Sowmya Sathyanarayana (18 July 1972 – 17 April 2004), better known by her stage name Soundarya, was an Indian actress known for her works primarily in Telugu cinema. She was regarded as one of the greatest actresses in the history of Telugu cinema. She also acted in a few Kannada, Tamil, Hindi and Malayalam films. She has received three Nandi Awards, two Karnataka State Film Awards and six Filmfare Awards South. In 2002, she received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film as a producer for the Kannada film Dweepa.

Soundarya established herself as the most popular Telugu actress of the 1990s and is best known for her performances in films such as Ammoru (1995), Pavitra Bandham (1996), Anthahpuram (1998), Raja (1999), Doni Saagali (1998), Dweepa (2002) and Apthamitra (2004). She won three Nandi Awards for Pavitra Bandham and Special Jury Prize for Ammoru and Anthahpuram. On 17 April 2004, she died in a plane crash in Bengaluru at the age of 31.

Soundarya was born into a Kannada speaking family in Mulabagilu, Kolar district on 18 July 1972, and brought up in Bengaluru. Her parents are K. S. Sathyanarayana and Manjula. Her father was a Kannada film writer and producer. She discontinued her Intermediate after her first year in Bangalore. On 27 April 2003, she married G. S. Raghu, a software engineer by profession.

Soundarya's first film was the Kannada film Baa Nanna Preethisu, directed by S. Siddalingaiah, released in April 1992, immediately followed by Gandharva in July 1992 which was a hit. She did lead roles in Kannada and went on to become a popular actress. Her first film in Telugu was Manavarali Pelli (1993).

In Tamil, she got major acclaim for her debut film Ponnumani (1993), opposite Karthik for playing the role of a mentally disabled person.

Real commercial recognition came to her with Hello Brother (1994), directed by E. V. V. Satyanarayana, in which she starred alongside Nagarjuna and Ramya Krishna. She has also collaborated with actor Karthik for Muthu Kaalai (1995). She played an award-winning role in Ammoru (1995), directed by Kodi Ramakrishna, starring alongside Ramya Krishna and Suresh and played the role of Bhavani, a devotee of Goddess Ammoru. She had eleven releases in 1995.

She continued her successful run with Amma Donga (1995), Sipayi (1996), Pavitra Bandham (1996), Maa Aayana Bangaram (1997), Dongaata (1997), Aaro Pranam (1997) and Osi Na Maradala (1997). She also starred alongside Rajinikanth in Arunachalam (1997), which became the highest-grossing film of 1997 in Tamil cinema. The industry regarded her to be the golden hand, as a former director's daughter, she always regarded the success not as a one-man show, but teamwork across 36 departments.

In 1998, Doni Saagali in Kannada were commercially successful. In Tamil, she also starred alongside Kamal Haasan and Prabhudeva in Kaathala Kaathala directed by Singeetam Srinivas Rao. Choodalani Vundi opposite Chiranjeevi took her to the pinnacle. Anthahpuram, directed by Krishna Vamsi, stood as one of the finest performances of Soundarya in her career, winning her a State Nandi Award for Best Actress and also her second consecutive Filmfare Award for Best Actress.