Bipasha Basu,Vidya Balan, Aishwarya Rai.

The ladies are not far behind, either. The ones who are going strong at the moment are also in their 30s (and here, we are not talking about Madhuri Dixit who’s making a comeback). The earlier trend of heroines debuting at 16-17 and retiring after marriage or when they hit 30 whichever came first, has been quite reversed. The most promising actress of 2005-2006, Vidya Balan, is rocking at 33 with big hits, and big-budget films in her kitty. In fact, she got her big break Parineeta only after crossing 30. No wonder she hasn’t stopped smiling big with her 32s since!

Similarly, 33-year-old Aishwarya Rai is also shining better than ever by flaunting her newly acquired sexy image (post-Dhoom: 2) and has blockbuster releases coming up include Ashutosh Gowariker’s Akbar-Jodha and Mani Ratnam’s Guru. Bubbly Preity Zinta, too, is nudging at the peak of her career and has already nudged past 30. Remember, Salaam Namaste and more recently, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna?

Accompanying her is friend or foe or whatever currently Rani Mukherjee who is also witnessing a golden era following a spate of flop movies three or four years ago. Starting her success journey with Chalte Chalte with her mature performance, she is continuing to win laurels in movies like Hum Tum, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna and so on. Another actor in her 30s is Bipasha Basu who can still give a run for anyone’s money or fag out a fresh teenager with her beedi.

On the other hand, the younger lot (Ayesha Takia, Amrita Rao) are facing tough competition from this older brigade and are finding it tough to hold on to their own. But never mind, gurrls, your days are just some years away!