Her Story

Her romance with cinema is an ongoing narrative… Raghuvendra Singh in chat with the super talented Vidya Balan.

- Raghuvendra Singh

Vidya Balan has an insatiable greed for good sarees and great roles. Her flowing six yard have now become synonymous with her inimitable style. She’s near flawless whether it’s her public appearances or her onscreen performances. In the last few years she’s made a habit of running away with hosannas even when the film’s not lived up to the expectations. They have even coined the term ‘shero’ in her honour. With a compendium of ups and downs in her career, she continues to be a beacon of great cinematic quality. Forever graceful and intelligible, Vidya Balan is that rare woman who’s slowly and steadily carved out her exclusive space under the spotlight. Just like she converted the fashion police into her fans in real life, this woman of incredible charisma continues to win at the showbiz game. One Friday at a time...  Was the response that you received for Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh gratifying?  Yes, absolutely. I’ve received messages from people telling me how much they loved my work and even from those who had issues with the film. But they still agree that it’s a good film. We dealt with a tricky subject child abuse. Generally, people are wary talking about it; forget making a film on it. Perhaps, there were expectations that the Kahaani sequel would be something different. Some found the end predictable – it didn’t have a dhamakedar ending like the Kahaani climax where she pulls out the baby bump. But had the end been so dramatic, it would have distracted from the main issue, which was child abuse. Yet, I’m not justifying it. I’m happy with the appreciation I’ve received.

Some wrote that the ‘shero’ was losing her magic. How do you take such criticism?