These days, there is a stir of new generation, new faces, new energy and new dreams in Bollywood, these faces shining on the screen are not only attracted by their beauty, but strong presence, brilliant acting are also their strength, some with film heritage, and some on their own, are slowly shining in the film industry.
Bollywood rotates faster than light years. However, something slow for the heroes, something fast for the heroines. The audience may give time to the heroes, but the heart space for the heroines starts getting smaller after three-four films. Movies are changing, so are their heroines. New girls sometimes step forward full of talent and sometimes in a very glamorous style. The only difference is that this industry known as Bollywood is more eager to change heroines than heroes. The heroes have been around for years, but the shelf life of the heroines is short. Bollywood creates new heroines in every era. In this process of creation, some heroines become history, some create history.
Aneet Padda’s very first film Syara broke all records
However, ‘Page-3’ saves the heroines confined to history from the feeling of being unemployed, because after all, shine is shine, which is pleasing to everyone’s eyes. Like Vamika Gabbi, Aneet Padda and Sara Arjun these days. Although Vamika Gabbi worked in many films, Bhool Chuk Maaf (2025) with Rajkummar Rao made her a well-known face. The success of Aneet Padda’s first film Syayara (2025) is not hidden from anyone. This year, the Hindi film audience saw star material in another girl and accepted her immediately. Sara Arjun is getting no less praise than Ranveer Singh is getting for Dhurandhar (2025). These girls who became stars sometimes shine in one film and sometimes play long innings. Even if she ever stays away from films to fulfill the responsibilities of marriage and family, she returns with full force. Rakul Preet Singh, Kiara Advani are gearing up for their second innings.
In fact, Bollywood has always had a (bad) reputation for differentiating between heroes and heroines. But the audience who love Bollywood, appreciate it and call it the biggest capital of the film world is also no less. No matter what someone does on screen, their decision is like a line on stone. Heroes are their ‘permanents’, but heroines fade away quickly. Earlier it used to be that heroines who had lost their freshness would either play side roles or become mother-sister-in-law. But OTT gave Kareena Kapoor as much space in Jaane Jaan (2023) as she would have got on the big screen.
Nitanshi Goyal, from a non-film family, caught everyone’s attention, also received an award for the film Missing Ladies.
Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt, after setting up a family and becoming a mother, are still in the field and are giving competition to new girls. But till yesterday, the Bollywood audience was not praising these two. When new arrivals came in the form of Aneet Padda, Vamika Gabbi and Trupti Dimri, Sara Arjun, the scale tilted towards the new girls. The charming Padda entered Syara with Ahan Kapoor and became the heartthrob of millions as soon as she arrived. Some watched the film crying, some fainted in the hall, some were so desperate to see this new angel on the screen that they did not even care about their broken leg.
On the day of those who sacrificed their hearts and lives for the heroines, out of 72 beats, four beats went to Anit, Vamika Tripti and Sara. This is a completely new generation of heroines, who create their own audience even before making their place on the 70 mm screen. Amidst the growing influence of OTT, empty theaters and the debate of nepotism, there is a competition between these outsiders and girls from some film families. Take the name of Ananya Pandey, anti-nepotism opponents will immediately say that Kiran Rao gave a chance to the brand new girl Nitanshi Goyal to work in a unique film like Lapat Ladies and she won the Filmfare for Best Debut. This is the most interesting conflict of the new generation. In the last few years it seems as if there is a flood of heroines. Every now and then, some girl is making her debut, whether she is from a filmy family or a non-filmy family. There are some actresses who are in the limelight because of their ‘family glow’, among them there are some who are based on their performance and are continuously moving forward. Obviously, among all these, Rashmika Mandanna and Trupti Dimri are currently at the forefront. Animal film has given a great opportunity to both of them. Both are from non-film families and both have become favorites of Hindi cinema in a short time.
In the new era, acting alone is not enough. This long haul includes, if not social media followers, brand endorsements and a chance to be a showstopper in high-profile fashion shows, then at least a ramp walk for a big designer. Even after all this, it is not necessary that someone will take over the throne of Bollywood. The audience is so merciless that when the same girl whom he can watch for hours without blinking an eye, becomes a heroine on the cinema screen, he suddenly starts remembering the ‘quality’, he suddenly becomes a connoisseur of acting and is in need of strong acting.
Bollywood, whose soul rested on the tinkling sound of ‘Khantrayi’ and the glitter of ‘Kapoor family’ for decades, has suddenly remembered that it is important for an artist to have talent. Now actresses cannot survive only on the strength of their beautiful faces. They too have to show strength, they have to come forward more than just ‘decoration’ stuff. Image can be created through digital presence but for solid ground one has to step on the test of acting.
In the last few years, heroine-oriented films have made the path easier for many such girls, in which character was given more importance than looks. Now whenever there will be talk of a new ‘Empress’ of cinema, it will not be about the ‘traditional’ way, but on the struggle, social media traffic and the skill of surviving despite the temporary and rapidly changing tastes of the audience.
The list of names is long, but not conclusive. Between nepo kid Janhvi Kapoor and established Deepika Padukone, when it comes to Trupti Dimri, it seems as if the mysterious silence of her acting is giving cinema its soul back. Coming out of the intellectual culture of Bulbul (2020) and Kala (2022), when she appears in Animal, the camera is unable to catch her. They become more of an experience than a sight. Suddenly, people start searching for him on social media and his face starts appearing in every third reel. The story of child-like Nitanshi Goyal is a reminder of the almost vanishing morality in Bollywood where relationships and beauty used to be above acting. But Nitanshi getting a chance becomes a support for those girls who are nurturing the dream of Mayanagari in their eyes. Her innocent, but average face in The Missing Ladies (2023) seems filled with extraordinary emotional feeling. This 17-year-old girl, who won the Best Actress award at IIFA, reminds Bollywood that age is just a number and talent is the most infallible weapon.
Kriti also comes from a non-film family and seems to be quietly engaged in her work despite the entire debate about the number one heroine title. From Bareilly Ki Barfi, Mimi to the Hindi remake of Kill Bill, she is redefining the word ‘heroine’ while showing her maturity. They neither fall into any group nor follow any popular trend.
This generation is going through a transition period. Here the audience wants beauty as well as acting. Earlier, the hero was enough for the acting. Now the heroine is also expected to keep the audience engaged. Singing a song or doing a little romance does not make the audience feel worth the ticket money. The new batch that has emerged after Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt and Kangana Ranaut is confused in many ways. This lot is neither completely experimental nor just a slave to glamour.
Alia Bhatt has really nailed this balance. He took a lot of risks in Udta Punjab. This role was of a girl who falls into the hands of drug dealers. Initially playing the role of an agricultural labourer, she transformed her glamorous look to such an extent that it was difficult to believe that she was the same Alia. Even though the film did not work, it made Alia’s money. His work also showed that the door to inheritance can be opened only by the key of skill. Jhanvi Kapoor seems to be trying this model. The good fortune of being Sridevi’s daughter has been in her favor, but she still has to keep proving herself. He is still in the list of promising artists. He likes to work hard on the sets and it is visible in his acting which is improving day by day. He showed a glimpse of that in Gunjan Saxena, but he is still looking for a decisive role. Critics who keep an eye on his acting believe that his weak point is his dialogue delivery, on which he must work. Ananya Pandey, younger than him and full of glamour, has found her path. In this shining picture, Ananya Pandey is more in the news for her acting than for the fact that she appeared the most in the commercials that came in between during the IPL season. She had more desire to become a brand endorsement personality than to become an actress. Amidst all this, Alia proved herself time and again in her journey from Highway, Udta Punjab, Raazi to Gangubai and Brahmastra. Jhanvi has not been able to completely emerge from this dilemma whether she wants only glamour, wants a strong acting like Alia in no makeup look or wants to do a film which gets National Award. Sometimes it seems that the brightness of the screen polishes them, but still something is left incomplete. She is doing films, but the connoisseurs of acting are still not putting her in that slot, where it is any artist’s dream to reach.
She knows that she does not have what it takes to get ahead in acting, so she is happy to become a shining star of social media. It is better to remain visible in some form or the other than to fade away on the standards of acting. Vamika Gabbi’s presence inspires hope in this entire generation. There is a pause, a sensitivity in his acting. This pause has become rare among today’s actresses. Rashmika Mandanna’s case is a little different in all these. She is a star of South Indian films, whose popularity is increasing in North India also. There was a lot of talk about the alpha male in the movie Animal. On this pretext, no one could ignore Rashmika even amidst the debate about masculinity. She did not appear weak in front of Ranveer Kapoor. Chhaava was a film of a completely different genre compared to Animal. Rashmika stood equal with Vicky Kaushal.
Shanaya Kapoor, Khushi Kapoor, Nysa Devgan, Rasha Thadani are new plants on the field of acting and are no longer limited to ‘Kiski Beti Hain’. Suhana and Khushi tried in The Archies, but their hesitation in front of the camera is clearly visible.
Now, the game of becoming a ‘Queen’ in Bollywood is not just about acting, but also a game of personal branding, Instagram algorithm and capitalizing on the emotional intelligence of the public, who sometimes used to dwell in Rekha’s eyes, sometimes saw in Sridevi’s flirtatiousness, sometimes was attracted by Madhuri’s smile, sometimes used to stop at Kajol’s expressions. Perhaps this is the true form of cinema, where the audience is the king. And his queen will be the one who can transform his darkest wound into the most beautiful smile.
