The Audacious - 12 Self-Made Women of Indian Cinema
There was a time when there were only a few women actresses in Indian cinema like Nutan, Nargis Dutt, Sri Devi, Madhubala, and Rekha. Today cinema is riding on the wave of new-generation women actresses like Katrina Kaif, Anushka Sharma, and Kangana Ranawat. The future, we feel, is definitely female.
Here is a list of twelve women actresses who are challenging the status quo, and redefining Indian cinema.Kangana Ranaut
She made her debut in the 2006 movie Gangster and since then there have been a lot of ups and downs in her career. Being ridiculed for the lispy accent, stereotyped for her characters, controversies, failures, and huge successes, she has been through all. To put it in one line, from an outsider to one of the highest-paid actresses of Bollywood, such as the journey of Kangana Ranaut. She is the first female actor to have a movie centered around her cross the 100 crore mark at the box office and a key figure when it comes to female equality in the film industry. She has done a lot of work and we are proud of her for being who she is. Let’s have a look at her journey so far,
Madhuri Dixit
She’s one actress who sold films. Who overshadowed her heroes. How else would you explain a relatively forgotten film like Raja (1995) being a superhit? It did nothing for Sanjay Kapoor’s career. If the Universe has a law of the great leveler, Madhuri Dixit is the only exponent of it.
In a world of megastar males, she balances the power equation in favor of the fairer sex. But it established one unassailable fact. Madhuri Dixit’s box-office power was indestructible. She’s had a long list of memorable songs, movie moments, award nominations and award wins. It’s part of a movie legacy that’s usually associated with the male stars. The giant posters, the long queues of cinema patrons, the exasperating wait for a comeback. Very few ladies in showbiz enjoy such a following. Fewer still makes such a description seem like an understatement. That’s the one and only Madhuri.
Anushka Sharma
Actress and producer Anushka Sharma has managed to carve her own space in Bollywood and she has bagged multiple honors for her performances through the years. The ‘NH10’ actress became the latest recipient of another prestigious honor. Anushka was presented with the Smita Patil Memorial Award by Union Ministers Nitin Gadkari and Piyush Goyal in Mumbai last year. Sharma was raised in Bangalore. She was educated at the Army School there and received a degree in arts from Mount Carmel College. She originally intended to pursue a career in modeling or journalism and had no aspirations to be an actress.
After graduation, Sharma moved to Mumbai to further her modeling career.
The awards are given out by Priyadarshni Academy, which is a non-profit, socio-cultural and educational organization. Anushka wore an emerald green and gold saree which was reportedly made by local artisans. Her look was styled with a gold necklace and she kept the rest of her look simple with a green bindi and hair tied back in a bun.
Preity Zinta
Preity in her over the two-decade journey in the movies gave several memorable performances and has been honored with many awards and nominations. She is best known for her roles in films such as Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Salaam Namaste, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Koi... Mil Gaya, The Last Lear, Veer-Zaara Lakshya, Mission Kashmir, Sangharsh, Kya Kehna, Mission Kashmir, and Dil Chahta Hai among others.
Preity Zinta got married in 2016 to Los Angeles-based Gene Goodenough in 2016 and moved to California, where she currently resides. She was last seen in the 2018 film Bhaiaji Superhit. In 2020, she featured in a small role in ABC’s American sitcom Fresh Off the Boat in an episode titled "The Magic Motor Inn” alongside Vir Das.
Aishwarya Rai
Aishwarya Rai Bachchan the stunning beauty of Bollywood has had an exciting journey so far. The actress has always impressed the audience with her performance in the movies. Through her successful acting career, she has established herself as one of the most popular and influential celebrities in India. Today its been 24 years since Aishwarya Rai won Miss World and we bring up her inspiring journey from being crowned Miss World to becoming the stunning beauty of Bollywood.
Friends encouraged her to join her first Miss India pageant in the early 90s. Initially reluctant, she finally relented on a whim and agreed. Legend has it that the popular Mumbai model sashayed into the pageant and 20 women dropped out immediately, fearing competition from “the most beautiful girl in the world”, a moniker she carried long before any pageant wins or major movie roles.
Katrina Kaif
The one thing that Katrina Kaif does the best is her ability to dismantle cliches. She is an outsider who made it big as an insider. She could speak no Hindi yet dreamt of making it big as a Hindi film heroine. Starting out with a critical and commercial disaster called Boom (1999), today she is among the highest-paid actors in the country. If this isn’t a definition of success, what is? Over the years, Katrina has evolved as an actor who understands her limitations, works on her strengths as an entertainer, and has made some smart choices. As Katrina Kaif celebrates her birthday today, here is looking at her evolution in the film industry.
When she started out in the late ’90s, other than her gorgeous looks, there was frankly little she could really count on. In the late ’90s, she started out like many actresses do - as a model - in London. It was there that Kaizad Gustad saw her and decided to cast her in Boom. Unaware of the Indian audiences’ preferences and with a poor command over Hindi, Katrina was universally panned, when the film released. Undeterred, Katrina picked up a Telugu film, Malliswari, and did a brief role in Ram Gopal Varma’s Sarkar. What was accepted beyond doubt were her good looks. Her handicaps were, however, pretty major to encourage producers.
Jun 22, 2021
good to know