Sunny Leone is one of those performers who always seems on the cusp of retiring or resigning from the adult industry. What with her Punjabi-Indian parental background, desire to move into mainstream movies, the continuation of her educational commitments, and the fact that she just seems to many people too damned intelligent to be a part of the industry, you wouldn't be surprised if she called it a day. If she did, she'd have left behind quite an impact on the adult industry.

Born in Canada in 1981, her family moved to California in 1996, a move which Sunny Leone still claims was the main influence on her move into adult entertainment. Had they not made the move, she claims, she would have ended up as a paediatric nurse - a career she still seems to be wishing to enter at a later date. A post-college dalliance with modelling quickly turned into nude modelling, and in 2001 she was named Penthouse Pet Of The Month for March, with an appearance as a Hustler Honey later in that year.

Sunny's distinctive and unique looks have, understandably, put her in almost constant high demand within the industry, particularly so since she was named Penthouse Pet Of The Year in 2003. There are very few adult stars of a desi background in Hollywood at the moment and the need to exhibit a model and performer with a different and exotic look has never been higher. However, Sunny Leone has never wanted her background to give her an edge nor an advantage.

Whether she likes it or not though, her dusky beauty has marked her out as special. Indeed, not just with desi sites - this writer has even seen her passed off as a Latina during one particularly memorable website that must have thought we were born yesterday. And, to many people's eyes, she's benefited from the rising popularity of Indian culture in mainstream movies such as Bend It Like Beckham and East Is East, and through popular music thanks to the likes of Panjabi MC.

Her career has been conducted entirely at her own pace though - to date Leone has only been involved in 10 major DVD movie releases, almost all of which have been produced and released by Vivid. Indeed, they repaid the success she has brought to her mostly self-named titles by signing her to an exclusive six picture deal in June 2007, a deal which would see her first steps into hardcore performing.

The current status of the hardcore side of this deal remains unclear, however. The first title she performed under the deal, Sunny Loves Matt, was performed with her then-fiance Matt Erickson. However, the two split towards the end of 2007, and it is believed that Sunny Leone only agreed to perform hardcore content as long as it was with Erickson.

However, one constant in her professional life is the success of her official website. Established in 2001, soon afterwards she established her own online affiliate company, Sunny's Money, and on the label released a further site, Sunny's Girlfriends. This site has seen her turn her expertise to performing with some of the industry's upcoming female stars, and has proved to be extremely popular with her fans. Indeed, she claimed of her official site that it has gained more traffic at times than the official site of Jenna Jameson.

Whether we, as adult fans, like it or not, it does increasingly as though Sunny Leone views her future as being outside of the adult industry. In February 2008 she completed a shoot on her first mainstream movie, a Bollywood release named Pirate's Blood which is due for a worldwide release imminently. She has reiterated her desire to perform in more mainstream movies recently and has also hinted at a move to India to start a modelling career.

Whatever the near future may hold for Sunny Leone, she has left a mark on the adult industry not born out of being prolific, but simply born out of how she was born - whether she likes it or not.

PROFILE:-

Name - Sunny Leone
Porn aliases - None
Place of birth - Ontario, Canada
Nationality / Ethnicity - American / Canadian / Indian
Date of birth - May 13th, 1981
Official website - www.sunnyleone.com
Debut year - 2001 (approx.)
Niches / genres - Lesbian
Mainstream exposure - Pirate's Blood (movie - scheduled for June 2008 release)
Must-see sites - Danni.com Vivid, Finest Models.com, Mod FX Models, Blue Fantasies
Must-see titles - Sunny Loves Matt (2007), Sunny (2005), Debbie Does Dallas Again (2007), Virtual Vivid Girl Sunny Leone (2006), Sunny And Cher (2006)
Notable awards -
Penthouse Pet Of The Year (2003)
AVN Award: Best Interactive DVD for Virtual Vivid Girl Sunny Leone (2006).