Sanya Malhotra

In Dangal (2016), Sanya Malhotra makes Babita Kumari matter through the physical work of playing a wrestler. Nitesh Tiwari's drama keeps returning to the father's determination, but Malhotra and Fatima Sana Shaikh give his older daughters a presence of their own. We were moved by the sisters' physical effort, especially when the story seemed more interested in their father. Malhotra helps make a familiar sporting story worth caring about, without needing to insist on our sympathy.

Aamir Khan's Mahavir Singh Phogat has the stubbornness to dominate the film, and Malhotra and Shaikh have to hold their place beside him. They manage it, although the emphasis on Mahavir sometimes leaves the daughters short of attention. Malhotra's intensive wrestling preparation matters because it makes Babita credible as an athlete, giving us something to watch beyond her responses to her father. The film's length and familiar training routines remain drawbacks; a committed performance cannot shorten them. Our affection for her work comes with a wish that Babita had more of the film.

That was her debut, and Pataakha (2018), directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, followed with another part involving physical and dialect preparation. The subsequent work has moved between leads and ensembles, including Photograph (2019) and Ludo (2020). In Kathal (2023), she led a satire as Inspector Mahima Basor; Jawan (2023) put her back in a supporting role. There is no steady progression towards larger parts here, which makes the size of a role a poor guide to what she might do with it.

The reservation is how much space those parts leave her. Limited screen time in HIT: The First Case (2022) illustrates the difficulty: there is only so much an actor can establish in a small part. Her understated playing is worth making room for, and we would welcome more roles that use the physical confidence apparent in Dangal without relegating her to someone else's story. Start there, provided a lengthy wrestling drama sounds like your evening.