Introduction

Matricentric Leadership: Vidya Balan and the Emergence of Alternative Leadership Style in Popular Hindi Cinema

“…Vidya Balan has been playing the roles of ordinary working mother—single mother in Paa (2009), Hamari Adhuri Kahani (2015) and Kahaani 2 (2016), pregnant mother in Kahaani (2012), happy mother in Tumhari Sulu (2017) and Mission Mangal (2019), separated mother in Shakuntala Devi (2020) and Jalsa (2022), abused mother in Natkhat (2020) and sometimes not choosing to be a mother while harbouring maternal warmth as in Sherni (2021). It has been a practice of relegating actresses to unglamorous motherly roles to the later part of their careers (Anwer & Arora, 2021). However, Balan has taken up the challenge of playing these roles from the heyday of her career.…”

“…However, after years of struggle, women gradually receive due recognition for their talent (Karandikar et al, 2021; Manzar & Aravind, 2019). The industry now tells women’s stories from their perspectives and through their voices (Anwer & Arora, 2021).…”