Padma Lakshmi

Actress and former host of Top Chef Padma Lakshmi has a large scar on her right arm. In 1984, when she was 14 years old, Lakshmi was in a car accident in Malibu, California. Her arm was shattered and her right hip was fractured. The injury to her right arm required surgery, which left a 7-inch scar between her elbow and shoulder. After surgery, she regained use of both her arm and hip. The incident took place on a Sunday afternoon as Lakshmi was being driven home from a Hindu temple in Malibu. She remembers a flash of orange, looking over to see the large car upon her. She describes the event in the April 2001 edition of Vogue, saying, “Being in a car crash was like an exhilarating hallucination, an unbelievable moment that oddly remains one of the most beautiful images in my memory.”, which is a very lovely way to describe something so horrific.