Vidya Balan is one of the pioneers of bringing the new stream of female-led roles in Hindi cinema. Although her acting debut was in the 1995 sitcom Hum Panche, she made her mainstream film debut in 2003 with the Bengali cinema Bhalo Theko. Then in 2005, she started doing Hindi films through Parineeta. Along with it, the massive success of Lage Raho Munna Bhai in the following year bring her into the limelight. Since then she kept giving amazing movies one after another. Let's check out the top 5 movies of Vidya Balan, which made her who she is today.

Bollywood Star Vidya Balan’s 5 Most Popular Movies 

Paa (2009)

This film is inspired by the 1996 Hollywood movie Jack, directed by R. Balki. Amitabh Bachchan plays the title role in this drama film portraying a boy who looks like an old man. The mother has to go through many ironies due to her son's rare genetic condition. 

The whole story takes a more interesting turn when the boy infected with progeria learns that his father is a respectable man in the town. Abhishek Bachchan played the role of this father and Vidya Balan the mother. Although their relationship is father-son in real life, Amitabh Bachchan and Abhishek Bachchan play opposite roles here. 

Read More: Superstar Salman Khan’s 5 Super Hit Movies

The role of a single mother struggling with Progeria was quite challenging for Vidya. Initially, she felt a bit exaggerated about the character. Playing the mother of an actor as prestigious as Bachchan is a tough task, especially when he was 30 years older than her. Vidya won Star Screen Awards, IIFA Awards, and Filmfare Award for the first time in her life as Best Actress.

Ishqiya (2010)

Ishqiya is one of Vidya Balan's best works and it marks Abhishek Chaubey's directorial debut. Vidya's co-artists in this black comedy film were Naseeruddin Shah, Arshad Warsi, and Salman Shahid. 

Balan's character here was completely different from her other simple heroine roles. She portrayed the character of a seductive and sly village widow from Uttar Pradesh brilliantly. For the part, she adapted to the local dialect, which included some slang words as well. 

Read More: Top 10 Upcoming South Indian Films in January 2023

Not only Vidya Balan unleashed a sensational actress lying within herself, but it was also established through this that she is far ahead of other Barbie doll heroines in mainstream cinema.

This role let her bag many achievements. Most notable of these were the Big Star Entertainment Awards for Most Entertaining Female Film Actor, the Filmfare Awards for Best Actress at the Critics' Choice Awards, the Producers Guild Film and Screen Awards for Best Actress in a Leading Role, and the Stardust Awards for best actress in Thriller or Action Role.

Kahaani (2012)

Kahaani is one of the films associated with Vidya Balan's name. Screenplay by Sujoy Ghosh and Advaita Kalar, this thriller film indulged to grow a captivating story. Here Balan was seen rummaging Kolkata for her missing husband despite being pregnant.

Read More: 5 Best Movies of Hollywood Superstar Brad Pitt

Popular Kolkata actor Parambrata Chatterjee and the one and only Nawazuddin Siddiqui in supporting roles made the whole movie impeccable. Apart from the screenplay, the cinematography of the film and the performances of the lead actors garnered much praise from critics.

Vidya promoted the film by wearing her artificial belly like in the movie, which attracted media attention quite strongly. Her character was groundbreaking in breaking the mold of the so-called romantic "heroine" in the Hindi film industry.

The movie won a total of 5 Filmfare trophies including Best Actress for Vidya. The awards figures were similar at the Color Screen Awards as well. Vidya was also awarded Best Actress in a Thriller or Action at the Stardust Awards.

Read More: 'Adventure of Sundarban': Trail of children's film starring Pori Moni, Siam released

This super hit film was a huge success at the international box office, grossing USD one million within 10 days of its release.

The Dirty Picture (2011)

Not a biography of a specific actress; Rather, the film represents the personal lives of every popular actress in the glamor world, including the sensational star Marilyn Monroe. The original idea was given by the film's co-producer Ekta Kapoor, and Rajat Arora wrote the screenplay accordingly. Then Vidya gave the best work of her career under the direction of Milan Luthria. Emraan Hashemi, Naseeruddin Shah, and Tushar Kapoor accompanied Vidya in the film.

The film was widely praised for portraying women as strong in a so-called male-dominated society. The film's soundtrack song "Uh La La", sung by Bappi Lahiri, and penned by Rajat Arora, became one of the chartbusters of the year.

Read More: 10 Netflix Shows to Watch during Christmas & New Year Holidays

On the one hand, the massive commercial success across the world, on the other hand, Vidya's unforgettable performance still makes it one of the best films of Bollywood. The role earned Balan the National Film Award for Best Actress. The film also won 3 trophies at Filmfare Awards and 6 at the Screen Awards, including Best Actress for Balan.

Mission Mangal (2019)

Vidya's stardom has already spread all over India and one of the great drama films of that time is called Mission Mangal. Jagan Shakti directed the film based on the incident of Indian astronauts landing on Mars. It was India's first-ever Mars landing and most importantly, the women scientists contributed in the back office to the whole expedition.  This backdrop gave a unique dimension to the entire story of the film.

Here Vidya was seen being a simple housewife yet balancing her family life with her work as a scientist. And Vidya was phenomenally perfect in the role. The film also stars Akshay Kumar, Sonakshi Sinha, Nithya Menen, Taapsee Pannu, Sharman Joshi, and Keerthi Kulhari.

Read More: 5 Must-Watch Movies of Rajinikanth

The movie emerged as the highest-grossing release worldwide, earning USD 36 million.

Pilling Up

These 5 most popular movies of Vidya Balan mark the climax chapter of her entire career. In 2014, the Indian Government honored her with the Padma Shri award. Vidya's acting brilliance is still lighting up the fans. She continues her stardom with Jalsa (2022), Sherni (2021), and Shakuntala Devi (2020) on the new-age OTT platform.

This renowned actress turned 44 today in the new year. Every birthday in her life is the beginning of a new day for the whole year. On this auspicious day, we wish her many more happy new years.

Read Movies: Is Jaya Ahsan making her debut in Hindi cinema?