Vidya-The thinking actress

By: Poonam Bisht I have enjoyed the success my work has brought me. My state of mind is positive and I dare to dream…….Despite not being among the best-looking actresses (a la Ash) of the present generation, not being as glamorous as ‘Bebo’ or not even possessing the rich charm like some actresses (a la Sush), she still has every right to make the above statement-for she is Vidya Balan, the current ‘hot property’ in Bollywood (going by the number of eminent producers who are standing in the queue to sign her or the reputed filmmakers hell bent on taking her into their dream projects).Be it the ad world from where she has descended or the music albums she has featured in, and now the tinsel town, the ‘Iyer girl’ from Kerala has always made her presence felt. Bollywood welcomed her with open arms-and why not? What a refreshing change it was to see an actress making debut in Hindi cinema as an elegant, sari-clad traditional girl, brimming with Indian values, rather than a stereotype skimpily clad-aspiring actress, desperately trying to woo the audience with mere skin show (a la Nisha Kothari in James).A traditional Indian beautyNaturally, ‘Lolita’ of ‘Parineeta’ captured the hearts of millions of Indians and impressed film critics as well. So much so that she became an overnight star following the tremendous response to the movie. Forget about the number of trophies she received in various award functions for Best Debut; none other than Amitabh Bachchan came to her especially to congratulate her for her commendable performance.