KAL PENN

The Namesake star is convinced he wouldn't have had the opportunities he has enjoyed if he'd stubbornly stuck with his Indian name.

He says, "There were a couple of friends who said, 'If you use Kalpen Modi on your resume, you'll probably be more limited to roles.

"Whether it's less letters or a neutral sounding name, am I trying to sound less ethnic? Yeah. But I didn't want to come up with a completely separate name that has nothing to do with my own.

"So I just took my first name and split it in half."

And by doing so, Penn struck it lucky: "My parents' friends said that in ancient Hindu numerology the sequence of three letters and seven letters all together, with that combination, is considered very lucky."

Source: WENN