Vidya Balan on her chemistry with Farhan Akhtar in her forthcoming film, 'Shaadi Ke Side Effects', and how marriage has changed her life for the better and more in a freewheeling interview
Vidya Balan
You are that rare actress who has bagged good roles even after 30.
A woman blossoms the most in her 30s. I have come into my own in my 30s and that’s the reason these roles have happened to me.
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What changes have you found in your personal life after marriage?
I am miserable on free days when I have to stay away from Siddharth Roy Kapoor. I didn’t think I would be like this, and earlier I would make fun of my friends who expressed similar thoughts and would say ‘Please don’t behave like that.’ But now I want to be with Siddharth!
Also, I used to be very restless but I am a calmer person now. My mother now tells me she would have married me off at the age of 20 if she had known this would happen (laughs).
What is that one quality of Siddharth that you love?
He just has to smile at me and I melt.
Have you thought about starting a family?
I will have a child when I am ready to share Siddharth. I have still not had enough of him (laughs).
Did it take time for you to create that chemistry with Farhan Akhtar?
Earlier I thought that Farhan was reserved. When we started working together, I realised he has a great sense of humour and I enjoyed that. We needed a certain familiarity because we play a married couple. The zone between familiar and unfamiliar creates chemistry between actors.
What went wrong with your last picture, Ghanchakkar?
I was under pressure because people expected me to be successful. We tried to do something different with that film and not many people liked it... which is fine. For the first time in my career, I was thinking in numbers which shouldn’t have been the case. Ghanchakar was not a mistake, but it wasn’t the way people expected it to be.
How was it working on Bobby Jasoos, which is produced by your Parineeta co-star, Dia Mirza?
I loved the script; it’s also a human story not just a detective film.
Successful male stars seem reluctant to work with you. Does that disappoint you?
Are they? (Laughs) Probably they have to justify their presence in the film so it’s understandable if they don’t want to do a female-centric film. So unless it’s on equal footing, it is difficult. But I am very happy with the work I am doing... this doesn’t bother me.
Bollywood News Service