I’m dying to work with Aamir says Vidya

The graceful Bollywood Actress Vidya Balan who turned a year older on January 1, has turned a new leaf.
After her abortive attempts to revamp her wardrobe in Heyy Baby and Kismat Connection Vidya has decided to go easy on the glam ramp.
“It’s not as though I’m disowning my efforts to do glamorous roles. I’m proud of Heyy Baby and Kismat Connection. But this year I’m doing films that don’t need me to stretch my personality. I’m very happy doing roles that come naturally to me. That’s what I decided about my career this year.”
Vidya has just given the nod to Nikhil (Chandni Chowk To China) Advani’s next film which would surprise many.
Advani’s Chand Bhai is a raw realistic songless film on juvenile delinquency.
Says Vidya, “It’s nothing like the high-flying glam-wham stuff that one expects from Nikhil after Chandni Chowk. Chand Bhai is a stark very real kind of drama. And I get to co-star with a very talented actor Akshaye Khanna with whom I was in Nikhil’s Salaam-e-Ishq though we had just one passing shot together.”
Vidya gladly admits Chand Bhai doesn’t feature her in the central role.
“The film revolves around the delinquent boy’s character. But I’m very happy to be part of a film that addresses itself an important social issue. This year I think I’m done with searching for various bylanes to my screen identity.
All my forthcoming films have a sharp sense of social purpose, and that definitely includes Vibhu Puri’s Chenab Gandhi which I’m enormously excited about because it’s produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.”
Vidya has been attending costume and reading sessions for Chenab Gandhi and is spellbound by the script. “But I haven’t really interacted that much with my co-star Hurman as yet. With Mr Bachchan who plays the title role, I share a lifelong bonding.
Right from Eklavya we’ve been paired in so many films right up to Chenab Gandhi and now Balki’s Pa. If I did all the films last year that I was offered with Mr Bachchan I wouldn’t be working with anyone else, ” says Vidya, adding she’s excited to work with Abhishek Bachchan for the first time in Pa.
“We’ve never been paired together.It would be interesting to have another interesting co-star to work with, ” says Vidya who went to Panchgani for her birthday this year, with her parents, sister and brother-in-law.
“It’s very rare for all five of us in the family to be together. My birthday falls on a very unforgettable day, the New Year. It’s preceded by Christmas, so we all take time off to be together.
Another advantage of being born on the first day of the year is, no one can claim to forget your birthday, ” she says with loud laughter.
Vidya recently saw Ghajini and was bowled over by Aamir Khan. “I’m dying to work with Aamir. And Shah Rukh of course is my favourite. I said on Sajid Khan’s chat show I want to kill Shah Rukh’s wife. No one took me seriously. There was no enhancement in the security around her. Sad.”

Vidya Balan overcomes her fear of driving

Bollywood Actress Vidya Balan had a phobia of driving until director Vishal Bharadwaj insisted her to learn to drive.
Vidya’s last release Kismat Konnection had her ramming her car into Shahid Kapur ’s in her introductory scene. That might well have been the case with Vidya in real life as well had she sat behind the steering wheel without overcoming her longlasting fear of driving on busy roads.
Vidya took driving lessons from an instructor in Chembur. She reportedly learnt to drive her own two cars — Innova and Mercedes.
It took a good number of days for Vidya to learn the skill but today she is happy to have overcome her fears.

Vidya Balan smooches Arshan Warsi

Bollywood Actress Vidya Balan is back in a de-glam role with Vishal Bhardwaj’s ‘Ishqiya’. Goingby the trailers, she is playing a simple village belle but has tried some ‘bold’ scenes too. She is featured to be doing steamy scenes with Arshad Warsi and also rumoured to play darker shades. Her ‘desi-giri’ includes swearing in pure Hindi, conning Arshad and Naseeruddin Shah by batting those pretty eye lashes like a true ‘gaon ki gori’ and then even not minding rendering a hot smooch onscreen!
Vidya’s kissing spree continues after the Bollywood Movie ‘Guru’. She had no qualms locking lips with R Madhavan in the film. Recently, she did a very long and intimate scene with Arshad Warsi and kissed him very comfortably in ‘Ishqiya’. The scene in question has a hot kiss, and is very essential to set the tempo. “Why wouldn’t I do that scene when the bound script which was given to me before the film went on the floors? I had no issues doing the kissing scene,” Vidya Balan said.
Though there are stories that Arshad doesn’t get along with costars, it’s certainly not true when it comes to his ‘Ishqiya’ costar Vidya Balan. Arshad Warsi tells us that he fondly calls Vidya Balan Giggles. “There’s a story behind this name. Vidya laughs a lot and can’t control herself. She just goes on laughing like crazy. She doesn’t even need someone to crack a joke. Sometimes she used to start laughing in the middle of the shot and then Naseeruddin Shah and I used to wait till she finished her riot,” revealed Arshad Warsi in an exclusive Bollywood Interview.

Two new projects for Vidya Balan

With the advent of a new year on Jan 1, Vidya Balan has ventured on new arenas. Vidya’s birthday falls on the 1st Jan itself and this year she went to Panchgani with her family for birthday celebrations. The New Year brought two new promising roles for Vidya. One is Nikhil Advani’s ‘Chand Bhai’ and the other is Vibhu Puri’s ‘Chenab Gandhi’. The latter is produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. ‘Chand Bhai’ does not have Miss Balan in the central role and she gets to pair opposite Akshaye Khanna. The film is based on a delinquent boy’s character and has a social message attached to it.
Advani’s ‘Chand Bhai’ is a far cry from Advani’s last release ‘Chandni Chowk To China’. Says Vidya, “It’s nothing like the high-flying glam-wham stuff that one expects from Nikhil after Chandni Chowk. Chand Bhai is a stark very real kind of drama. And I get to co-star with a very talented actor Akshaye Khanna with whom I was in Nikhil’s Salaam-e-Ishq though we had just one passing shot together.”
Vidya is excited about ‘Chenab Gandhi’ too and says, “I haven’t really interacted that much with my co-star Hurman as yet. With Mr. Bachchan who plays the title role, I share a lifelong bonding. Right from Eklavya we’ve been paired in so many films right up to Chenab Gandhi and now Balki’s Pa. If I did all the films last year that I was offered with Mr. Bachchan, I wouldn’t be working with anyone else.”

Sankranti with Vidya

What a rocking start to 2009!
Vidya Balan (TOI Photo) More PicsThree festivals on one day in the first fortnight of the first month of the new year. Mumbai, being the melting pot of all cultures and the home of people from all across India, celebrates every festival. So, while in the South Indian pockets of Matunga and Chembur it is Pongal, the Tamil New Year; in Punjabi homes here, there and everywhere it is Lohri-Maghi, the North Indian festival of the winter harvest; and, in every Maharashtrian home, it is Makar Sankranti, when the Sun God begins his ascendency and enters the northern hemisphere, an auspicious day for all Hindus. On Pongal, the pretty Tamil Brahmin (Tam-Bram) Vidya Balan may be shooting, but her day begins with prayers, a visit to the temple and by savouring some sweet made by her mother. “You pray that the entire year is spent in abundance. And this year more than ever before globally, considering the recession,” says Vidya.
Festivals are not so much about rituals for her as much as it’s about prayer and a time when you meet and greet relatives and friends. This morning the pretty actress visited the Sringeri Mutt temple near Diamond Garden in Chembur, where she lives. “Here we pray to Goddess Shardambal, the Goddess of Learning. As kids we would make it a point to vist this temple before our exams,” she says. And the practice continues. “As grown-ups every day is a new challenge, a learning experience. I believe experience is a unique teacher; it gives you the test first, lesson later,” she smiles.
Meanwhile in Juhu, where the winter is just getting down to business, Bollywood’s Deol family knows how to warm it up. They celebrate Lohri-Maghi with typical Punjabi gusto. A huge bonfire was lit on the sprawling lawn of the family bungalow last evening where relatives gathered for Lohri. Dharmendra, the patriarch, has carried forward this tradition from his village — Sahnewal in Ludhiana, and still observes it with the same enthusiasm. “Where do you get to see gaon ke lohri nowadays,” he asks “Stealing wood in the night from the neighbours to light a bonfire was a great high. It’s a tradition and so much fun. I miss all that and I miss my parents on such occasions.”
The Deols maintain the tradition in their own way. “It’s fun to hear such stories from Papa,” says Sunny Deol, who loves the ghar ka khana and Bhangra associated with Maghi today. “Mom is a great cook. All the women of the family sing folk songs on Lohri evening and we generally have a good time throwing sesame, corn and rice flakes in the bonfire.” Bobby, the younger Deol, adds, “I could never understand why as a kid we threw the sweets in the fire instead of eating them. When I grew up I understood the sanctity. It is a tradition not just intrinsic to our culture, but also so close to Papa’s heart.”
And, on Makar Sakranti, who wouldn’t want to fly kites? The child actors of popular teleserial Balika Vadhu surely didn’t want to let go of the opportunity. Avika Gor loves watching others fly kites. “On this day my seven cousin brothers come home and we go up to our terrace. I help them with rolling the phirki and later we all gorge on til laddoos and chikki,” she says. Her onscreen husband Jagdishya (Avinash Mukherjee) is a pro. “I love flying kites. Every year along with my dad and building friends I have a great time,” laughs the lad, as he gears up with his phirki and kites and joins Avika and Faazia to practise tamaso ma jyotir gamaya... go higher and higher... to more light and where they may never enter darkness.

GALLERY

Filmography as Actor

Bihaad (2009)
Kismat Konnection (2008) - Priya
Halla Bol (2008) - Sneha
Dus Kahaniyaan (2007)
Om Shanti Om (2007) - special appearance
Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007) - Avni
Heyy Babyy (2007) - Esha
Eklavya (2007) - Rajeshwari
Salaam-E-Ishq: A Tribute to Love (2007) - Tehzeeb
Guru (2007) - Meenu
Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) - RJ Jahnvi
Parineeta (2005) - Lolita

Vidya Balan Biography

Date of Birth : 1 January 1978, Palghat, Kerala, India
Birth Name: Vidya P. Balan
Height : 5' 4" (1.63 m)
Mini Biography
Vidya was born in the Tamil-speaking Balan family on January 1, 1978 in Palghat, Kerala, India. Her family consists of her dad, P.R. Balan, who is the Vice-President of ETC Channel; mom - a home-maker, and an elder sister, Priya, who is married to Kedar. She also has an aunt by the name of Raji Raju. The Balan family re-located to live at Road No. 11, near Ambedkar Garden, Chembur, Bombay, when Vidya was very young. She studied in St. Anthony's Convent School, and thereafter in St. Xavier's College from where she obtained a degree in Sociology. She then went on to obtain a Masters degree in Sociology from Bombay University. She also studied and performed in Prithvi Theaters' workshops. Due to tradition of most Tamil-Iyer families, Vidya and her Priya learned Carnatic dance form during their early childhood days, but Vidya opted out as the dance classes took place early on Sunday mornings and as she is not an early riser.

Considerably overweight during her school-days, she decided to shed those extra pounds when she elected to opt for modeling and movies. Her first break came with a Malyalam movie 'Chakram' opposite Mohanlal, however,the project was shelved, and she had to wait until 1998 to debut in a Surf Excel commercial. She then went on to appear in several commercials directed by Pradeep Sarkar. She also appeared in three music videos for Pankaj Udhas, Euphoria, and Shubha Mudgal in supporting roles. She then also appeared in two TV serials Ekta Kapoor's 'Hum Paanch', and Ashok Pandit's 'Hanste Khelte'.

During 2003 she was signed-up to play a role in a Bengali movie 'Bhaalo Theko' opposite Joy Sengupta. This project was completed during the year 2006, and was a considerable hit.

Then during 2006 Vidya was approached by Vidhu Vinod Chopra during a pop-concert in Mumbai to play a lead role in 'Parineeta'. She then had to undergo 17 make-up shoots and 40 screen tests before being chosen for this role. All this hard work did result in success as 'Parineeta' was very well received so much so that the Tamil producer, who had previously rejected her, invited her to appear in a 'Dasavatharam' opposite Kamal Hassan, and now it was Vidya's turn to reject this offer which eventually went to Asin.

Apart from acting, Vidya occupies herself for supporting education for young Indians by promoting children's books; is associated with Americans for Aids Research; with Hale House - that provides support and housing for children born with HIV and drug abuse; as well as hosting forums and attending events for Harvard Aids Institute.An ardent devotee of Bhagwan Shri Sai Baba, she makes it a point to attend Mandirs every Thursday. She is proficient in Tamil, Malyalam, Hindi, English, Bengali, and can also read Urdu.

Trivia
A Tamilian from Kerala, she hails from the Iyer community in Palghat, on the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Did her schooling from St. Antony's School and later on at St. Xavier's College where she graduated in Sociology. She soon started work on her MA from Mumbai University when she was offered a role in a Malayalam film starring Mohanlal, but it was later shelved due to issues with the director.
Speaks English, Hindi, Malayalam, and Tamil. After filming Parineeta (2005), can also speak Bengali quite well.
Listed as number 8 of 'Top Bollywood Actresses' of 2006. (rediff.com, 8-25-2006)
Personal Quotes :
"Neither of my first two Malayalam films got completed, and I walked out of the third, a Tamil film, because I was not comfortable. I was replaced in another Tamil film with the excuse that I could not act. They made me feel ugly to the point where I was scared to look in the mirror. In retrospect I thank God, and by God's grace today the going is good."

Vidya Balan,Biography

Date of Birth :1 January 1978, Palghat, Kerala, India
Birth Name: Vidya P. Balan
Height: 5' 4" (1.63 m)
Mini Biography :
Vidya was born in the Tamil-speaking Balan family on January 1, 1978 in Palghat, Kerala, India. Her family consists of her dad, P.R. Balan, who is the Vice-President of ETC Channel; mom - a home-maker, and an elder sister, Priya, who is married to Kedar. She also has an aunt by the name of Raji Raju. The Balan family re-located to live at Road No. 11, near Ambedkar Garden, Chembur, Bombay, when Vidya was very young. She studied in St. Anthony's Convent School, and thereafter in St. Xavier's College from where she obtained a degree in Sociology. She then went on to obtain a Masters degree in Sociology from Bombay University. She also studied and performed in Prithvi Theaters' workshops. Due to tradition of most Tamil-Iyer families, Vidya and her Priya learned Carnatic dance form during their early childhood days, but Vidya opted out as the dance classes took place early on Sunday mornings and as she is not an early riser.Considerably overweight during her school-days, she decided to shed those extra pounds when she elected to opt for modeling and movies. Her first break came with a Malyalam movie 'Chakram' opposite Mohanlal, however,the project was shelved, and she had to wait until 1998 to debut in a Surf Excel commercial. She then went on to appear in several commercials directed by Pradeep Sarkar. She also appeared in three music videos for Pankaj Udhas, Euphoria, and Shubha Mudgal in supporting roles. She then also appeared in two TV serials Ekta Kapoor's 'Hum Paanch', and Ashok Pandit's 'Hanste Khelte'.During 2003 she was signed-up to play a role in a Bengali movie 'Bhaalo Theko' opposite Joy Sengupta. This project was completed during the year 2006, and was a considerable hit.Then during 2006 Vidya was approached by Vidhu Vinod Chopra during a pop-concert in Mumbai to play a lead role in 'Parineeta'. She then had to undergo 17 make-up shoots and 40 screen tests before being chosen for this role. All this hard work did result in success as 'Parineeta' was very well received so much so that the Tamil producer, who had previously rejected her, invited her to appear in a 'Dasavatharam' opposite Kamal Hassan, and now it was Vidya's turn to reject this offer which eventually went to Asin.Apart from acting, Vidya occupies herself for supporting education for young Indians by promoting children's books; is associated with Americans for Aids Research; with Hale House - that provides support and housing for children born with HIV and drug abuse; as well as hosting forums and attending events for Harvard Aids Institute.An ardent devotee of Bhagwan Shri Sai Baba, she makes it a point to attend Mandirs every Thursday. She is proficient in Tamil, Malyalam, Hindi, English, Bengali, and can also read Urdu

Trivia
A Tamilian from Kerala, she hails from the Iyer community in Palghat, on the border of Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
Did her schooling from St. Antony's School and later on at St. Xavier's College where she graduated in Sociology. She soon started work on her MA from Mumbai University when she was offered a role in a Malayalam film starring Mohanlal, but it was later shelved due to issues with the director.
Speaks English, Hindi, Malayalam, and Tamil. After filming Parineeta (2005), can also speak Bengali quite well.
Listed as number 8 of 'Top Bollywood Actresses' of 2006. (rediff.com, 8-25-2006)
Personal Quotes :
"Neither of my first two Malayalam films got completed, and I walked out of the third, a Tamil film, because I was not comfortable. I was replaced in another Tamil film with the excuse that I could not act. They made me feel ugly to the point where I was scared to look in the mirror. In retrospect I thank God, and by God's grace today the going is good."