30-plus divas make screen comeback in 2012

Gone are the days when thirty was considered the age for the screen divas to shift their focus from silver screen to their personal lives.

The year goneby saw thirty-plus Indian actresses like Sridevi, Karisma Kapoor, Rani Mukherjee, Manisha Koirala and Preity Zinta making a successful return on the big screen.

2012 turned out to be a year of the returning divas who broke the myth that post-30 is the wrong age for starring roles in mainstream Bollywood.

Sridevi, 49, returned to the big screen after a gap of 14-years with debutant director Gauri Shinde's "English Vinglish".

As a middle-class Marathi homemaker, who sets out to master English to reclaim her lost respect in the family, Sridevi wowed both critics and the audience. The film was different from over-the-top masala films that made her a superstar in the '80s.

After her blockbuster performance, Sridevi is now looking for meaty roles.

Rani, 34, returned to the big screen after a year's gap with "Aiyaa" and Aamir Khan starrer "Talaash". For "Aiyaa", the actress worked really hard. She lost oodles of weight and learned belly dancing but the film did not do well at the box-office.

Rani got another chance to prove herself by playing Aamir Khan's troubled wife in "Talaash".

After taking a sabbatical of six years, Karisma made a comeback with director Vikram Bhatt's 3D thriller "Dangerous Ishq". Though the film was not successful, it has relaunched the career of 38-year-old mother of two.

Manisha Koirala was one of the top stars of 90s with with films such as "Dil Se", "Bombay", "Agnisakshi" and "Khamoshi" in her credit.

Manisha, 42, continued doing small budget film before being noticed for her powerpacked performance in Onir's national-award-winning film "I Am". The actress starred in Ramgopal Varma's horror film "Bhoot Returns" this year.

However, she recently announced that she was suffering from cancer. She is currently in the US for treatment.

Preity has been absent from the screen for long except for her item number 'Happening' in 2009 film "Main Aurr Mrs Khanna".

Her much-awaited return was set for this year but her self-produced "Ishkq In Paris" will now hit screens next year.

The film is a romantic comedy set in Paris.

When the year saw a dominant line-up of female actress's in the silver screen, small screen also buzzed with the return of many favourite faces. Actresses like Ayesha Takia and Mahima Chaudhary chose TV to make a safe comeback.

Takia hosted singing reality show 'Sur Kshetra' whereas Mahima anchored kids reality show 'Chote Miyan'.

TV star Aamna Sharif, who was known for her portrayal of Kashish in soap opera 'Kahiin to Hoga', also returned to the small screen after a gap of five years with a tempestuous love story 'Hongey Judaa Na Hum'.

The coming year will see the return of Madhuri Dixit, Raveena Randon and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan with "Gulabi Gang", "Shobhana 7 Nights" and Mani Ratnam's Bollywood adaptation of Daphne De Maurier's novel "Rebecca" respectively.