Divas that mattered

From Alia Bhatt to Shraddha Kapoor, this year belonged to the youngsters who made their presence felt .

NEW DELHI:

Indian female actors were on a roll in 2014. Ranging from the serious to the dramatic, action-oriented to comic, Bollywood’s leading ladies vivified their personas with novel scripts and made the movie-viewing experience all the more thrilling and entertaining.

Kangna Ranaut



Her heartfelt performance in the women-centric melodrama Queen earned her a lot of kudos from critics and viewers alike. The film turned out to be a success at the box office as it bagged INR55 crore despite its modest budget. The actor appeared in two other films this year — Revolver Rani and Ungli — both of which did not perform very well but her performance was lauded.

Alia Bhatt



Her sheer frivolity in 2 States and her portrayal of a vibrant, free-spirited girl who develops an affectionate relationship with her kidnapper in Highway, has landed Alia amid a mound of praise. With three films this year, the actor made her presence felt in the cinematic world with Imtiaz Ali’s Highway, which raked in INR30 crore. The 21-year-old also appeared in Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, which received a lukewarm response.

Priyanka Chopra



The former Miss World and National Award winning talent showcased her versatile acting talent with Mary Kom, a biopic on Indian boxing champion MC Mary Kom. The film collected around INR54 crore and further secured Priyanka’s place among top actors in present-day tinsel town.

Shraddha Kapoor



After Aashiqui 2, which released in 2013, Ek Villain and Haider turned out to be great projects for Shraddha Kapoor this year. While Ek Villain collected over INR96 crore, Haider minted INR50 crore.

Deepika Padukone



The exuberant role that Deepika played in Happy New Year, which earned INR188 crore at the box office, appealed to the audiences, who were also excited to see the Shah Rukh Khan-Deepika pair on-screen after they were last seen together in Chennai Express. Happy New Year is the flamboyant actor’s third hit with SRK following Om Shanti Om and Chennai Express.

Anushka Sharma



With the release of Aamir Khan starrer PK right around the corner, it seems like she saved herself for the last, only to emerge as a promising wild-card entry to the bevy of actors who dominated the year. Her pixie look and jaunty persona in the film have received as much accolades as has Aamir Khan’s ‘alien’ character in the entertainer, which has set the cash registers ringing.

Rani Mukerji



Her character of the aptly labelled Mardaani police officer Shivani Shivaji Roy, and her raw, unswerving and invincible rage against the child trafficking mafia attracted humungous praise from noted critics and movie-goers. Mardaani, directed by Pradeep Sarkar, was a low-budget film but it minted INR40 crore.  

Published in The Express Tribune, December 29^th,  2014.

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