Vidya Balan explains why 'it's a better time to be a female actor'; Shefali Shah agrees

Shefali Shah and Vidya Balan are the lead actors in upcoming investigation thriller film Jalsa. The film also stars Rohini Hattangadi, Manav Kaul, Mohammed Iqbal Khan and more.

Vidya Balan has said that being a female actor in today's time is better than being a male actor. Shefali Shah, who will be seen alongside Vidya in their upcoming movie Jalsa, agreed with her. Shefali and Vidya are the leading actors in the upcoming investigation thriller film, which also stars Rohini Hattangadi, Manav Kaul, Mohammed Iqbal Khan, and more.

Shefali Shah and Vidya Balan pose together during the promotions of their upcoming movie Jalsa. 

Vidya and Shefali said that while the female actors have been getting a chance to explore diverse characters, the male actors are largely getting unidimensional roles.

Vidya told Film Companion, "For the first time, it's a better time to be a female actor than a male actor. The variety in the way the roles are written is far more exciting than what's happening in the male actor's space, which is still...they have not...I don't know...it's all still a certain type." When interviewer Anupama Chopra asked if Vidya means the male actors are still in service to the hero, the actor said, "Hero...yeah. whereas we are playing the ordinary, and it can't be said enough that the extraordinary emerges from the ordinary. So there are so many more stories to tell, and there are so many aspects that we (women actors) are exploring. Whereas I feel, and with no disrespect, I do feel the male actor's space is largely unidimensional."

Shefali and Vidya’s movie Jalsa, directed by Suresh Triveni, will premiere on Amazon Prime Video on March 18. It stars Vidya Balan as a celebrated journalist and Shefali Shah as her cook, whose daughter gets killed in a hit-and-run accident.