By Jilawatan

These days Vidya Balan is looking far prettier than she has ever looked. Her intense eyes sparkle with mirth, and her wide smile tells the story of a gratifying existence. Vidya, in her own words, is “herself” these days and has quit being someone else. May be that’s making the difference!

In a candid interview with Spicezee’s Swati Chaturvedi in her celebrity chat show ‘Kahiye Janab’, Vidya Balan opened up about her upcoming film ‘Ishqiya’, romance with Shahid Kapur and love for SRK.

Swati: Vidya, you are doing a film called ‘Ishqiya’, which is about ‘Ishq’(love) but what about real-life love?

Vidya: What do I say; I have always been in search for that special someone but that has not happened. (Laughs) Maybe after ‘Ishqiya’, love will enter my life.

Swati: It is being said that you have used indecent language in the film, which doesn’t go with your image. You have a girl-next-door kind of image and even your endorsements portray you as a simple girl, then what made you go for such a character?

Vidya: I play a character whose social background and upbringing is such that she uses indecent language. I am afraid I can’t divulge too much. I took up ‘Ishqiya’ because as an actor I don’t set limitations. Luckily, I balance meaningful cinema with commercial fairly well. I got an opportunity to explore a new horizon with this film. My character in the film is completely different from what you have seen me playing onscreen so far. Joy and satisfaction lies in this. If you set limitations for yourself in work, then your job becomes mundane. But if you go uninhibited, you enjoy it. I have moved out of my comfort zone for the film, which has been very fulfilling.

Swati: How did the film happen? How did Vishal Bhardwaj convince you to play the lead role in the film?

Vidya: Well, he didn’t convince me, I agreed to the role immediately after listening to the script. Vishal called me up and said that there is a script and Abhishek Chaubey will narrate it. Normally, I listen to a script twice but in this case, I had made up my mind during the first session itself. It is a very challenging role for any actor, especially for me because the ten films that I have done, I had mostly played the girl-next-door kind of roles. In this I had to shed all inhibitions, which I had gathered doing similar kind of roles. I worked on my dialect and the whole process was very exciting.

Swati: You are an outsider in the industry and may be that’s why you faced a lot of bad press. You were criticised for looking older than your co-stars, bad dress sense and all that. How did you bear it all? Vidya: I felt one thing – people care about me. My existence matters – this thought was very reassuring for me. I agree I did things which did not suit me. I was fortunate to have faced such criticism because then I realized, what I want to do and what I should not.

Swati: What are the things you don’t want to do?

Vidya: See, I was just trying to be someone else. I am different and now, I happily accept myself the way I am. If people were angry with me, it was because they wanted to remind me – ‘You are different, why don’t you be different’.

Swati: Do you think you have always been targeted for being an outsider with no backing?

Vidya: I don’t think on those lines – no filmy backing or joining camps etc. What matters to me is my family. It is my biggest support and ‘Sabse Bada Khiladi’ God is always with me.

Swati: Aren’t you angry with Shahid Kapur? Were you in a relationship with him?

Vidya: Yes, there was a relationship. He was my friend, my co-star.

Swati: Shahid has told me that you are not his friend and he doesn’t want anything to do with you.