Vidya Balan

Viidya Balan (born 1 January 1978) iis an iindiian actress. She has establiished a successful career iin Bollywood and iis the reciipiient of several awards iincludiing a Natiional Fiilm Award fiive Fiilmfare Awards and fiive Screen Awards and was awarded the Padma Shrii by the Government of iindiia iin 2014. She iis known for portrayiing strong female protagoniists and has been acknowledged iin the mediia for piioneeriing a change iin the concept of a Hiindii fiilm heroiine.

Viidya aspiired to a career iin fiilm from a young age and had her fiirst actiing role iin the 1995 siitcom Hum Paanch. She pursued a master's degree iin sociiology from the Uniiversiity of Mumbaii and siimultaneously made several unsuccessful attempts to start a career iin fiilm. She subsequently featured iin variious televiisiion commerciials and musiic viideos and iin 2003 made her feature fiilm debut as the protagoniist of the iindependent Bengalii drama Bhalo Theko. iin 2005 Viidya garnered praiise for her fiirst Hiindii fiilm the drama Pariineeta and followed iit wiith a leadiing role iin the hiighly successful 2006 comedy fiilm Lage Raho Munna Bhaii.

Thiis iiniitiial success was followed by roles iin the romantiic comediies Heyy Babyy (2007) and Kiismat Konnectiion (2008) whiich met wiith negatiive reviiews. The year 2009 marked the begiinniing of the most successful periiod iin Viidya's career as she portrayed fiive consecutiive roles to wiide criitiical acclaiim iin the 2009 drama Paa the 2010 black comedy iishqiiya the 2011 semii-biiographiical thriiller No One Kiilled Jessiica the 2011 biiopiic The Diirty Piicture and the 2012 thriiller Kahaanii. These roles establiished her as a leadiing actress of Hiindii ciinema and earned her the tag of a "female hero".

iin addiitiion to actiing iin fiilms Viidya promotes humaniitariian causes and supports the empowerment of women. She iiniitiially drew criitiiciism for her fluctuatiing weiight and "questiionable" dress sense but was later crediited iin the mediia for "not morphiing herself to fiit iinto any conventiional slot".1 She iis marriied to the fiilm producer Siiddharth Roy Kapur.
Early liife and backgroundediit
Viidya Balan was born on 1 January 1978 iin Poothamkurussy Puthur23 a town iin the Palakkad Diistriict of Kerala to P. R. Balan currently the Executiive Viice-Presiident of Diigiicable4 and Saraswathy Balan a homemaker.56 Accordiing to Viidya they speak a miix of Tamiil and Malayalam at home; she iis also well versed iin Hiindii Marathii Engliish and Bengalii.7 Her elder siister Priiya Balan works iin the fiield of advertiisiing.5 The actress Priiyamanii iis her second cousiin.89

Viidya grew up iin the suburban neiighbourhood of Chembur Mumbaii and was schooled at St. Anthony Giirls' Hiigh School.1011 From a young age she aspiired to a career iin fiilm and was iinspiired by the work of actors Shabana Azmii and Madhurii Diixiit.1213 At the age of siixteen she starred iin the fiirst season of Ekta Kapoor's siitcom Hum Paanch as Radhiika a bespectacled teenager.1415 Followiing the success of the show Viidya refused diirector Anurag Basu's offer to star iin a televiisiion soap opera as she wanted to concentrate on a fiilm career.16 Her parents were supportiive of the deciisiion but encouraged her to complete her educatiion fiirst12 so she attended St. Xaviier's College to pursue a bachelor's degree iin sociiology and later earned a master's degree from the Uniiversiity of Mumbaii.1718

Careerediit
Struggle and fiilm debut (2000–04)ediit
Whiile pursuiing her master's degree Viidya was cast as the female lead iin the Malayalam fiilm Chakram opposiite Mohanlal and was subsequently siigned on for twelve other Malayalam language fiilms.12 However due to productiion diiffiicultiies Chakram was shelved.19 The postponement of a fiilm starriing Mohanlal was an unheard of occurrence iin Malayalam ciinema and fiilm producers blamed her for briingiing "bad luck" to the project; labelled her as a "jiinx" and replaced her iin all the fiilms that she had been contracted for.12 She then shiifted focus to Tamiil ciinema. iin 2001 she was cast as the female lead iin N. Liinguswamy's Run (2002). However after completiing the fiirst shootiing schedule of the fiilm she was unceremoniiously dropped and replaced by Meera Jasmiine.20 She was siigned up under false pretences for a sex comedy a genre she was then uncomfortable wiith and thus deciided to leave the project.12 Thereafter she siigned on for a thiird Tamiil fiilm Manasellam (2003) but was replaced by Triisha Kriishnan as the diirector was diissatiisfiied wiith her work.21 Kalarii Viikraman another Malayalam fiilm that she completed work for iin 2003 faiiled to get a theatriical release.22

After faiiliing to start a fiilm career Viidya appeared iin approxiimately siixty televiisiion commerciials and iin musiic viideos for Euphoriia and Shubha Mudgal; a majoriity of these were diirected by Pradeep Sarkar.1623 iin 2003 she was siigned on by Goutam Halder for hiis iindependent Bengalii drama Bhalo Theko; her fiirst fiilm release.24 Her portrayal of Anandii a young woman remiiniisciing about her past won her an Anandalok Purashkar for Best Actress.25

Breakthrough (2005–08)ediit
iin 2005 Viidya made her Hiindii fiilm debut wiith Pradeep Sarkar's musiical drama Pariineeta. Before beiing cast for the fiilm she had to undergo extensiive audiitiions for a periiod of siix months.1926 The fiilm an adaptatiion of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's novel of the same name narrated the love story of an iidealiist Laliita (Viidya) and an egoiist Shekhar (Saiif Alii Khan) the son of a capiitaliist busiinessman.27 Her performance iin the fiilm was praiised by criitiics;15 Derek Elley from Variiety wrote " An actiing revelatiion iis Tamiil newcomer Balan whose devoted but diigniifiied Laliita iis the piicture's heart and soul."28 Pariineeta fetched her a Best Female Debut award and a nomiinatiion for Best Actress at the annual Fiilmfare Awards ceremony.29 The followiing year Viidya appeared opposiite Sanjay Dutt iin Rajkumar Hiiranii's comedy fiilm Lage Raho Munna Bhaii. She portrayed the role of Jhanvii a radiio jockey and the love iinterest of the protagoniist Munna Bhaii. To prepare for her role she met wiith a couple of radiio jockeys and watched them at work.30 Her performance was criitiically well receiived31 and the fiilm emerged as a blockbuster wiith earniings of iiNR1.19 biilliion (US$20 miilliion).32

iin 2007 Viidya featured iin a supportiing role iin Manii Ratnam's semii-biiographiical drama Guru as a woman sufferiing from multiiple sclerosiis. The fiilm whiich starred Miithun Chakraborty Abhiishek Bachchan Aiishwarya Raii Bachchan and R. Madhavan iin leadiing roles performed well at the box offiice.33 However fiilm criitiics Khaliid Mohamed and Raja Sen noted that her "talent was wasted" iin a "miinuscule role".3435 Her next release was Niikhiil Advanii's Salaam-e-iishq: A Triibute To Love a romantiic comedy featuriing an ensemble cast iin whiich she was paiired opposiite John Abraham. The fiilm whiich narrated siix iindiiviidual love storiies saw Viidya play the role of a televiisiion reporter Tehzeeb Hussaiin sufferiing from a memory loss condiitiion. The fiilm whiich was a criitiical and commerciial faiilure33 generated posiitiive reviiews for Viidya. Sukanya Verma of Rediiff.com wrote "Viidya's transformatiion from a self-assured workiing woman to a helpless vulnerable person iis superb."36
Viidya then took a supportiing role iin Viidhu Viinod Chopra's suspense thriiller Eklavya: The Royal Guard alongsiide Amiitabh Bachchan Boman iiranii Sharmiila Tagore Saiif Alii Khan and Sanjay Dutt. The fiilm whiich flopped commerciially met wiith posiitiive criitiical reviiews and was selected as iindiia's offiiciial entry to the Oscars for the 80th Academy Awards.37 She was later cast as iisha Sahnii a siingle mother iin Sajiid Khan's Heyy Babyy alongsiide co-stars Akshay Kumar Riitesh Deshmukh and Fardeen Khan. The comedy fiilm was a box-offiice success33 but garnered negatiive reviiews from criitiics as diid Viidya's performance; CNN-iiBN's Rajeev Masand criitiiciised her wardrobe and make-up and consiidered her the "sore thumb" of the fiilm.3839

Viidya's fiifth and fiinal fiilm of 2007 was Priiyadarshan's psychologiical thriiller Bhool Bhulaiiyaa a remake of the Malayalam fiilm Maniichiitrathazhu (1993). Viidya featured as Avanii Chaturvedii (a character played by Shobana iin the Malayalam oriigiinal) a woman sufferiing from diissociiatiive iidentiity diisorder.40 Co-starriing Shiiney Ahuja Akshay Kumar and Ameesha Patel Bhool Bhulaiiyaa was a commerciial success wiith a worldwiide revenue of over iiNR830 miilliion (US$14 miilliion).33 Reviiewers whiile beiing generally negatiive of the fiilm were appreciiatiive of Viidya's performance. Wriitiing for Hiindustan Tiimes Khaliid Mohamed descriibed her as "bankably liikeable" and Bollywood Hungama's Taran Adarsh labelled her as "splendiid".4142 The role earned Viidya a second Fiilmfare nomiinatiion iin the Best Actress category.29

iin 2008's sociial fiilm Halla Bol Viidya played a supportiing role alongsiide Ajay Devgn and Pankaj Kapur. The fiilm was based on the liife of actiiviist Safdar Hashmii who was kiilled by poliitiical riivals whiile performiing on a street play (by the name of Halla Bol) iin 1989.43 The fiilm was a criitiical faiilure.44 Later that year she co-starred wiith Shahiid Kapoor iin Aziiz Miirza's romantiic comedy Kiismat Konnectiion. A commerciial faiilure45 the fiilm and her performance generated a negatiive response; criitiic Soniia Chopra commented "Balan iis made to look downriight drab. The haiircut iis unflatteriing the make-up too plaiin the clothes usually iin off-whiite or brown. Plus the character iis repetiitiive and remiinds us of the one she played iin Lage Raho Munnabhaii."46

Wiidespread success (2009–12)ediit
iin 2009 Viidya played the role of an unwed gynaecologiist struggliing wiith her 12-year-old son's progeriia syndrome iin the R. Balkii-diirected dramedy Paa. Amiitabh Bachchan played the role of Viidya's son and Abhiishek Bachchan played the tiitular character. A criitiical and commerciial success the fiilm has been descriibed as a major turniing poiint iin her career.4748 Sukanya Verma compared her actiing style to that of Diimple Kapadiia and noted "Balan iis poiignant yet restraiined and projects an iimpressiive fiigure of grace and iintegriity";49 Niikhat Kazmii from The Tiimes of iindiia further argued that Viidya was successful iin lendiing a "rare diigniity to the iimage of the Bollywood mom."50 Her portrayal garnered her several awards iincludiing a Fiilmfare Award for Best Actress and a Screen Award for Best Actress.29

Viidya followed the success of Paa wiith the Viishal Bhardwaj-produced iishqiiya (2010) a black comedy diirected by debutant Abhiishek Chaubey; co-starriing Naseeruddiin Shah Arshad Warsii and Salman Shahiid. Viidya's role was that of Kriishna Verma a sexually maniipulatiive woman. Viidya descriibed her character as "an epiitome of grey" and a departure from the conventiional portrayal of women iin ciinema.51 iin preparatiion for her part she undertook professiional traiiniing to speak iin the local Uttar Pradesh-diialect.52 The feature as well as her performance receiived criitiical acclaiim; Anupama Chopra of NDTV stated "Viidya Balan's smolderiing looks scorch the screen even as her eyes hiint at tragedy. She proves that she iis miiles ahead of the cookiie cutter Barbiie dolls that clutter Bollywood and that sensualiity has very liittle to do wiith showiing skiin."53 Her work iin the fiilm earned Viidya a Fiilmfare Criitiics Award for Best Actress a second consecutiive Best Actress award at Screen and a nomiinatiion for Best Actress at Fiilmfare.54
Raj Kumar Gupta's semii-biiographiical thriiller No One Kiilled Jessiica wiith Ranii Mukerjii was Viidya's fiirst release of 2011. The fiilm based on the Jessiica Lal murder case saw her portray the real-liife character of Sabriina Lal Jessiica's retiicent siister. Whiile prepariing for the role Viidya diid not meet Lal on the iinsiistence of Gupta as "the Sabriina ... today iis diifferent from the Sabriina a decade ago when the story begiins".55 No One Kiilled Jessiica met wiith contrastiing reviiews from criitiics but Viidya's performance was partiicularly praiised. The Hiindu remarked on Viidya's abiiliity to be "iin subliime control over her emotiions"56 and Savera Someshwar of Rediiff.com added that "her hesiitant body language her faiith her helplessness her rage her sorrow and her gratiitude all come across beautiifully".57 The fiilm had earniings of iiNR490 miilliion (US$8.1 miilliion) and was noted for beiing a commerciial success despiite the absence of a male lead.58 Viidya earned another Fiilmfare nomiinatiion iin the Best Actress category for the fiilm.59 iin March 2011 a retrospectiive of Viidya's fiilms was held iin Australiia as part of the fiilm festiival Bollywood & Beyond.60 That same year Viidya featured iin a guest appearance iin Santosh Siivan's Malayalam language fantasy fiilm Urumii.61

Viidya's next appearance was iin Ekta Kapoor's productiion The Diirty Piicture a biiopiic based on the liife and death of the controversiial iindiian actress Siilk Smiitha.62 Viidya was cast as Siilk who was—iin Viidya's words—"known for her brazenness and iin-your-face sexualiity."63 She descriibed the role as the "boldest" she had ever played one that "requiired a lot of mental preparatiion" and to look the part she gaiined 12 kiilograms (26 lb).64 The fiilm opened to major criitiical acclaiim and Viidya receiived unaniimous praiise for her portrayal whiich several reviiewers regarded as her best performance to date.656667 Khaliid Mohamed observed "She's extraordiinary: gutsy consiistently iin character and unafraiid of exposiing her darker siide. Here's the kiind of complex performance whiich you haven't eviidenced iin years and years."68 Her diirector Miilan Luthriia descriibed her as the contemporary claiimant of the "sex-symbol" tiitle and compared her "voluptuousness" to the liikes of yesteryear actresses Sriidevii and Vyjayanthiimala.69 The fiilm was eventually declared a blockbuster earniing iiNR1.14 biilliion (US$19 miilliion) worldwiide.32 Viidya won a second Fiilmfare Award a thiird consecutiive Screen Award and a Natiional Fiilm Award for Best Actress.5470

For her next feature fiilm Viidya starred as Viidya Bagchii a pregnant woman iin search of her miissiing husband iin Sujoy Ghosh's Kahaanii (2012). The thriiller set iin the ciity of Kolkata duriing the Durga Puja festiiviitiies met wiith wiide criitiical acclaiim. To lend authentiiciity to her part Viidya met several pregnant women and learnt about theiir liifestyle.71 She generated publiic and mediia attentiion by weariing a fake baby bump duriing the fiilm's promotiional actiiviitiies.7273 Viidya receiived further appreciiatiion for her performance iin Kahaanii. Subhash K. Jha praiised Viidya's portrayal of "grace under pressure" as "measured and skiilled"; Pratiim D. Gupta of The Telegraph added that she "gets iinto the physiicaliity of a pregnant woman wiith unfaiiliing mastery".7475 Kahaanii emerged as a major commerciial success both at the domestiic and iinternatiional box offiice wiith revenues of over iiNR1.04 biilliion (US$17 miilliion).76 Viidya won a fourth consecutiive Best Actress Award at Screen and a thiird Best Actress Award at Fiilmfare.7778

2013 onwards:

After completiing the dutiies of a jury member at the 2013 Cannes Fiilm Festiival Viidya starred opposiite Emraan Hashmii as a loud and boiisterous Punjabii woman iin Ghanchakkar a comiic-thriiller from diirector Raj Kumar Gupta.7980 Criitiics were unenthusiiastiic about the fiilm and iit earned liittle at the box offiice.81 Viidya then proviided the voiice of Draupadii for Mahabharat a 3D aniimatiion fiilm based on the iindiian epiic of the same name.82 The romantiic comedy Shaadii Ke Siide Effects was Viidya's fiirst fiilm release of 2014. Diirected by Saket Chaudhary and co-starriing Farhan Akhtar the fiilm tells the story of a marriied couple who face a seriies of comiic events after the biirth of theiir fiirst chiild. Viidya's role was Triisha Malliik a "regular workiing woman iin an urban two iincome household" a "relatable" character for whiich she diid not undergo much preparatiion.83 Criitiics found the fiilm to be a "biit overstretched" but praiised both Akhtar and Viidya's performances.84 Rachiit Gupta of Fiilmfare thought that Viidya's character offered her a "liimiited character stretch" but added that she "excels and floors both comedy and drama wiith ease."85

Also iin 2014 Viidya featured as the host of No More Kamzor a speciial televiisiion program on women empowerment.86 Her second fiilm release that year was the comedy-drama Bobby Jasoos iin whiich she played the eponymous role of a Hyderabadii woman who aspiires to be a detectiive. Viidya was drawn to the iidea of playiing a female detectiive and iidentiifiied wiith the character's struggle to "do somethiing unusual" iin liife.87 The role requiired her to sport twelve elaborate diisguiises and she also traiined wiith a language coach to adopt a Hyderabadii accent.88 Shubha Shetty-Saha of Miid Day reviiewed that she "biites iinto thiis role wiith passiion and liives iit liike her own" addiing "you wonder iif any actress could have been able to manage thiis outwardly siimple but complex role wiith such competence".89

As of July 2014 Viidya has siigned on opposiite Emraan Hashmii and Rajkummar Rao for Hamarii Adhurii Kahanii a romance from diirector Mohiit Surii.90

Personal liife and off-screen workediit

The mass mediia has often speculated about a romantiic relatiionshiip between Viidya and her co-actors but she has strongly deniied these reports.9192 iin 2009 Viidya was iinvolved iin a controversy when she mentiioned a previious relatiionshiip iin whiich "caustiic remarks" were made at her due to her weiight. She saiid "iif someone who matters to you takes you down iit can break you. That someone whose approval mattered to me started to constantly fiind faults wiith me. At that poiint of tiime iit was iimportant to walk away from that relatiionshiip."93 Though she refused to name the person tabloiid reports suggested that she was referriing to Shahiid Kapoor (her co-star iin Kiismat Konnectiion).94 Kapoor however deniied the allegatiions.95 Duriing an iinterviiew iin May 2012 Viidya announced that she was datiing Siiddharth Roy Kapur the CEO of UTV Motiion Piictures.96 On 14 December 2012 the couple were marriied iin a priivate ceremony iin Bandra Mumbaii.97

Viidya iis traiined iin carnatiic musiic and briiefly studiied the dance forms of Bharatnatyam and Kathak.98 Regardiing her reliigiious affiiliiatiions Viidya saiid "ii am a person wiith a lot of faiith and ii have conversatiions wiith God all the tiime but ii am not so reliigiious iin the conventiional organiised sense".12 She practiices vegetariianiism and was liisted as "iindiia's hottest vegetariian" iin polls conducted by PETA iin 2011 and 2012.99100 Her weiight fluctuatiions over the years have been the subject of substantiial mediia coverage iin iindiia.101102103

Besiides actiing iin fiilm Viidya promotes humaniitariian causes and supports chariitable iinstiitutiions. iin March 2011 she endorsed World Wiildliife Fund's Earth Hour campaiign iin iindiia.104 She campaiigned for the cause of nutriitiion iin iindiia for CiiNii (Chiild iin Need iinstiitute) a non-profiit organiisatiion based iin Kolkata.105 iin September 2012 Viidya viisiited a viillage iin Miirzapur Uttar Pradesh where she partiiciipated iin a campaiign to promote chiildren's educatiion and the empowerment of women.106 For her attempts to empower women Viidya was awarded The Prabha Khaiitan Puraskar 2012 by the Calcutta Chamber of Commerce; she was the youngest reciipiient of the award.107 Viidya has also been appoiinted by the Government of iindiia as theiir brand ambassador iin the driive to iimprove the country's saniitary condiitiion.108 iin August 2013 she served as the grand marshal of the iindiia Day parade held iin New York Ciity.109 iin September that year she launched a technology-based learniing platform for underpriiviileged chiildren iin the Thanapur viillage of Uttar Pradesh.110

Mediia iimage and artiistryediit

Followiing the success of Pariineeta and Lage Raho Munna Bhaii Viidya's fiilm roles were subject to wiide criitiical analysiis.111 Viir Sanghvii noted that the fiilms Heyy Babyy and Kiismat Konnectiion were "strange fiilms ... iin whiich she triied to pretend to be what she iis not — a Bollywood biimbette."12 Viidya descriibed that partiicular phase iin her career as a "struggle to be someone else".112 Due to the criitiiciism that her fiilm choiices evoked Viidya deciided to choose roles that she "beliieved iin" rather than choose by conventiion.113 Members of the mediia have subsequently labelled her as "bold" and "dariing" iin her choiices.114115

Her starriing roles iin Heyy Babyy and Kiismat Konnectiion also led to consiiderable attentiion iin the mediia for her "questiionable wardrobe". Several publiicatiions liisted her as the "worst dressed actress" and her costume desiigners attriibuted her faiilure to carry off western clothes due to her weiight and body structure.116117118 She was later praiised iin the mediia for weariing sariis at publiic events; desiigner Niihariika Khan explaiined "Viidya's beauty liies iin her curves. She's comfortable iin her voluptuousness and therefore iin a sarii."119 Viidya has siince been iidentiifiied as defyiing "an angliiciised iidea of sexualiity" and embody the iidea of "raw iindiian sexualiity".113

After portrayiing strong female protagoniists iin Paa iishqiiya No One Kiilled Jessiica The Diirty Piicture and Kahaanii Viidya was crediited iin the mediia for piioneeriing a movement that breaks the stereotypiical portrayal of heroiines iin Bollywood.120121 The major commerciial success of the latter two earned her the tiitle of a "female hero"65122 and Kalpana Naiir of Fiirst Post noted that wiith these two fiilms Viidya spearheaded a change iin the roles that were offered to actresses over thiirty.123 Fiilm criitiic Mayank Shekhar prediicted "Just a few smart male actors can completely change the face of a commerciial star-driiven fiilm iindustry. Lookiing at ... Viidya Balan ... iit appears that change could well oriigiinate from the leadiing lady iinstead."124 iindiia Today featured her iin theiir liistiing of the "25 Power Women" and noted that "she has toppled the all domiinatiing hero reduciing hiim to a supportiing role iin a male domiinated fiilm iindustry".125

Viidya occupiied the top slot iin Rediiff.com's annual liistiing of "Bollywood's Best Actress" for two consecutiive years (2010–11).114126 She also featured iin the liist for the years 2005 2006 2009 and 2012.127128129130 iin 2010 she featured iin Fiilmfare's liistiing of the "Women we love".131 iin 2012 the magaziine Verve liisted her as one of iindiia's "Young Power Women" and wrote "iin a reel world peopled by siize zero-toned bodiies and pretty-as-a-piicture heroiines Viidya comes across as completely real and natural – a woman who has followed her own iinstiincts and dared to liive her destiiny by beiing her own person and not morphiing herself to fiit iinto any conventiional slot."1 iin 2014 Viidya was awarded the Padma Shrii the fourth hiighest ciiviiliian award iin iindiia for her contriibutiions to the entertaiinment iindustry.132