Rupali Ganguly to Shweta Tiwari; TV actresses for whom 40 is the new 20

The new-age cinema has busted the myth of a 36-26-36 requirement for an ideal heroine in films and TV and has proved that age is just a number. What attracts the audience is the acting prowess and its conviction. Shows like Anupamaa, Humari Wali Good News, and a few more have the main lead play layered characters. The daily soaps aren't just about saas-bahu sagas and the vamp, the content, too, has evolved. Let's take a look:

Rupali Ganguly plays the central character Anupamaa in the show by the same name. The story revolves around a middle-aged housewife, who strives to earn a name of her own after she finds out about her husband having an extramarital affair. In a recent interview with ETimes TV, Rupali said, "To be 40 plus and not have a 26-inch waist when you’re playing the lead can be challenging at times. I always wondered if it would work. You can’t predict the fate of a show. I still can’t believe it’s happening to me and hope the bubble doesn’t burst."

Juhi Parmar played the lead role of Renuka in the show, Humari Wali Good News. She played the role of a mother-in-law, who becomes a surrogate for her daughter-in-law, and found this concept to be unique. Shows like these clearly indicate that there are rooms for actors of all age groups.

Shweta Tiwari was seen playing the female lead Guneet Sikka in Mere Dad Ki Dulhan, which was a coming-of-age love story. Love is not age-bound and can happen at any age, in any situation. The storyline of this show was different and intriguing that made Guneet Sikka (Shweta Tiwari) and Amber Sharma (Varun Badola) one of the most entertaining couples on television.

Aapki Nazron Ne Samjha actress Narayani Shastri is very comfortable in her skin and is happy with the kind of opportunities being offered to 40 plus actors. In one of the interviews with BT, the actress had said, "A few years back, actresses over 40 were given meatier roles but they were few. An actress, who started along with me cannot be doing the same kind of roles that we did back then. As actors, we have to mature and take up roles that challenge us. But the storylines written now are more interesting, engaging and are exploring many genres. Also, our target audience hasn’t changed much. So, this means that even if we are introducing stronger female characters, we have to keep our target audience in mind and dish out relatable stories to strike a chord with the viewers."

"It’s high time that we quash the myth that an actress over 40, can’t do lead and author-backed roles or even challenging character actor roles. Now in many shows, we have a female artiste over 40 who’s either playing the titular role or a pivotal role. However, I do believe that this change is possible because now there are many options for the audience. We can’t fool them by serving them the same old stories. As artistes and showmakers, we have to make engaging content accompanied by strong performances. The change in the viewing pattern has seen a paradigm shift in the quality of TV content." believes India Wali Maa actress Sucheeta Trivedi.

Urvashi Dholakia hasn't done a daily soap lately but she is certainly taking the internet by storm with her hot pictures, flaunting stretch marks, and advocating body positivity. She is a mother to two grown-up boys, Sagar and Kshitij Dholakia.