She had me at the edge of my seat fighting the urge to scream as Manjulika, a spirit looking to avenge her lost love in Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007). She made me want to lose my inhibitions as she unflinchingly danced her way through The Dirty Picture (2011). And recently, she made me embrace my complexity through her portrayal of the passionate and sometimes irrational mathematical genius Shakuntala Devi in the eponymous film. That’s the thing about Vidya Balan and her character choices—she doesn’t play them, she is them. And they are a force to reckon with, much like the woman herself.
“I live my dream every single day,” says Balan, her voice ringing through my phone— strong, soft, self-assured—from her Mumbai home to mine. “I’ve been drawn to acting since the age of eight. I’m glad it worked out for me.” As she talks about her craft, this prodigious performer, a Padma Shri, and National Film Award winner, is more Alice-in wonderland (curious and yearning for excitement) than established hall-of-Famer. She shares, “To walk in another person’s shoes for a while, wondering what they must have felt or how they reacted when confronted with a certain situation, is what I am fascinated by.”
WOMAN PROPOSES, GODDESS DISPOSES
Esta historia es de la edición November 2020 de VOGUE India.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición November 2020 de VOGUE India.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Current affairs
Elif Shafak’s work abounds with references, memories and a deep love of Istanbul. She talks to AANCHAL MALHOTRA about the significance of home and those who shape our recollections of the past
A drop of nostalgia
A whiff of Chanel N°5 L'Eau acts as a memory portal for TARINI SOOD, reminding her of the constant tussle between who we are and who we hope to become
Wild thing's
Zebras hold emerald-cut diamonds, panthers morph into ring-bracelets that move and a turtle escapes to become a brooch -Cartier's high jewellery collection Nature Sauvage is a playground of the animal kingdom.
Preity please
Two surprise red-carpet appearances and a movie announcement have everyone obsessing over Preity Zinta. The star behind the aughties’ biggest hits talks film wardrobe favourites, social media and keeping it real.
Honeymoon travels
Destination locked, visas acquired, bookings madewhat could stand between a newly-wed couple and pure, unadulterated conjugal bliss in some distant, romantic land? A lot, finds JYOTI KUMARI. Styled by LONGHCHENTI HANSO LONGCHAR
La La Land
They complete each other’s sentences, make music together and get lost on the streets of Paris—this is the love story of Aditi Rao Hydari and Siddharth.
A SHORE THING
Annalea Barreto and Mavrick Cardoz eschewed the big fat Goan wedding for a DIY, intimate, seaside affair that was true to their individual selves.
7 pheras around the buffet
Celebrating the only real love affair each wedding season: me and a feast.
Saving AI do
From getting ChatGPT to plan your wedding itinerary to designing your moodboard on Midjourneytech is officially third-wheeling the big fat Indian wedding
Love bomb me, please
Between breadcrumbing, cushioning and situationships, the language of romance seems to be lost in translation. SAACHI GUPTA asks, where has the passion gone?
