8 badass Bollywood babes

Bollywood shows women as strong, powerful protagonists

Steering away from solely male lead films, Bollywood has made attempts to rid the industry of the female stereotype of "damsel in distress" and moved towards showing women as strong, powerful protagonists.

These 8 talented actresses have worked hard to break all gender stereotypes by pushing themselves to the limit for the lead role in their films.

Here’s a list of 8 Bollywood babes who define badassery.

 

1. Priyanka Chopra in Mary Kom



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Priyanka Chopra had to work towards an extremely strict workout schedule and diet regimen to get into shape for her biopic. She worked extensively under Mary Kom’s trainers and underwent strenuous training for 10 days before the film even started shooting. Since the film had to be close to real life the director had Priyanka fight real boxers in the ring!

 

2. Katrina Kaif in Bang Bang



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Shot in 7 different locations around the world, Katrina Kaif performed every stunt in Bang Bang whether it was on land or water. She trained for 2 days just to perform her stunt with a seabob. Now that’s commitment!

 

3. Anushka Sharma in NH10



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Working in this crime thriller film, Anushka Sharma had to mentally prepare herself before she began shooting for NH10. Three months prior to shooting, the actress had started working on herself so she could cope with the mental and physical challenges her character goes through in the film!

 

4. Rani Mukerji in Mardaani



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To understand the challenges police inspectors face, Rani spent time with two female inspectors from the crime branch to get the feel of her character. The actress who plays the lead role of a senior inspector worked with fitness trainer Samir Jaura to get in physical shape for her role. No wonder the actress gave the bad guys a run for their money in the film. Since the release of her film, Rani has encouraged girls to learn martial arts for self defense.

 

5. Ashwariya Rai Bachan in Dhoom 2



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"She'll look unlike anything anyone has seen before", promised director Sanjay Gadhv before the release of the film. And he definitely lived up to that promise, the killer body did not come easy, Ash followed a strict diet before the film started shooting to get into shape for her role. The actress underwent rigorous training to shed the extra kilos to match co-star Hrithik.

 

6. Kangana Ranaut in Revolver Rani




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Playing the ferocious dacoit turned politician, Kangana Ranaut was fierce while handling guns in the film. She took formal training to use a revolver and was convincing as ever as she shot people without batting an eye.

 

7. Jacqueline Fernandez – Race 2



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Race 2, an action packed film, required Jacqueline Fernandez to train extensively so she could perform her role flawlessly. The Sri Lankan bombshell trained with a Vietnamese trainer and practiced the art of sword fighting to prepare for the dynamic action sequences in the film.

 

8. Madhuri Dixit – Gulaab Gang



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While in the US, Madhuri Dixit took Taekwondo classes with Shaolin Kung Fu expert Kanishka Sharma to help her with the action scenes in Gulaab Gang! The actress also said that her dancing skills helped her choreograph her fight scenes in the movie. Who knew dancing could help in combat!