Bollywood beckons its married heroines

New Delhi, May 2 (IANS) Publicity for Karisma Kapoor's comeback film "Dangerous Ishq" is on a roll. And then there will be a slew of movies marking the return of other married actresses, be it Madhuri Dixit or Manisha Koirala.

Bollywood once considered marriage the death knell for its female leads, but IANS lists the women who are now set to revive their careers in B-town:

Karisma Kapoor: Karisma ruled the roost in the 1990s but cut down on her film projects after marrying Delhi-based businessman Sanjay Kapur in 2003 to focus on her family. Last seen in the 2006 film "Mere Jeevan Saathi", Karisma, 37, hopes to return with a bang with Vikram Bhatt's supernatural 3D thriller "Dangerous Ishq", where she will be seen in different avatars.

Madhuri Dixit: The Bollywood diva bid adieu to showbiz after marrying US-based surgeon Sriram Nene and shifted to Denver from Mumbai to start a family. After making a uneventful comeback with 2007 release "Aaja Nachle", the 44-year-old is set to create magic in her new innings with "Dedh Ishqiya" and "Gulab Gang". Vishal Bharadwaj's "Dedh Ishqiya" is a sequel to Vidya Balan's 2010 film "Ishqiya", while Anubhav Sinha's "Gulab Gang" will see her playing a female gangster.

Manisha Koirala: One of the most beautiful actresses of her time, Manisha is also reviving her career post-sabbatical and marriage. She played a cameo in Onir's National Award winning film "I AM", but now the 41-year-old will be seen in a full-fledged role in 3D horror movie "BHHOOoo.!", a sequel to Ram Gopal Varma's 2003 film "Bhoot". While "Bhoot" narrated the story of a couple in a haunted apartment, the sequel is about a six-year-old child named Allayna.

Sridevi: She was the queen and vacated the throne after marrying producer Boney Kapoor. Her goodbye movie was the hit family drama "Judaai". But now Sridevi, 48, a mother of two daughters - Jhanvi and Khushi - is making a comeback with "English Vinglish", directed by R. Balki's wife Gauri Shinde. In the film, Sridevi plays an Indian woman married into an American household, who enrols in an English learning programme to please her family.

Raveena Tandon: Post marriage Raveena, 37, didn't completely disappear from the scene and made her presence felt with movies like "Sandwich" and "Bbuddah Hoga Teraa Baap" as well as TV reality shows "Chak De Bachche" and "Chhote Miyan 2". However, she is now set to play a protagonist and her first such endeavour is "Shobhna's 7 Nights", in which she will be seen in a bold avatar.

Juhi Chawla: She is one of the few actresses who have been active even after marriage. The 44-year-old juggled both the roles - homemaker and actress. However, post-marriage, Juhi turned to offbeat films like "My Brother Nikhil", "Bas Ek Pal" and "I AM". She also worked in Punjabi film "Des Hoya Pardes". Now she is gearing up for the release of her new film "Son of Sardar".

(Priyanka Sharma can be contacted at priyanka.s@ians.in)