4 min readMumbaiUpdated: Nov 30, 2025 11:42 PM IST
Coming from a humble background, she is fondly called Bulbul by those who knew her. While she found popularity on screen, her personal life was full of struggles but she refused to bow down to any of it. Actress Jaya Bhattacharya found popularity for her role as Payal in Kyunki Saas Bhi Bahu Thi, but awards eluded her.
Born in 1971 in Lucknow, in a Bengali family, Jaya Bhattacharya recalls growing up with little but had a supportive father to back her up. “I was an only child, we didn’t come from a wealthy background. We lived in a small room till the time I came to Mumbai.” She says her parents didn’t want to marry each other and that reflected in her mother’s behaviour towards her as well. “I got so many beatings that I became stubborn,” she told Siddharth Kannan in an interview, saying her anger was largely towards her mother. She says she eventually forgave her mother.
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Talking about her father, Jaya said, “My father was stubborn, but he was a very correct and proud human being. He had a lot of self-respect. He faced a lot of abuse from people, even though he did the right things. That really hurt me, but I was proud of him.”
Got a lot of hate due to Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi character
Navigating through her life, Jaya Bhattacharya came to Mumbai after she was offered a show. That time, she only had Rs 2000 on her, and she got on a train without any reservation. “I got my ailing father discharged from the hospital, and dropped him at a cousin’s house, then I came to Mumbai,” Jaya said. She recalled how people in the industry trusted her.
In 2000, life changed for Jaya when she bagged the role of Payal in Ekta Kapoor’s Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. What was supposed to be a month-long cameo went on to become a 7-year association. Sadly, Jaya’s self respect was hurt when she didn’t get her due in terms of remuneration. Recalling her time on Kyunki, the actress said, “I faced a lot of abuse for Kyunki; that was my success. I never got an award for that iconic character; no acceptance or acknowledgement was given, even though I deserved it. I enjoyed the abuses. It was supposed to be a month-long cameo, and I worked on the show for seven and a half years without signing a contract. I was the most underpaid actor, never got a raise until I asked for it. This hurt my ego and I didn’t ask for a raise after that.”
Jaya even recalled an incident where she was eating on the streets with a pregnant Smriti Irani when a fan came and pushed her away, calling her a ‘gandi aurat’ due to her onscreen character. “She told Smriti to stay away from me, else it would have a bad impact on the unborn child,” she laughed recalling the incident.
However, she was typecast in similar roles and after she didn’t get the sort of roles that could prove her craft, she left TV for seven years. “I started questioning myself as an actor. Everyone wanted to only give me roles like Payal,” she said.
After Kyunki, Jaya went on to star in some great shows like Banoo Mein Teri Dulhan, Kasam Se, Karam Apnaa Apnaa, and more. To date, Jaya has managed to stay relevant on the acting front, her very recent performance was in Delhi Crime Season 3.
This article was updated as there were errors in the earlier version. This is regretted.
Jaya Bhattarcharya life story (Photo: Jaya Bhattacharya / Instagram)