By Jilawatan

While Vidya plays Abhishek’s wife in Dum Maro Dum, Ash, the original choice for the role, chooses to be his wife strictly off-screen

For all those who are still wondering whether Vidya Balan is a part of Rohan Sippy’s Dum Maro Dum, the news is that the Paa actress in indeed a part of the forthcoming film. In fact, UTV CEO Siddharth Roy Kapoor’s girlfriend, Balan will be seen essaying the role of Abhishek Bachchan’s wife.

However, what is interesting is that, according to industry insiders, initially, Jr Bachchan’s real life wife Aishwarya Rai was approached for the same role.

A source close to the film told us, “Vidya has a very significant cameo in the film, but she was definitely not the first choice to play Abhishek’s wife. Rohan and producer Fox Star Studios wanted Aishwarya but somehow things didn’t work out.”

The question that still remains unanswered, however is why or rather how did Vidya come to replace Ash when both the director and the producer wanted otherwise? A leading English daily, on April 2, 2011 had reported how Ash was offered the role of Sarah Jane Dias in Game initially. Evidently, for reasons unknown, Mrs Jr Bachchan had been unable to take up that offer.

When we asked director Rohan Sippy the reason behind Vidya doing the film despite Ash being the first choice, he replied with a message, saying, “Vidya was gracious enough to do my film.”

However, going with Vidya is not a bad decision, judging from the on-screen chemistry the actress shared with Abhishek in Paa. On the other hand, the real life couple, Abhi-Ash has had no hit as a romantic couple so far.

Dhai Akshar Prem Ke, Kuch Naa Kaho, Umrao Jaan and the more recent Raavan, where the two actors had played a romantic couple have all been box office dampeners.

When contacted, both the ladies, Aishwarya and Vidya chose not to answer.

By Jilawatan

Vidya Balan, who made an award-winning debut in ‘Parineeta’, a movie that premiered at the IIFA weekend a few years ago, continued her magical journey with the event by landing the Best Actress award for ‘Paa’. Though she shared the award with Kareena Kapoor, Balan was overjoyed, but noticeably absent from the celebrations in Sri Lanka. Shlandra Bunseelall spoke to the powerhouse performer.

How does it feel to have won the Best Actress Award?

It feels fantastic as this is the ultimate destination as an actor, I have received a couple of nominations before but it feels gratifying knowing that I have been appreciated for this movie. Everyone poured their hearts into it and God has been kind by giving me so much love and appreciation.

You must have special memories of IIFA considering your debut movie, Parineeta, premiered at the IIFA Awards in Amsterdam.

IIFA is very special to me and I am excited to be at the event again this year. My journey with IIFA goes back to Parineeta and the following year I won the Best Newcomer Award in Dubai. So, I am happy.

How has life been since Parineeta?

It has been unbelievable. You know, I did my very best from my debut movie and I felt fantastic that I was accepted in the industry. I remember entering a cinema when Parineeta was being screened and I was pleasantly surprised about the positive reaction from the audience. At that stage, I really had no clue what life had in store for me.

How did you land the award-winning role in Paa, consider- ing securing your debut was tougher?

You know the director, Balki, wrote the role with me in mind. When he initially approached me, I was sceptical and had a few doubts. I had to play the role of a mother – that, too, mother to Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan.

However, when Balki refused to make the movie without the complete cast, I knew I had to accept the role. I really liked the character and put my trust in the entire team.

What was it like working with the Bachchans? That must have been an experience?

Well, I worked with Abhishek in Guru and he is one of the best co-stars ever. Just sharing screen space with an actor of his calibre is an unforgettable experience.

After working on , what was it like working on an off-beat movie like Ishqiya?

This was another fantastic experience as I broke every rule in Vidya Balan’s rule book. The movie was fun and extremely challenging with a different character to portray. Despite all this, I shed all my inhibitions and it was most exciting.

Are there any directors you still want to work with?

Yes, loads of them – including Imtiyaaz Ali, Vishal Bhardwaj and Yash Chopra.

Any forthcoming projects?

I have just completed the schedule of No One Killed Jessicain Delhi. The movie will be released in December and Rani Mukerjee is my co-star.

By Jilawatan

Bolly’s star of the moment Vidya Balan had told t2 that her Krishna in Ishqiya was an Indianised femme fatale, one who could seduce without showing too much or trying too hard. A list of some irresistible desi femme fatales…

She managed to seduce us softly with her come-hither Lolita in Parineeta. She kissed Madhavan passionately in the rain in Guru. She was all desire in those scenes with Abhishek in Paa. In Ishqiya she was the woman in heat waiting to erupt, not melt, as she kissed Arshad Warsi with an intensity never seen before in Bollywood. Give us Vidya over the Mallikas and Malaikas any day, any night.

By Jilawatan

After playing mother to 63-year-old Amitabh Bachchan in Paa, Vidya Balan is now romancing veteran Naseeruddin Shah in her upcoming film Ishqiya and the actress is smitten by her much older co-star.

The actress who breaks away from her squeaky-clean image in the Abhishek Choubey film, says that Shah is not just an amazing actor, but also every woman’s dream come true.

“He(Shah) is a total charmer. He is an astounding actor, a great co-star. As a man, he is every woman’s dream come true, sensitive, a total charmer and what an amazing voice,” said Balan about her 59-year-old co-star in an interview to PTI.

Balan debuted as the coy Bengali belle Lolita in Parineeta and the image stuck to her but she hopes to change it all with ‘Ishqiya’ where she plays a foul mouthed temptress in a love triangle between her, Shah and Arshad Warsi.

“It’s the kind of role I always wanted to do but never got around to doing. Maybe because I was a bit scared about it myself. What surprised me was the fact that I was Abhishek’s first choice to play Krishna and after I got over the initial apprehension I had a ball playing the bad girl,” said Balan.

The film, set in a small hamlet in UP, will see the actress playing a widow, Krishna Verma, who romances funnyman Arshad Warsi and veteran Naseeruddin Shah who play bandits on the run.

The 32-year-old actress, who is often slated by the fashion police for her seeming infatuation with anarkali kurtas, will interestingly be sporting a very de-glamourised look in her first bold role.

“My role might be bold but I play a small-town woman and had to dress the part in basic sarees and not much make-up. In my opinion the sexiness of the character comes from the attitude and not the clothes,” said Balan.

The actress who was at the receiving end of many barbed comments over her weight, debuted her new svelte self with the hit Paa but made it clear that she did not lose weight so that she could wear revealing clothes.

The actress maintains that she does not equate skin show with style and has never felt the need to fit in with Bollywood’s stereotypical idea of beauty.

“I have a personal style which I will not change because what I wear in real life cannot be dictated by someone else’s idea of fashion. And as far as what I wear on screen that depends on the character I play,” said Balan.

For the time being Balan is hoping that her performance in Ishqiya leads to more challenging roles.

“Every day is a new day and God has been really kind to me all these years. I really hope that Ishqiya works well so that I can continue to make good decisions,” said Balan.

By Jilawatan

Vidya Balan is glowing with the compliments pouring in for her superlative performance in R Balki’s Paa.

She may be a foot shorter than both her Bachchan co-stars, but when it came to the histrionics, she matched Amitabh and Abhishek perfectly.

Now she’s channelising her energies into Ketan Maroo’s Ishqiya where once again she is it pitted with two versatile talents Naseeruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi.

Talking about her sensuous role in this robust, earthy, love triangle, the diminutive actress says, “I play a village belle.

Yet I’m fully aware of my sexual charms and within the four walls of the bedroom, I’m unapologetic about using my guile and charm.

Vidya says quality work like Paa and now Ishqiya has made her realise that if she is patient, the right roles are bound to come her way. “Once again I have as many advantages as I had when I did Parineeta,’’ says the actress. “My filmmakers have realised that given an opportunity, I will not let them down.’’

The coming year is an important year for Vidya. She starts the year with Ishqiya and then moves onto Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Chenab Gandhi. “The decision to do fewer films is entirely mine,’’ says the actress who is now super-confident that when it comes to her career, she will not make one false move.

On the personal front, it is rumoured that almost all her heroes be it John Abraham (Salaam-e-Ishq), Shahid Kapoor (Kismat Konnection) and now Arshad Warsi (Ishqiya) are attracted to her. “Rubbish,’’ she flails her hands and says.

“In fact, I think none of my heroes even treat me like a lady. I’m treated like one of the boys. My heroes back-slap me and we share a few laughs and jokes. However, I don’t think any of them is attracted to me. If they were, I would have noticed.’’

Well, well…so even as the rumour mills continue to buzz about Vidya past romances with John and Shahid, the actress herself has rubbed her slate clean… and is looking forward to her knight in shining armour putting in an appearance in 2010. What should one say — Halleluah!

By Jilawatan

After playing an ideal mother in “Paa”, Vidya Balan says she is ready to surprise audiences with a completely different avatar in forthcoming movie “Ishqiya”. She will be seen as a conniving, scheming woman in Vishal Bharadwaj’s dark drama.

“For the first time I’ll be playing a woman who is conniving, scheming and in whom there is a sexual aggression,” Vidya told IANS in an interview.

“She is an aggressive person. She is someone who is unapologetic about her own choices. Bold is the word I’ll use for the lack of a better word. In the Indian context, she would be Rambha, Durga or Kali. She is someone who is dressed from top to toe but oozes sensuality,” the actress said.

Set in eastern Uttar Pradesh, “Ishqiya” is a tale of romance between individuals caught in a web of crime, suspense, passion and deceit. Made by first time director Abhishek Chaubey and produced by Bharadwaj, the film also stars Arshad Warsi and Naseeruddin Shah in pivotal roles.

In the film, Vidya sports a deglamourised look and mouths expletives.

Asked if Bharadwaj was the reason she signed “Ishqiya”, she said: “It’s always very reassuring when the producer is an established guy because when you take a film, you want to know that no compromises will be made while making the film and even after it gets released.

“Of course Vishal comes with a certain brand and credibility…but more importantly I loved the role offered to me. I wouldn’t have given it up. Along with that I loved Abhishek’s passion and sensibility. So it was a combination of all these things when I made my decision.”

The 31-year-old is also looking forward to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s “Chenaab Gandhi” in which she plays Amitabh Bachchan’s daughter.

After receiving flak for doing glamorous roles, Vidya has moved to author-backed characters in “Paa”, “Chenaab Gandhi” and “Ishqiya”. But she says her choice of roles is not a conscious effort to change her image.

“It’s not a conscious decision to try and stay away from a particular kind of roles. There is no effort for an image change. It’s just that I’m just being offered a lot of exciting work and I’ve tried to pick and choose different things to keep it very exciting for me,” she said.

“Of course, candyfloss is still welcome if it comes with substance, but the very fact that it’s candyfloss takes away the substance. So I don’t do that much candyfloss because it compromises on substance,” added the actress.

Vidya has earlier been seen in films like “Parineeta”, “Heyy Babyy”, “Bhool Bhulaiyaa” and “Kismat Konnection”.

By Jilawatan

It needed the Bombay Times to make this happen… bring all of Bollywood that was in Mumbai on December 4, under one roof for the
merriest party of the year! They came to celebrate BT’s 15th anniversary. And to say the party rocked would be an understatement. True, the who’s who of B-Town have made it under one roof for several causes and celebrations in the past. But what made the BT bash exciting and exclusive was the camaraderie that was witnessed between the legends, the badshahs and the beauties of Bollywood at Mumbai’s historic landmark, the Taj Mahal Hotel & Tower, that night.

The sultry Bipasha Basu promised she would there at 10.45 pm with hunky beau John Abraham, and this striking twosome did exactly that. Ajay Devgn wrapped up his shoot at 10 pm on Versova Beach, took a detour to Juhu to fetch wife Kajol who had just returned from Sydney. And before the clock hit 12, lo and behold — this superstar couple were with us.

Karan Johar made a solo entry, looking dapper as always, talking animatedly on his cell phone, unmindful of the bevy of beauties who longed for him to include them in his power gaze. Priyanka Chopra came in like Pretty Woman with her efficient entourage trailing silently behind. We were warned that Shah Rukh Khan would make a back door entry; gates were checked… and yet nothing could check the madness and the mayhem when the Badshah arrived. Akshay Kumar was almost making it to another location, or so said his manager… but the Khiladi rarely goes wrong when wife Tina is around. So there they were in the midst of our revelry, this handsome pair… cordoned off by their own personal security, causing a mini pandemonium.

The security cordon at the Taj gates crumbled for a few minutes when the biggest Bollywood phenomenon to have walked the earth arrived. Fresh from the accolades of Paa, and driving down from Lonavala just for us, Amitabh Bachchan came with his superstar son Abhishek. And, as if on cue, the diminutive bundle of talent Vidya Balan followed, causing a flutter in the lobby. Next morning, even while Bollywood slept off the effects of its BT hangover, the energy-plus Big B flew off to Chennai.

Aamir Khan, of course, warned us he’d be late. But for the second time in one evening the crowds on Apollo Bunder outside the Gateway of India broke into a midnight dance when the numero uno drove in. Dressed in a Tee-shirt that he designed, Aamir came in solo from his own fashion show…

Interspersed by the glittering arrivals in between of Bollywood hotties Sameera Reddy, Kangna Ranaut, Shriya Saran, Neetu Chandra, Payal Rohatgi, Anupama Verma, Riya Sen, Mugdha Godse, Sushma Reddy, Sherlyn Chopra, Shenaz Treasuryvala, former Miss Indias Parvathy Omanakuttan and Simran Kaur Mundi, Miss World Diana Hayden… this was a show that even the most hardcore cynic would have to admit was the party of the year. Tellyland’s glitterati also turned up in force, from Ronit Roy to Urvashi Dholakia. Truly, if the BT Party was filmed, it would have a golden jubilee run..

By Jilawatan

Talking about my role in the film there are a couple of things, one I play a gynaecologist in the film so I actually and met up with a gynaecologist, and found out what are the routine questions that patients usually ask, the problems that people usually have and what are your responses. The best part was that she was sweet enough to help me and let me sit in on her appointments and the patients too were sweet enough to let me sit in. Besides that they also allowed me to check their BP and I actually tried it out on them. Then I also used the heart beat machine just to hear the heart beat of the kids, so it was thrilling experience and thankfully the patients didn’t mind it. So that was part of the gynaecologist.

But as a mother who has a child suffering from Progeria I needed to know the disease because I have raised the child, so I went through documentaries, I went through reading matter on it, I surfed the net on whatever information I could get because I needed that complete knowledge of what my kid has been through.

It was mindset change to play a mother because, yes, I have had the experience of my mother but I have never had to really call upon my maternal instincts so far. Especially if it’s a small child you can kiss and you can hug and you can cuddle, smother and express love and affection, but how do you do that with a 13-year-old? And that too a boy and boys that age don’t want to be hugged, smothered or cuddled or even kissed. Also the moments in the film didn’t allow you those kinds of expressions, so I had to in my head completely feel like the mother for it to reflect in the body language and the tone of voice.

Like I said all this happened two days before the shoot and it just kept getting stronger through the filming.

Coming to my co-star in the film I have shot with Abhishek earlier in Guru and he happens to be one of my favourite co-actors. I think there is a certain intensity in his eyes which is really very exciting because, one, he does not rehearse, so when you’re in a scene, he’s spontaneous and that brings forth something unplanned even in you. So as an actor I really enjoy working with him.

Talking about our relationship, initially we are lovers and then we play parents to Auro, he is our child.

About the music, personally speaking I love Ilaiyaraja’s music, it’s an identifiable sound you will always be able to tell an Ilaiyaraja song, but there’s always a freshness to it. And I think that’s true for the Paa tracks as well.

The film has been shot at different locales, a bit in Bombay, a bit in Delhi, the school portions in Malaysia and the love story in Oxford and Cambridge I think that lends it a nice fresh look and it’s very conducive to falling in love!

- Vidya

By Jilawatan

If Abhishek Bachchan has carried his dad playing the progeric Auro piggyback in Paa, Vidya Balan had to carry another actor playing the same character’s younger version. The problem was, the physically-challenged 3-foot actor was almost the same weight as Vidya. She tripped and fell while doing the scene.

His name is Little Kiran. But he’s anything but little age-wise. Though height-challenged 3-feet nothing, Little Kiran who has played parts in a number of Hollywood films including segments of Narnia, The Lord Of The Rings and Star Trek was brought to Mumbai to play Vidya Balan’s progeric son at a younger age than the Big B.

It was when the shooting started that the director Balki suggested she carry him piggyback, the way Abhishek carries the older Auro later in the film. Says Vidya, “At first the idea of carrying a 53-year old man who happened to be a very warm and talented Gujarati artiste from London was very discouraging. But when you’re doing a film that you know somewhere is creating an unprecedented world, you tend to get defiant as an actor.”

Vidya recklessly agreed to carry a man who was older than her and almost the same weight. In doing so she tripped and fell and suffered an acute back-ache for a long time. Says Vidya, “It’s a passing shot. But I don’t think any actress in the world has done it. Carried a 53-year old man playing her son. But then which other actress my age gets to play Mr Bachchan’s mother?” Vidya says she might have hesitated in playing a mom if it was to a real child. “But with Mr Bachchan it was a straight yes.”

The effort has paid off. On Saturday night Vidya’s family saw Paa for the first time along with the Bachchans. “And my sister Priya howled all through. To her I’ll always be the little baby of the family and she the protective Didi. She couldn’t believe the trauma of a mother that I was projecting in Paa.”

Be shocked if you like, but Vidya with all her nurturing personality can’t get along with kids in real life. “If I hold a baby for a while I get stressed. In Heyy Babyy, the baby would bawl every time I had to carry it. In Paa I had to mother a man who was far older. It took a lot of getting used to. The fact that Mr Bachchan kept referring to me as ‘Maa’ as soon he entered the sets, sure helped.” And now Vidya goes straight into playing his daughter in Sanjay Leela Bhansali-produced Chenaab Gandhi.

“Isn’t that amazing? It takes a lot of getting used to. But I feel blessed. I’m done with trying to be someone I am not. I went through a period of tremendous turmoil when I was struggling to do roles that didn’t come naturally to me. But now in hindsight I think that confusion helped me pick Paa, Ishiqya and Chenaab Gandhi. It’s gratifying to know today directors think of me for specific roles and not just as one of many choices.”

A lot is being said about Vidya’s aesthetic clothes in Paa. “All thanks to Sabysachi Chakraborty. I think he understood my body language and my personality perfectly. And he dressed me up beautifully without overstepping the parameters of my character.”

By Jilawatan

Bollywood actress Vidya Balan has been supporting education amongst underprivileged girls by helping NGO Nanhi Kali, which currently supports 37,000 girls in urban, rural and tribal areas. She has helped to launch two new animated characters, Fafa and Juno, who will appear on the Spacetoon TV channel and associated merchandising. Spacetoon claims to have 200 million viewers worldwide. Vidya will also be supporting some girls herself through the programme. “I am not comfortable talking about it but yes I do plan to finance the education of a few girls,” she admitted, “It’s amazing how many girls can get educated for a measly sum of money. It’s a small thing to do especially when I have been given so much.”

Kerala-born Vidya has a remarkably busy schedule ahead of her this year, including some fascinating films such as Ishqiya with Naseruddin Shah and Arshad Warsi and Chenab Gandhi. This latter film stars Amitabh Bachchan and is about the Pashtun pacifist and freedom fighter Khan Abdul Ghaffar Khan, often referred to as the Frontier Gandhi. It’s rumoured that John Abraham might play the role of the younger Khan.

Vidya is also having a whale of a time at the moment shooting for Pa which includes both father and son Bachchans. “I have been shooting for Pa. We did a shooting schedule in Mumbai and outside it had Mr Bachchan and Abhishek. They’re keeping me busy,” she confirms.