Vidya Balan

Vidya Balan, born 1st January 1978, made her debut as Radhika in the popular sitcom Hum Paanch. Since then, she has done numerous films in different languages like Malayalam and Bengali.

Vidya Balan made her mark in Bollywood with films like Parineeta, The Dirty Picture, Paa and Kahaani for which, she won many awards and also earned praise from her critics. She has also won a National Award for the Best Actress for her role in The Dirty Picture.

Before making her career in Bollywood, Vidya Balan acted in television commercials and music videos. It was only in 2003 that she made her feature film debut with the independent Bengali drama Bhalo Theko. Her first Hindi movie role was as the lead actress in Pareenta in 2005. Her performance garnered rave reviews and there was no looking back for Vidya. She later landed the lead role in the blockbuster, Lage Raho Munna Bhai in 2006. However, her portrayal of glamorous characters in movies like ‘Heyy Babyy’ and Kismat Konnection in 2008 did not sit well with critics.

In 2009, Viday’s hard work paid off and marked the beginning of the most successful period in her career. Vidya Balan has since portrayed five consecutive roles to wide critical acclaim in Paa (2009), Ishqiya (2010), No One Killed Jessica (2011), The Dirty Picture (2011), and Kahaani (2012). With these roles Viday Balan was tagged as a “female hero” and has established herself as a leading contemporary actress of Hindi cinema.

As of 2013 Viday Balan has received one National Film Award, 5 Filmfare Awards and 5 Screen Awards. Always receiving criticism for her weight and poor dress sense, Vidya has evolved her own sense of style and beauty.

In December 2012, Vidya Balan married film producer Siddharth Roy Kapur.