Bhojpuri cinema star Aamrapali Dubey says her journey to stardom has been driven by her acting abilities rather than popularity alone, while acknowledging that female actors in regional cinema are often confined to limited, ornamental roles.
Asked whether the Bhojpuri industry has given her recognition as an actor or primarily valued her star power, Aamrapali told IANS that she had received considerable respect for her performances, which she described as uncommon for women in the industry.
“They did give me extreme and a lot of respect because of my acting skills, which is very rare for female actresses in my industry because most of the time, being a female actress in regional cinema constrains you to limited, ornamental kinds of roles,” she said.
Aamrapali considers herself fortunate to have received opportunities that allowed her to move beyond that pattern and take on characters with varied themes and substantial scope for performance.
“I’ve been offered and I’ve done films which have different concepts and there’s a lot to perform in them. So, as an actress, I’ve been able to play a lot of different roles,” she said.
The actress began her career with the television soap opera Saat Phere – Saloni Ka Safar in 2009 and later became known for playing Suman in Rehna Hai Teri Palkon Ki Chhaon Mein. She entered Bhojpuri cinema with Nirahua Hindustani in 2014.
Recalling some of the diverse characters she has portrayed, Aamrapali said she has played both a Pakistani girl and a Hyderabadi character, among several other roles.
“I’ve played the role of a Pakistani girl, I’ve also played the role of a Hyderabadi girl. So I’ve played a lot of different roles in the Bhojpuri industry, and people gave me a lot of love for those roles. After that, I’ve been given the title of a star. So that’s that,” she said.
Aamrapali is currently participating in the 20th season of Bigg Boss, which premiered on September 6.
The reality show features 16 celebrity contestants, including MC Mary Kom, Kanika Mann, Mahhi Vij, Kushal Tanwar, Aman Gandhi, Isha Rikhi, Arishfa Khan, Qazi Touqeer, Asif Khan, Rhiti Tiwari, Uditi Singh, Tanmay Singh aka ScoutOP, Rohed Khan, Yung DSA and Love Gill, alongside Aamrapali.