From working in television to hitting the big screens beside the biggest of Indian stars, Dogra has come a long way with her versatile range

In Bollywood, it is extremely challenging for an actor from television to transition to the big screen. There have been a few notable cases, including Vikrant Massey, the late Sushant Singh Rajput, and, more recently, Ridhi Dogra. The actor navigated her way through challenging and versatile roles to reach Bollywood after beginning as an assistant producer and being part of the Shamak Davar Dance Institute. However, she remains underrated.

As we celebrate Ridhi Dogra’s birthday on September 22, let us recall some of her roles where she proved her range.

Badtameez Dil

(Credit- MX Player)

To start with, the series heavily tanked and received criticism for being another ignorant and insincere half-baked story from the Ekta Kapoor universe. However, the series featured the pair of Barun Sobti and Ridhi Dogra, who gave their best to salvage the plot. Ridhi Dogra lived up to the character of Liz, who is desperate for attention, whimsical, and tends to go over the top in relationships. The character constantly switches from one mood to another, leaving the audience out of breath as things happen haphazardly, but Dogra managed to bring the character to life.

Asur 1 and 2

(Credit- India TV News)

Even before Badtameez Dil, Asur gave us the duo of Sobti and Dogra. However, in Asur, the duo were neither together nor was their chemistry the highlight. Dogra, though, nailed her character as a forensic expert in Asur, playing the role with utmost conviction. Her college background in psychology helped her understand what goes into the minds of forensic experts and how they break down cr*mes committed by cr*minals.

Lakadbaggha

(Credit- IMDb)

In Asur, despite being one of the important characters, Dogra was on the sidelines. However, she took her streak of serious roles a notch higher in Lakadbaggha, playing the lead as a Crime Branch officer. Dogra’s head was strong in the film, and so were her action sequences, earning credibility given that this was her debut in a Bollywood film. However, the chemistry between Anshuman Jha and the audience fell flat, failing to convey a romantic and positive vibe. Nonetheless, Dogra showed she was ready for bigger projects.

Jawan

(Credit - TOI)

Dogra finally made it big with Jawan, playing the role of an elderly jailer, who was somewhat of a mother to Shah Rukh Khan. Initially, Dogra was perplexed, given that Khan is older than Dogra, but accepted the role because it was challenging to convince the audience that a young actor like Dogra could convincingly portray a character older than Khan. Dogra’s performance was widely appreciated by critics and the audience.

Remains underrated

Despite proving her versatility, offers for massive projects have not landed in Dogra’s purse, as she was last seen in Kull: The Legacy of the Raisinghs, a thriller series that many may not even recall. While it is hard to understand the reason behind the slow pace, one factor, namely age, could be a reason in India, where men continue to play lead roles as heroes even in their 70s, while women are often sidelined to make way for the young lot.

Dogra, who turns 40 this year, is up for a tough battle, but we certainly hope that larger projects give her the opportunity to establish herself as a mainstream lead female actor.