Vidya Balan is a well-known actor in the Bollywood industry. The actor is widely known for her versatile role and iconic performances. She has done Hindi, Bengali and Malayalam language movies. In 1995, she first acted in a television commercial called Hum Paanch. She made was her Bollywood debut in 2005 with the film Parineeta, which also featured Saif Ali Khan. Her acting in the movie was hugely praised by the critics. She also received the Filmfare's Best Female Debut Award for her performance in Parineeta. Though she started her film career in 2003 with a Bengali film Bhalo Thekon.

After her receiving success for her Bollywood debut, the Parineeta actor did several other successful movies like Lage Raho Munnabhai which also stars Sanjay Dutt, Guru alongside Mithun Chakravarti, and Heyy Babyy along with Akshay Kumar. Her role in the movie Bhool Bhulaiya was also highly appreciated by the critics as well as the audience.

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Five times Vidya Balan made unconventional choices:

Parineeta (2005):

Parineeta was the debut movie of Vidya Balan. The movie was directed by Vidhu Vinos Chopra. The movie is based on a Bengali novel with the same name. In the movie, Vidya portrays the role of a young girl Lalita, who falls in love with her childhood friend Shekhar (Saif Ali Khan). Lalita is a strong-willed woman that has to make strong decisions at a very young age.

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Paa (2009):

Paa is based on a father-son relationship. Vidya Balan’s role as a busy gynaecologist and single mother was critically acclaimed by the critics and the audience. She perfectly portrays the character of a modern working single mother on the big screen.

Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007):

Vidya Balan made a remarkable performance in Priyadarshan’s Bhool Bhulaiyaa. In it, the actor portrays the role of an NRI who gets possessed by a spirit. Her character Monjolika actually sent chills down the spine of the viewers.

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The Dirty Picture (2011):

The Dirty Picture broke all the stereotypes associated with typical Bollywood cast and story. Her performance in the film earned her the National Award for the Best Actor.

Kahaani (2012):

Kahaani is a movie of a pregnant protagonist who is in search of her missing husband. Vidya Balan effortlessly plays the role of a helpless pregnant woman who pretends to be pregnant to catch her husband’s killer. Her acting in the movie was highly appreciated by the critics and the audience alike.

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