Bollywood's coolest mom-daughter duos

Some things in Bollywood skip a generation and land intact. Ahead of Mother's Day, a look at five mother-daughter pairs where the talent — and the resemblance — runs straight down the line.

The most vivacious: Tanuja and Kajol. Tanuja lit up the sixties with a sunshine smile and easy charm; her daughter Kajol took the same spark and ran further with it. Same laugh, same unfiltered realness — a rare thing in an industry built on polish.

The most stylish: Dimple Kapadia and Twinkle Khanna. Dimple became a sensation at sixteen and, decades later, was still turning heads in unconventional roles. Twinkle's acting career was brief, but she found her second act as a writer and interior designer (her store, The White Window, became a design-world fixture) — and as Mrs. Khiladi Kumar, married to Akshay Kumar. Style, clearly, is inherited.

The best dancers: Hema Malini and Esha Deol. Hema, the original Dream Girl, could do the Basanti of Sholay and classical dance with equal conviction. Esha never quite matched her mother's stardom, but put the two on a stage together and the family resemblance in motion is unmistakable.

The most graceful: Sharmila Tagore and Soha Ali Khan. Sharmila brought a rare combination of beauty and intelligence to Hindi cinema; Soha, with her selective roles and quiet poise, carries the same genes into a different register. Two generations, same unmistakable bearing.

The brainiest: Aparna Sen and Konkona Sen Sharma. Aparna was Bengali cinema's leading lady before she became one of its most respected directors. Konkona inherited both the acting chops and the intellect — her performances have a sharpness that owes as much to the dinner table as to the camera.