Filipina actress, controversial cover girl Bela Padilla | Photos

It appears that Filipina actress Bela Padilla (born Krista Valle Sullivan on May 3, 1991) has risen from the controversies which hounded her last February, when her cover page on FHM Philippines was accused of racism, forcing the editorial board to withdraw and edit the issue. The cover of said mag in photo below.

In the magazine's latest 100 Sexiest Women in the World poll, she landed at the eighth (8th) spot, defeating more popular actresses such as Anne Curtis, KC Concepcion and Kim Chiu! A truly meteoric rise; she was ranked 77th last year.

In photo below, she poses as image model for clothing brand Bench.

Bela (as with most Pinay magazine cover girls and celebrities) is a mestiza (mixed Filipina). She is born to a British banker from Nottingham and a Filipina mother.

Here she poses with a fan in a lace see through dress (right).

The Pinay mestiza actress was discovered by ABS-CBN in 2008 - under the stage name Krista Valle - as a member of the Star Magic Batch 15. She was then cast in the teen TV show Star Magic Presents: "Abt Ur Luv Ur Lyf 2". She then has a minor part in the series Totoy Bato, which had her distant relative Robin Padilla in the lead role.

A change of management in 2010 had her switch channels - from ABS-CBN to GMA7, along with a change in stage name to Bela Padilla. More photos of our featured pretty tisay. (click on images to enlarge)

Sources: Wikipedia, fhm.com.ph, her Facebook fan page, igma.tv