Vidya Balan recalls how Ishqiya made her feel 'reborn as an actor, saying, 'I felt that she was a living, breathing woman'

Vidya Balan claimed that while many of her earlier films were successful, she was never comfortable portraying the romantic interest opposite the male protagonist until she was offered the role of Ishqiya. The actor made her acting debut in the 2005 film Parineeta, and she has since starred in several successful Bollywood productions, including Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Salaam-e-Ishq, Kismat Konnection, and Heyy Babyy. She acknowledged the skill required to play the "quintessential Bollywood heroine," but said she lacked the emotional investment to make the transition.

According to PTI, Vidya stated that in many of her earlier films, she played the romantic lead, but it wasn't fulfilling. The actor was looking for something deeper. Some of her close friends and family members warned her not to topple the apple cart because many of her films were commercial successes. They said that good results are being achieved; keep up the good work. But good work is quite subjective, she thought.

When Vidya was in those roles and films, she felt like she was just going through the motions and not making any real contributions. At that time, Ishqiya presented itself as an opportunity, in which she was cast as a woman who embraces her sexuality while also harbouring a latent strength. The actor remembers thinking, "Oh my god!" when that was shown to her. Vidya said that she had been waiting for this moment for a long time.

The actor played the conniving seductress Krishna in Abhishek Chaubey's Ishqiya, a part in which she felt reborn as an actor. However, she said that many tried to dissuade her by stating that the film was not commercially viable. And she doesn't give a damn, whatever it is; she is doing this movie. Even more confusing to her is the suggestion that perhaps it is an art-house picture. In a few films, Vidya had no idea what role she had played; there was a lack of clarity in the characters.

But here she got the distinct impression that she was a real person—a woman with a burning lust for vengeance. Vidya said that she wanted to see what this film does and then see what comes her way, and if this is her so-called last film, then so be it.

The actor, who has starred in the box office and critically acclaimed hits including No One Killed Jessica and The Dirty Picture, for which she won a National Award, and Kahaani, has noted an increase in the complexity of roles written for women in recent years. As the tide was turning, she was there to take advantage of it, she said.

Vidya said that the movies are a mirror of the world they live in. That shift was therefore made for writers of contemporary fiction about women coming of age and claiming agency over their bodies and identities. And then one thing led to another and another. The actor explained that after Ishqiya, she was offered No One Killed Jessica, and it was the beginning of everything that led to her being where she is now.

Vidya, who will next be seen in Neeyat, has lauded streamers for providing the canvas for them to tell women-led stories. Shakuntala Devi, Sherni, and Jalsa were her most recent films, all of which had their world premieres on Prime Video.