The fizz is intact, The Hindu](https://www.thehindu.com/features/metroplus/radio-and-tv/the-fizz-is-intact/article4765708.ece)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Screen people and creators › Television presenters and hosts › Music and entertainment news hosts*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Sep 19, 2026; Oct 11, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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