Before Priyanka Chopra and Aishwarya Rai, 5 actresses reigned Bollywood in the 90s – Kajol, Madhuri Dixit, Raveena Tandon, Juhi Chawla and Karisma Kapoor
While 90s Bollywood might have been the decade of The Khans – Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan – it also gave rise to these leading ladies who starred opposite the likes of Akshay Kumar and Govinda
These five actresses in particular – with their big hair, porcelain features and a whole lot of attitude – reigned supreme, giving us a myriad of colourful characters from the demure girl next door to an aspiring dancer to even a psychopathic killer. Read on to find out more about them …
Kajol
Kajol Devgn defined the 90s with her powerful performances. She played a woman in love with a murderer in Baazigar (1993) and a woman who defied arranged marriage in Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995). The latter became one of the most successful Hindi films in history, cementing young Kajol as the “It” actress of the time.
Yet Kajol craved more. She avoided typecasting by playing a psychopathic killer in Gupt (1997) and a pair of twin sisters – one who dies, and one who seeks revenge – in Dushman (1998). Three other lucrative 1998 films propelled her to global stardom like no Indian actress had experienced before. She played a young, bubbly country girl moving to the big city in Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya, a ditsy fiancée in Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha and, of course, the fun-loving tomboy in Karan Johar’s tour de force, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai.
Madhuri Dixit
Bollywood’s dancing queen, Madhuri Dixit Nene, was lauded for her performance in Dil (1990) and continued to hone her skills in a range of roles, from a rebellious wife in Beta (1992), an undercover police officer in Khal Nayak (1993) and a vengeful wife in Anjaam (1994).
She shot to stardom after playing Nisha, opposite Salman Khan, in the family saga Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994) followed by Ketki Singh, a woman who confronted patriarchal oppression, in Mrityudand (1997). But it was her portrayal as the whimsical dancer Pooja in Yash Chopra’s Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) that crowned her as India’s sweetheart and the top-paid heroine of the 90s.
