Vidya Balan celebrates national award by visiting abuse victims in UAE

Dubai, Mar 8 (ANI): Vidya Balan, who recently received a national award for her performance in 'The Dirty picture', visited the Dubai Foundation For Women And Children on the eve of International Women's Day.

Instead of basking in the glory of her first national awards, the 34-year-old actress chose to shine a light on the needs of abused women with her visit her DFWAC.

Balan, who is in the UAE to premiere her film 'Kahaani', spent the afternoon listening to women who are recovering from abusive relationships and human trafficking at DFWAC, a Dubai government-supported shelter.

"I salute you. You are very courageous and you have shown tremendous strength and maturity far beyond your age," Gulf News quoted her as saying.

During those moments, the 'Guru' star was a woman who was trying to understand and empathise with the difficulties faced by another human being.

While the visit to DFWAC was not part of Balan's promotion for 'Kahaani', the woman-centric film finds the actress playing the role of an abandoned, pregnant woman with only her own conviction for support.

"She is a strong character in the film, she is a woman like you.

"There will be subtitles, so you can also enjoy the movie - you must see it," she said.

Balan, who had earlier revealed that she found her strength in the film industry "because the power lies in making my own choices", saluted the spirit shown by the two girls.

"On the eve of Women's Day, my salute goes to these two girls I interacted with and to millions all over the world who have not let their circumstances become their biggest handicap. It takes a lot of courage to step out of the situation," she added. (ANI)