Bollywood's best actresses. Ever.
by: Raja Sen
- rediff.com
All-time lists are tough. Everyone has a different opinion, and this collection isn't discounting yours. It's just that we decided to celebrate Women's Day by putting our necks on the line and compiling the Top 10 Bollywood Actresses Ever.
The great women over the next few slides were picked based on acting skills, glamour, box office appeal, versatility and icon status - and the fact that each of them became a figurehead for Bollywood, ushering in a new wave of cinema. They had their own eras.
10. Aishwarya Rai - Sunehri goes to Hollywood
She's set tongues wagging at Cannes, shared screen space with Ben Kingsley (in the forthcoming The Last Legion), draped a sari over Oprah Winfrey, and done dinner with Clint Eastwood and Harvey Weinstein. Opinions are undeniably divided over her histrionic abilities, but Ms Rai is the face of Bollywood, making unprecedented headway toward Western shores.
From her well-received debut in Mani Ratnam's Iruvar back in 1997, 10 years on she has just silenced critics with a strong performance in the filmmaker's Guru.
This, weeks after she made men drool with Dhoom:2.
Off-screen, there's absolutely no debate on who makes the most consistent newsprint - more has been written on Ash's impending nuptials with Abhishek Bachchan than on most issues of state. And people are still dying to know what she'll wear.
Rest of the list:
9. Kajol
8. Hema Malini
7. Sridevi
6. Waheeda Rehman
5. Rekha
4. Rani Mukerji
3. Nargis
2. Madhubala
1. Madhuri Dixit
