This actress was once called ‘panauti’, kicked out of 13 films, later gave first Rs 100-crore women-led film

Shah Rukh Khan started his career in television series and after impressing everyone on the small screen, he decided to rule the big screen and is now India's most successful actor. Another actress who started her journey with the popular television series Hum Paanch faced a lot of struggles but never gave up and then gave India's first Rs 100-crore women-led film. 

The actress we are talking about started her career at a young age and wooed the audience with her performances over the years. The actress was once kicked out of 13 films but is now one of the most bankable actresses in the industry. She is none other than Vidya Balan. 

Vidya Balan wanted to become an actress since she was a kid. She once revealed that it was Madhuri Dixit who inspired her to become an actress. She revealed that one day she saw Madhuri Dixit dancing to her iconic dance number Ek Do Teen from Tezaab, and she found her inspiration in Madhuri. The actress made her debut in Ektaa Kapoor's popular television sitcom Hum Paanch in 1995.

After this, while working in commercials, she got an offer for a south film. Vidya was offered to play female lead opposite Mohanlal in Chakram. Apart from this, she signed 12 more films. However, Chakram got shelved and reportedly the producers blamed Vidya for bringing "bad luck" to the project; and labelled her as 'panauti'. Soon, Vidya was kicked out of all the 13 films that broke her and she wasn't able to look at herself in the mirror. However, the actress got her breakthrough with a Bengali film Bhalo Theko in 2003 and received praise for her Bollywood debut, the drama Parineeta (2005).

The actress once recalled her struggles and said, "I was kicked out of 13 films. When one producer replaced me in a film, their behaviour with me was very bad. They made me feel so ugly that for six months, I could not gather the courage to look at myself in the mirror." 

After her Bollywood debut, the actress never looked back and gave a number of hits like Rajkumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munna Bhai, Mani Ratnam's Guru, Heyy Babyy, and Bhool Bhulaiyaa and more. After giving several hit films, the actress then went on to star in India's first Rs 100-crore women-led film, The Dirty Picture, and was later regarded as a pioneer in changing women's portrayals in Bollywood. She also won the National Film Award for Best Actress for her film The Dirty Picture.

The actress who was once tagged as 'bad luck' is now one of the highest-paid actresses in Bollywood who reportedly charges Rs 7 crore per film. She is married to Indian producer Siddharth Roy Kapur and enjoys a luxurious life with a reported net worth of Rs 149 crore.