The digital platform, in the last few years, has evolved to be one of the most competitive and diverse arenas to showcase talent. From space drama to thriller and romantic thriller, the digital zone has a lot of offer. And considering this increasing popularity, several television and film stars have resorted to web projects showcase their talent with a bit of modern twist. Now, as 2019 is inching to a closure, we took a look down the memory lane and rejoiced some great performances by our gorgeous and supremely talented leading ladies.

From Sakshi Tanwar's disciplined space scientist in Mission Over Mars to Shefali Shah's no-nonsense DCP act in Delhi Crime, our leading ladies left no stone unturned to entertain us with the best.

Let's take a look at the actresses who wowed us in these 12 months!

Gurdip Kohli Punjj: Kehne Ko Humsafar Hai

Gurdip Kohli Punjj as Poonam in Kehne Ko Humsafar Hai 2 is a single mother who has raced past her troubled relationship with her husband Rohit. The scene when she internally felt happy that her husband received a dose of his own medicine on being isolated by his love Ananya (Mona Singh) is pure gold and her onscreen camaraderie with Ronit Roy is natural and relatable. With Gurdip absolutely not sobbing and creating noise, we naturally get attracted to her and that’s what makes the character dependable.

Shefali Shah: Delhi Crime

In a gut-wrenching show like Delhi Crime, Shefali Shah is a force to reckon with. As Vartika Chaturvedi, the DCP of South Delhi, who wastes no time in figuring out the urgency and attention the infamous Nirbhaya like case requires, Shefali doesn’t permit gender discrimination to seep between her duties. Said to be inspired by Chhaya Sharma, the DCP, South Delhi, who led a team of more than 100 to put the culprits in Nirbhaya's case behind the bars, Shefali strings the show together in a thrilling and unbelievable spectacular way. The actress makes Delhi Crime a tough yet compelling watch with her class apart performance that needs the highest grade of appreciation.

Sobhita Dhulipala: Made In Heaven

In a complex character like Tara Khanna in a wedding centric show titled Made In Heaven, Sobhita Dhulipala shines beyond expectation. Battling her own struggles of an unsuccessful marriage with a rich entrepreneur Adil, Sobhita is poised and sophisticated behind a hurting facade. She is especially remarkable when her lower-middle-class past haunts her even when she is all clad in shimmers of the upper-class post getting married to Adil. Sobhita's character engages us with her despair and struggles. Guess, Shobhita can be termed as the find of the year in OTT for essaying the role of a layered and complex character!

Tisca Chopra: Hostages

In the thriller titled Hostages, Tisca Chopra's Dr. Mira Anand is an honest professional and knows nothing beyond fulfilling her duties. Soon, as she falls into a complicated situation where she is kept under the custody of a cop turned kidnapper. With a nuanced act of a surgeon who is trapped between her ideologies and safety of her family, Tisca is effective and relatable with her mannerisms and expressions.

Mithila Palkar: Chopsticks (Web Film)

As a Maharashtrian young girl, Mithila Palkar's Nirma Sahastrabuddhe is deep-rooted in her Marathi middle-class culture. Being a Mandarin expert, Mithila is a professional who earns a living and wants to go ahead without losing herself. Relatable and honest in every scene, Mithila manages to uplift the script with her unscripted humour and infectious charm, added with dollops of cuteness!

Dia Mirza: Kaafir

In a tearjerker and sensitive show title Kaafir, Bollywood star Dia Mirza plays the role of Kainaaz Akhtar, a Pakistani woman who crosses the Indo-Pak border and finds herself in a trap of trouble when she is accused to be a militant. Dia has undoubtedly delivered her career’s best and goosebump-inducing role. With the backdrop of pristine snow-clad mountains, Dia is the beautiful sunshine in this grim, gritty and heart-wrenching show, reflective of cross border trauma and agony. 

Divyanka Tripathi: Coldd Lassi Aur Chicken Masala

Divyanka Tripathi slips into the character of a hot-headed chef Nitya in ALT Balaji’s and ZEE5’s Coldd Lassi Aur Chicken Masala. As Nitya, she is undoubtedly a breath of fresh air and shines in each frame she appears in. Divyanka's Nitya is the additional spice and flavour to a spicy-sweet tale of two estranged lovers. In Coldd Lassi Aur Chicken Masala, the absolutely cool Divyanka is the hot and spicy chicken masala and every audience would love to savour. Not to forget, this is TV's undisputed queen's digital debut!

Sakshi Tanwar: Mission Over Mars

A master of her craft, Sakshi Tanwar starred in her best friend and mentor's Ekta Kapoor’s inspiring tale of four women scientists to take India to Mars in the first attempt. In Mission Over Mars or M-o-M on ALT Balaji and ZEE5, Sakshi is the calm, composed yet strict space scientist Nandita Hariprasad, who is the project coordinator and on the personal front a helicopter mom who doesn’t allow her son to pursue the career of his choice. She easily balances dual character sketches-one of a disciplined mother and other of a temperamental leader who brings her team under control during tense moments. 

Mona Singh: Mission Over Mars

In the space drama Mission Over Mars, Mona is the hot-headed Bengali scientist Moushumi Ghosh, who is a single mother, working with her ex-husband at the same space station. She is dedicated to her dreams, a woman who is not afraid to call a spade a spade, with a no-nonsense approach to life and her career. In nutshell, Mona breaks the sob mould of her regular TV performances in this strong web act. 

Elli AvrRam: The Verdict: State V/S Nanavati

In The Verdict: State V/S Nanavati that is based on a real-life incident, Elli AvrRam as Sylvia Nanavati is Navy officer Kawas Nanavati's wife who becomes the root cause for the latter to shoot Prem Ahuja, is lovely and endearing. Her scenes with Viraf Patel aka Prem Ahuja speak volumes of talent and are scene-stealers. Her expressions in emotional as well as gritty scenes are bang on. In our ‘verdict’, Elli has come a long way as a performer. 

Kalki Koechlin: Bhram

In Bhram, Kalki as Alisha, who can see the invisible supernatural forces, expresses fear and suspicion convincingly and that’s what lifts the show up high. She, unlike other actresses in horror genre projects, refrained from overdoing her part and expressions to make believe the presence of the paranormal being. Kalki will subtly ensure that a shiver runs down your spine at regular intervals.

Rasika Dugal: Out Of Love

Rasika Dugal's restrained performance as Dr. Meera Kapoor, who is left heartbroken upon finding out about her husband’s extramarital affair in Out Of Love, speaks volumes. As Meera plans her move carefully without making dropping a hint at what is in her mind, Rasika excels. The scene when she realises that her husband is cheating on her, she throws away all family pictures, just to fix them back on calming down, is brilliant. Once the show proceeds ahead, Rasika’s character takes a negative curve that leaves us all wondering about the limits she will cross. This is what keeps the audience glued to their screens.

Akansha Thakur: Cheesecake

In a light-hearted show like Cheesecake, Akanksha Thakur bags the extra brownie points for her endearing and natural performance. A story that revolves around how a couple parents a dog and their relationship with their furry friend, Akanksha as Sameera lends freshness and beauty to a story that is so simple yet effective. Amidst women taking the lead in serious shows, Akanksha sets herself apart with a strong role but in a slice of life show that will cockle the warmest corner of the heart.

Ramya Krishnan: Queen

Ahead of Kangana Ranaut’s version of the life of former Tamil Nadu CM late J Jayalalithaa in a feature film, southern star and veteran actress Ramya Krishnan starred in Queen based on Thalaivi’s journey from a class topper to a worshiped Chief Minister. She, needless to say, delivers her best and is majestic as Shakti Sheshadri, who is much more than a political figure to the state of Tamil Nadu. Though Ramya walks into the show at a later stage, her charisma and twinkle in her eyes make her the true hero. Take a bow...

Richa Chadha: Inside Edge 2

In the sequel of the cricket-politics show titled Inside Edge, Richa Chadha as Zarina Malik has come out of the cocoon and soared up high in the sky of the big bad world of cricket and politics. In order to fulfill bigger ambitions, both on cricketing and Bollywood end, she doesn’t hesitate to cross the mark, which even means to sleep with Bhaisaab Yashvardhan Patil. While Zarina was the owner of Mumbai Mavericks in the first season, Bhaisaab’s daughter Mantra Patil outshines her and demotes her as the co-owner. Mantra has desires to be like Zarina while the latter considers the former as a threat. As an over-ambitious and go-getter Zarina, Richa shines brightly and gets one of the best-written characters in an ensemble cast show. Claws out!

Special mention

Harleen Sethi: Broken But Beautiful 2

Harleen Sethi as Sameera in the second season of Broken But Beautiful, has grown into a more nuanced performer. Sinking deep into the complexities a woman faces in a troubled relationship, the actress injects in relatability, giving a fierce competition to every situational odd. Harleen's Sameera although broken from within, is indeed beautiful.

Shivani Raghuvanshi: Made In Heaven

The pretty and talented Shivanshi Raghuvanshi shone brightly amidst an ensemble cast in Made In Heaven. As Jaspreet Kaur aka Jazz, Shivani is lovable and absolutely relatable. A young girl from a humble background, who tries to fit into the league of high-class society with the help of her job, the actress is like the next-door-girl of the show that focuses on the glitz and glamour of big fat Indian weddings. Shivani tugs at your heart with her sweet and honest smile while dealing with an unhappy domestic space and coping up with her brother's struggle with addiction.  Being vocal on making a mark for herself, Shivani's Jazz is the girl we all would fall in love with.

Nidhi Singh: Mission Over Mars

Nidhi Singh as Neetu Sinha delivers a strong performance in Mission Over Mars. In the skin of a space scientist who is trying to conceive a child is obstructed with the Mars mission, Nidhi is sweet and compassionate. Unlike other serious and ‘only business’ characters, Nidhi lends a different dimension as the God-fearing scientist whose belief lies in the supreme power and destiny. Adding the element of the problems faced by working married women, Nidhi is the sunshine to the show that is loaded with supremely talented actresses.

Sayani Gupta: Inside Edge 2

Sayani Gupta has always proven her prowess as an actress and reinforcing the same fact, she delivered a commendable performance in Inside Edge 2. Her character of Rohini Raghavan propels Inside Edge 2 forward and is a valuable introduction to an ensemble cast.

Palomi Ghosh: Mission Over Mars and Typewriter

Palomi Ghosh as a high IQ and low EQ space scientist Meghan Reddy in Mission Over Mars holds her own ground and stands tall with a powerful ensemble cast. Portraying a no-nonsense character, Palomi gives it her all and this is visible on the screen. Apart from Mission Over Mars, Palomi starred in Sujoy Ghosh’s Typewriter, a horror genre show that saw the actress in a never-seen-before avatar. The transition from a space-based show to a supernatural one, Palomi seemed effortless and did a wonderful job.

(Source: PeepingMoon)