From Sonam Kapoor to Vidya Balan: A look at how female powerhouses lead and redefine success in Indian cinema

Sonam Kapoor - Neerja 
With Sonam Kapoor playing the lead role in the biographical thriller film based on the life of a flight attendant named Neerja Bhanot who lost her life in order to save the passengers during the 1986 plane highjack. The film was critically acclaimed from the viewer and also had a massive box office collection of Rs 135 crores worldwide. The film showed celebrated female courage and sacrifice which catered to a large number of people.

Zaira Wasim - Secret Superstar
This musical drama, starring Zaira Wasim in the lead role with a special appearance by Aamir Khan, became the highest-grossing woman-led film in Indian cinema history. The film tells the story of a young Muslim girl who dreams of becoming a singer despite her strict father, achieving success anonymously on YouTube. The film was blockbuster with a massive box office collection of Rs 905 crores worldwide.

Adah Sharma - The Kerala Story 
With Adah Sharma in the lead role, this controversial drama became one of the highest-grossing Hindi films led by a female actor, while earning an impressive domestic and worldwide total with a box office collection of Rs 304 crores worldwide. The film's success, despite the debates made the audience's willingness to engage with high-stakes, socially charged story showing a female character at the center of the conflict.

Kangana Ranaut - Tanu Weds Manu Returns
Kangana Ranaut's double role in this romantic comedy film proved a massive commercial success, making it the first female-led Hindi film to cross the Rs 150 crore mark domestically at the time. The film’s popularity showed the actress’s powerful star appeal, validating the commercial potential of a franchise built entirely around a feisty, unconventional female character and her turbulent life choices, without relying on a major male superstar.

Kalyani Priyadarshan – Lokah
With the first female-led superhero movie in a regional language in India, Kalyani broke the superhero barrier. The actress proved the industry and audience that women can be the lead of a spectacle-based films with her fearless and inspirational portrayal of Lokah. This achievement strengthens her place as an inspiration in the reinterpretation of gender roles in film. The movie made an incredible box office collection of Rs 200 crores.

Alia Bhatt – Gangubai Kathiawadi
In addition to delivering one of her greatest performances till date, Alia Bhatt proved with Gangubai Kathiawadi that a female-led movie could be both critically as well as financially successful. With a global box office success of over Rs 200 crores, the actress became one of the few leading actresses with blockbuster popularity.

Shraddha Kapoor – Stree
Shraddha Kapoor role in the movie gave the viewers a relatable yet fearless heroine, adding charm and humor to the horror-comedy series. Her on-screen personality, emotional expression, and comedic timing took the movie above and beyond genre conventions. Women can lead genre films and control box office expectations, as Stree proved with whopping box office collection of Rs 201 crores.

Vidya Balan – The Dirty Picture
Vidya Balan played a fearless and unapologetic Silk Smitha in The Dirty Picture, while further defining the female-led movie. The actress proved that women could carry edgy and biographical stories with broad appeal by attracting audiences to theatres with her bold performance and appealing on-screen personality.