Balan made her movie debut in the Bengali film, Bhalo Theko in 2003. She later made her Hindi film debut with Parineeta (2005), which earned her a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award as well as her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress nomination. She subsequently essayed a variety of character roles, receiving her first commercial success with Rajkumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006). She followed it with Heyy Babyy (2008) and Bhool Bhulaiya (2008),the latter earning her another nomination for a Filmfare Award for Best Actress. In 2009 she appeared as a single mother of a child suffering from progeria in R. Balki's Paa, her performance in which ultimately won her a Filmfare Award for Best Actress. 2010 saw the release of Ishqiya, starring Balan in a role for which she was praised and awarded.
Early life
Vidya Balan was born in Ottapalam, Palakkad District, Kerala, to P. R. Balan (Vice President of ETC Channel) and a housewife mother in a Tamil speaking Iyer family.She has an elder sister, Priya.
She did her schooling at St. Anthony Girls' High School, Chembur, Mumbai, and later attended St. Xavier's College where she majored in Sociology. She went on to study MA at the University of Mumbai, when she got her first film offer.
Career
Her acting career started when she signed up for the Malayalam film Chakram, alongside Mohanlal but the film was shelved. After that, she signed on for the Tamil film, Run, but for reasons undisclosed, she was dropped after a first schedule and replaced by Meera Jasmine.When Chakram was restarted with Prithviraj in the lead, Meera Jasmine was chosen ahead of Balan again.
She then turned to television advertising. From 1998 onwards, she appeared in numerous television ads, many of which were directed by Pradeep Sarkar. She also took supporting roles in music videos, appearing with singers and bands such as Euphoria, Shubha Mudgal, and Pankaj Udhas. Balan also portrayed the role of Radhika Mathur in a few episodes of the later seasons of Hum Paanch.
In 2003, she appeared in the Bengali film, Bhalo Theko directed by Goutam Halder ,for which she won the Anandalok Puraskar Best Actress award in Kolkata. Balan next made her Hindi film debut in Parineeta. Her performance in that film was acclaimed by critics,earning her a Filmfare Best Female Debut Award and a nomination for Filmfare Best Actress Award. After the success of her first two films, the producer who dropped her from Manasellam was keen to sign her opposite Kamal Hassan for Dasavathaaram but she rejected the offer and Asin Thottumkal was signed instead. In 2006, she appeared opposite Sanjay Dutt in the blockbuster film Lage Raho Munna Bhai. Once again her performance was well received by critics and the film became the second highest grossing film of that year.
Mani Ratnam's Guru was Balan's first release in 2007, in which she played a woman suffering from Multiple Sclerosis. The film performed well at the box office. and her role was appreciated.Her next two releases were Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love (2007) and Eklavya: The Royal Guard (2007) which grossed over Rs. 180 million;Eklavya was selected as India's official entry to the Oscars for the 80th Academy Awards.Balan's last two releases of the year, Heyy Babyy (2007) and Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007), were both commercial hits.
In 2009, Balan played the role of Vidya, a young independent gynecologist who is also a single-mother struggling with her 12-year-old son's Progeria syndrome, in Paa. Amitabh Bachchan played Balan's son Auro. The film was received well by critics and Balan's performance was praised. Sukanya Verma from Rediff wrote, "Vidya Balan slips into the skin of a doting mom with such ease without the mollycoddling tone Bollywood's young mothers often resort to. Balan is poignant yet restrained and projects an impressive figure of grace and integrity, reminiscent of Dimple Kapadia in the 1980s.";Nikhat Kazmi from The Times of India noted, "Balan lends a rare dignity to the image of the Bollywood mom. With her quiet grace and controlled emotions, she is Mother Courage incarnate."Her portrayal ultimately won her a Filmfare Award for Best Actress and a Star Screen Award for Best Actress, among other awards.
Balan next acted in the 2010 drama Ishqiya, a feature directed by first-timer Abhishek Chaubey and co-starring Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi. Balan's role was that of Krishna Verma, a 30-year old widowed village woman. Her character was described as a femme fatale, and her performance was applauded by critics, with NDTV's Anupama Chopra writing, "Balan’s smoldering looks scorch the screen even as her eyes hint at tragedy. She proves that she is miles ahead of the cookie cutter Barbie dolls that clutter Bollywood and that sensuality has very little to do with showing skin."
Balan's first release in 2011 was in UTV Spotboy's No One Killed Jessica alongside Rani Mukerji. She has also said she will be appearing in Chenab Gandhi, directed by Vibhu Puri and produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, which centers around Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, also known as Frontier Gandhi.As of January 2011, Balan is scheduled to appear in Dirty Picture, a biopic based on the life and death of Indian actress Silk Smitha.
Awards and nominations
- Filmfare Awards
- 2006: Filmfare Best Female Debut Award, Parineeta
- 2006: Filmfare Face of the Year, Parineeta
- 2010: Filmfare Best Actress Award, Paa
- 2011: Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance, Ishqiya
- 2006: Filmfare Best Actress Award, Parineeta
- 2008: Filmfare Best Actress Award, Bhool Bhulaiyaa
- 2011: Filmfare Best Actress Award, Ishqiya
- Star Screen Awards
- 2006: Star Screen Award for Most Promising Newcomer - Female, Parineeta
- 2010: Star Screen Award for Best Actress - Paa
- 2011: Star Screen Award for Best Actress - Ishqiya
- Zee Cine Awards
- 2006: Zee Cine Award for Best Female Debut, Parineeta
- 2011: Zee Cine Award for Best Actor - Female, Ishqiya
- 2006: Zee Cine Award for Best Actor - Female, Parineeta
- International Indian Film Academy Awards
- 2006: IIFA Best Female Debut, Parineeta
- 2010: IIFA Best Actress Award, Paa (shared with Kareena Kapoor)
- 2007: IIFA Best Actress Award, Lage Raho Munnabhai
- 2008: IIFA Best Actress Award, Bhool Bhulaiyaa
- 2008: IIFA Best Villain Award, Bhool Bhulaiyaa
- 2008: IIFA Best Supporting Actress Award, Guru
- Stardust Awards
- 2006: Stardust Award for Superstar of Tomorrow – Female, Parineeta
- 2008: Stardust Award for Best Supporting Actress, Guru
- 2011: Stardust Award for Star of the Year – Female, Ishqiya
- 2011: Stardust Readers' Choice Award for Best Actress (Thriller/Action), Ishqiya
- Apsara Film and Television Producers Guild Awards
- 2005: Outstanding Debut, Parineeta
- 2011: Best Actress, Paa
- 2011: Best Actress in a Leading Role, Ishqiya
- Other Awards
- 2004: Anandalok Puraskar Awards, Best Actress, Bhalo Theko
- 2006: Star's Sabsey Favourite Nayi Heroine, Parineeta
- 2007: Anandalok Puraskar Awards, Best Actress (Hindi), Bhool Bhulaiyaa
- 2010: Lions Gold Awards, Best Actress, Paa
- 2010: 'FICCI Frames 2010' Excellence Awards: Best Actress for Paa
Filmography
| Year | Movie | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2003 | Bhalo Theko | Anandi | Bengali film |
| 2005 | Parineeta | Lalita | Winner, Filmfare Best Female Debut Award Nominated, Filmfare Best Actress Award |
| 2006 | Lage Raho Munna Bhai | Jhanvi | |
| 2007 | Guru | Meenu Saxena | |
| Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love | Tehzeeb Raina | ||
| Eklavya: The Royal Guard | Rajeshwari | ||
| Heyy Babyy | Isha | ||
| Bhool Bhulaiyaa | Avni/Manjulika | Nominated, Filmfare Best Actress Award | |
| Om Shanti Om | Herself | Special appearance | |
| 2008 | Halla Bol | Sneha | |
| Kismat Konnection | Priya | ||
| 2009 | Paa | Vidya | Winner, Filmfare Best Actress Award |
| 2010 | Ishqiya | Krishna Verma | Winner, Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance Nominated, Filmfare Best Actress Award |
| 2011 | No One Killed Jessica | Sabrina Lal | |
| Urumi | Makkom | Filming (Special appearance) | |
| Kahani | Filming | ||
| The Dirty Picture | Silk Smitha | Filming |
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