Vidya Balan on romance, roles and disguises

The actor, who will be seen romancing a younger actor in her forthcoming film, says romance has no age bar.

Actor Vidya Balan, who will be playing the role of the older woman and seen romancing a younger actor, Ali Fazal, in her forthcoming film Bobby Jasoos, says romance has no age bar, according to IANS.

The 36 year old, who has had a prolific career in the entertainment industry with strong female roles, said, “I don’t think age has anything to do with chemistry. I have worked with Nasser sir (Naseeruddin shah) in Ishqiya as well. It’s all about getting into the character.”



The actor, who is known for doing women centric films, has so far worked with some of the best known male faces of Bollywood, including Saif Ali Khan, Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Shahid Kapoor and John Abraham. Asked when she planned on working with the Khans of Bollywood, such as Shahrukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan, Vidya said: “When there is a script that justifies me and the Khan, I will do it.”

Bobby Jasoos is a detective comedy with Vidya playing the lead role of a woman from Hyderabad who is intent on becoming the first female private detective in the city. Acting alongside her as the male lead is Ali. The film is directed by Samar Shaikh and is co-produced by actress Dia Mirza and her beau Sahil Sangha, under the banner of Born Free Entertainment.

Vidya has carved a niche for herself in Bollywood by taking on quirky characters with strong personalities. Her range of acting abilities has included playing a conniving widow in 2010’s comedy thriller Ishqiya, a woman hell bent on seeking justice for her sister’s murder in 2011’s political crime thriller No One Killed Jessica, an extremely controversial B-grade actor in 2011’s biographical film The Dirty Picture, and a heavily pregnant woman in search for her missing husband in 2012’s Kahaani. The fact that she will be putting on nearly a dozen different disguises for Bobby Jasoos – including such diverse camouflages such as that of an astrologer and a fisherman – is not really an astonishing feat for someone of Vidya’s talents, reports The National.

“It’s a dream come true for an actor to be get an opportunity like this,” she said, while talking about the multiple masks she has to put on for Bobby Jasoos. “It was an extremely enjoyable process. It’s amazing what a good make-up artist can do. I had never imagined wearing a beard or moustache. I had never imagined I could look so different.”



Published in The Express Tribune, June 28^th, 2014.

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