मनहूस कहकर 12 फिल्मों से निकाली गई थीं विद्या बालन: 6 महीने तक आईना देखने की हिम्मत नहीं हुई, ‘परिणीता’ से बनीं बॉलीवुड स्टार

Vidya Balan made her mark in Bollywood after struggle and rejection.

Today Vidya Balan is among those Bollywood actresses who have given a new identity to women-oriented films. This position was not easy for Vidya, who proved her acting skills in ‘Kahaani’, ‘The Dirty Picture’ and ‘Tumhari Sulu’. At the beginning of his career he was called ill-fated. He was blamed for the shelving of his first Malayalam film with Mohanlal. He was dropped from about 12 films. A producer questioned her looks and asked whether she looked like a heroine. Vidya was so devastated by this insult that she could not muster the courage to look at herself in the mirror for about six months. But he did not give up. Made a great comeback with ‘Parineeta’ and later won the National Award as well.

Some special things about Vidya Balan’s career in today’s success story

Grew up in Mumbai, dreamed of becoming an actress since childhood.

Vidya Balan was born on 1 January 1979 in Mumbai. His family is originally from Palakkad, Kerala. His father PR Balan has been a corporate professional, while mother Saraswati Balan is a housewife. His elder sister is Priya Balan.

Vidya’s childhood was spent in Chembur, Mumbai. She studied at St. Anthony’s Girls High School. Further he did graduation in Sociology from St. Xavier’s College. After this, he obtained a master’s degree in the same subject from Mumbai University.

Vidya was fond of acting since childhood. She was influenced by the acting of Madhuri Dixit and Shabana Azmi. After watching Madhuri’s film ‘Tezaab’ at the age of eight, her desire to become an actress became stronger.

Got my first chance on TV at the age of 16

Vidya entered the world of acting at the age of 16. In the year 1995, she got the role of Radhika Mathur in Ekta Kapoor’s popular comedy show ‘Hum Paanch’. The audience liked this character as a calm girl wearing glasses.

It became difficult for him to handle the shooting of the show and studies simultaneously. His attendance was being affected due to his continuous absence in college. The family made it clear that he would have to complete his studies along with acting. In such a situation he left the show.

After this Vidya started working in advertisements. He acted in about 60 commercials. During this time he met director Pradeep Sarkar. Both of them also worked in music videos along with advertisements.

Vidya was seen in the music videos of Euphoria’s song ‘Kabhi Aana Tu Meri Gali’, Shubha Mudgal’s ‘Ab Ke Sawan’ and Pankaj Udhas. He had no idea that this music video would change his life.

First film with Mohanlal, then got the label of being wretched

After working in TV and advertisements, Vidya wanted to try her luck in films. During this time, he got work in the Malayalam film ‘Chakram’. South superstar Mohanlal was going to be seen with him in the film.

For Vidya, it was like a big dream come true. The shooting of the film began, but was stopped midway due to production problems.

In the Malayalam film industry, the closure of a film of a big star like Mohanlal was considered unusual. The blame for this was put on Vidya. Some producers considered him unlucky and ill-fated.

Vidya later told that after this incident, she was replaced from about a dozen Tamil and Malayalam films.

In the Tamil film ‘Run’ he was portrayed by R. Got work with Madhavan. She was removed after one shooting schedule was completed and replaced by Mira Jasmine. Vidya was also cast in ‘Manaselam’ first, but later Trisha was cast in her place.

During this time he worked in the Malayalam film ‘Kalari Vikraman’, but it could not reach the theatres.

Question raised on Vidya Balan’s look, producer had said something derogatory.

The producer asked- Does she look like a heroine?

It was more difficult for Vidya to endure the derogatory comments made on her looks than being thrown out of films.

In an interview given to Indian Express, Vidya had told that the producer of a Tamil film had refused to meet her. A few days later, it was revealed that the producer had shown his horoscope and declared him unlucky.

When Vidya came to meet the producer with her parents in Chennai, she asked whether her daughter even looked like a heroine?

This comment broke Vidya. He had told that after the insult he did not have the courage to look at himself in the mirror for about six months.

This period was mentally difficult for him. Due to constant rejections and insults, he thought of quitting acting several times. However, family and passion for acting gave him the strength to move forward.

Vidya had told in an interview that during the struggle, a journalist had advised her to publish fake news about her signing in a big banner film, so that the stigma of being wretched could be removed. But Vidya refused to do so.

Before ‘Parineeti’, Vidya Balan did the Bengali film ‘Bhalo Theko’. This film received three National Awards.

Pradeep Sarkar became Sahara, opened the way to Bollywood through music videos

After continuous disappointment in South films, Vidya started focusing on advertisements and music videos. Director Pradeep Sarkar became his biggest support.

Pradeep Sarkar had faith in Vidya’s talent. He was impressed by her work in Euphoria’s music video ‘Kabhi Aana Tu Meri Gali’. He felt that Vidya could adapt to different characters in front of the camera.

Pradeep Sarkar decided to cast her in the film ‘Parineeta’. However, producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra was initially not completely convinced by the decision. He wanted to cast an established actress.

Vidya had to give many screen tests to prove her talent. He had told in an interview that he had given more than 60 screen tests for the film. Lyricists Shantanu Moitra and Swanand Kirkire have also mentioned the efforts of Pradeep Sarkar for their selection.

Vidya Balan became the best actress of Bollywood after ‘Parineeta’.

‘Parineeta’ found after more than 60 screen tests

‘Parineeta’, released in 2005, proved to be a big start for Vidya Balan’s career. She played the character of Lalita in the film. Saif Ali Khan and Sanjay Dutt were also in important roles.

Vidya received the Filmfare Best Female Debut Award for this film. Her acting was praised and she was recognized as a strong actress in Bollywood.

Vidya later shared an anecdote. She was at Enrique Iglesias’s concert in Mumbai when she got a call from Vidhu Vinod Chopra. He asked Vidya to come out immediately. Vidya thought that maybe she would get the news of being rejected again, but Chopra said on the phone – ‘You are my Parineeta.’

Vidya became emotional after hearing this. The actress who was once ostracized from films had now got the lead role in a big Bollywood film.

From ‘Lage Raho Munnabhai’ to ‘Bhool Bhulaiya’, continuous success

After ‘Parineeta’ Vidya did not look back. In the year 2006, she appeared in Rajkumar Hirani’s ‘Lage Raho Munnabhai’. She played the role of radio jockey Jhanvi. Her pairing with Sanjay Dutt was liked by the audience and the film was a big hit.

The year 2007 was important for his career. He worked in Mani Ratnam’s ‘Guru’, ‘Salaam-e-Ishq’, ‘Hey Baby’ and ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’. Avni’s character and acting were especially discussed in ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa’.

He worked with Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan in ‘Paa’ released in 2009. She played the role of a mother of a child who has a rare disease called Progeria. She received the Filmfare Best Actress Award for this role.

‘The Dirty Picture’ made Vidya Balan the bold heroine of Bollywood, the film changed her fate.

‘Ishqiya’, ‘Dirty Picture’ and ‘Kahaani’ changed the thinking of Bollywood

‘Ishqiya’, released in 2010, proved to be a big turning point in Vidya’s career. She played the character of a widow woman named Krishna. Vidya made a distinct identity with her acting among artists like Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi. She received the Filmfare Critics Best Actress Award for this film.

In 2011, she played the role of journalist Mira Gatty in ‘No One Killed Jessica’. His pairing with Rani Mukherjee and the film’s story were appreciated.

‘The Dirty Picture’, released this year, included Vidya among the powerful actresses of the industry. She played a character inspired by South Indian actress Silk Smita. His bold and outspoken acting made a lot of headlines. The film was successful at the box office and he received the National Film Award for it.

Sujoy Ghosh’s ‘Kahaani’, released in 2012, took his success to new heights. She played the character of pregnant Vidya Bagchi, who reaches Kolkata in search of her missing husband. The film revolves around his character. He made the film memorable with his strong acting. She received another Filmfare Best Actress Award for this role.

He also played different characters in ‘Bobby Jasoos’ (2014), ‘Hamari Adhuri Kahani’ (2015) and ‘Kahaani 2’ (2016).

Returned from ‘Tumhari Sulu’, again showed strength on OTT also

After some films did not perform as expected at the box office, Vidya made a comeback in 2017 with ‘Tumhari Sulu’. She played the role of a housewife and radio jockey. She again received the Filmfare Best Actress Award for this role.

She was seen with Akshay Kumar in ‘Mission Mangal’ released in 2019. She played the character of scientist Tara Shinde. The film was successful at the box office.

Vidya showed acting versatility in ‘Shakuntala Devi’ (2020), ‘Sherni’ (2021) and ‘Jalsa’ (2022). She received the Filmfare Critics Best Actress Award for the role of a forest officer in ‘Sherni’.

He played different characters in ‘Niyat’ in 2023 and ‘Do Aur Do Pyar’ in 2024. Her comeback as Manjulika in ‘Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3’ caught the attention of the audience. The film performed well at the box office.

From National Award to Padmashree, skillfully answered superstition

Vidya Balan received the National Film Award for Best Actress in 2012 for ‘The Dirty Picture’. In 2014 he was awarded the Padma Shri. She has also won many Filmfare and other prestigious awards.

Vidya’s story is not only the success of an actress, but also an answer to the thinking in which superstition and external appearance are given more importance than talent.

The actress who was once thrown out of films by calling her wretched, later gave such films whose story progressed on the strength of her characters. Vidya proved that success does not require a special face or a stroke of luck, but talent, hard work and self-confidence.

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