Women I play on screen are an extension of me: Vidya

Vidya has successfully established herself as an actor par excellence with films such as Parineeta, Ishqiya, The Dirty Picture, Kahaani among others.

But she says the films that are among her personal favourites and have become turning points in her career, are Kahaani, The Dirty Picture and her last release Tumhari Sulu.

"Every film or role that I have done has had some personal connect. All these women (characters) follow their heart and do exactly what they want to do and in a way they were all an extension of me," Vidya told in an interview.

"I am a shy person. There are two sides to me, when the actor side comes out, I am different. I can do anything for the character but as a person I am quite shy," the actor adds.

Vidya, 39, counts her portrayal of Vidya Bagchi in the Sujoy Ghosh-directed movie as one of her finest performances. She says the only brief that Ghosh gave her was that the film would be about a pregnant woman who comes to Kolkata to look for her missing husband.

"I found the story interesting and said, 'Let's do it'. It (climax) developed organically and when he narrated it to me, it blew my mind. People who were approached for the film were not told about the (twist) ending. Only, Sujoy, me, cinematographer, and the ADs knew about it. We kept it a secret," she recalls.

Vidya believes her character of Krishna in Ishqiya was somewhat similar to her role in Kahaani as both these women end up "outsmarting" everyone else in the end. "Krishna in Ishqiya had a mysterious, elusive quality to her. You do not know what is going on in her mind. At the end, you realise that she was using the two men. Power was always about mind game for her." Talking about The Dirty Picture, Vidya said playing Silk helped her shed her prejudices about sexual morality.

"... I may not do it as it is my choice but that doesn't make it wrong if someone else chooses to do it.