Ranbir Kapoor: The ‘Besharam’ Rockstar

Article by Navneet Mundhra

Had he born in any other era, he would have been a reigning superstar by now competing only with himself. In a short span of six years (2007-2013), Ranbir Kapoor has not only proved himself as a vastly talented and versatile actor, but also as a huge boxoffice draw with extraordinary pulling power. He has enacted radically different characters with astonishing ease and has featured in movies of myriad genres amply exhibiting his cinematic acumen and spiffing acting chops.

He belongs to a rare breed of superstars who enjoy critical acclaim, awards and public adulation in equal measure. His acting finesse is as piercing and resonant as his fan following. While movies like Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani (2013) and Azab Prem Ki Gazab Kahani (2009) were declared superhits, Rockstar (2011) and Barfi! (2012) fetched him Best Actor award at various ceremonies in consecutive years. Both critics and hoi polloi were effusive in acknowledging Ranbir’s nifty nous in choice of movies. Barfi! was his first movie to cross the coveted 100-crore barrier and his sensitive performance tugged at viewers’ hearts.

Inauspicious beginning: Ranbir started his career by assisting Sanjay Leela Bhansali in Black and the maverick director launched him as a leading actor in Saawariya (2007) along with Sonam Kapoor. The movie was splendidly shot on opulent sets and had mellifluous music but it tanked at the boxoffice. It clashed with another big movie Om Shanti Om, starring SRK, which didn’t help its cause. Ranbir’s towel dance in a song ‘Jab Se Tere Naina’ created ripples but couldn’t camouflage the clunky screenplay. However, Ranbir was wholeheartedly accepted by the audience and his acting drew praise from the critics.

Stairway to stardom: Ranbir’s next release was Bachna Ae Haseeno in 2008 in which he paired opposite his then real-life girlfriend Deepika Padukone. The movie had rocking music and proved hit in big cities and multiplexes. The year 2009 was a rite of passage for Ranbir. The heart-warming Wake Up Sid, directed by Ayaan Mukherjee, had Ranbir portraying a completely different character from his last two movies and he pulled it off with flying colours. The unusual pairing, Ranbir and Konkona Sen Sharma, fine performances from the lead pair and evocative story won rave reviews and accolades.

Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year couldn’t set the boxoffice on fire but it demonstrated Ranbir’s range as an actor as he enacted the role of an earthy surd with felicity. It also showed that he has the courage to pick movies with unconventional themes and subjects. His first out-and-out commercial movie was Rajkumar Santoshi’s Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani which turned out to be the first superhit of his career. Despite the screenplay being corny, the sizzling chemistry between Ranbir and Katrina Kaif, and the thumping music ensured it becoming a runaway success.

In 2010, the political drama Rajneeti opened to packed houses and in a multi-stareer boasting of several powerful actors like Nana Patekar, Ajay Devgan and Manoj Vajpayee, Ranbir made his presence felt and walked away with kudos. He excelled in intense scenes and pitched in a remarkably mature performance. His other release of the year Anjaana Anjani failed to make a mark critically and commercially.

Avalanche of Awards: After the debacle of Anjaana Anjani, Ranbir became even more scrupulous and meticulous in is choice of movies. He started doing only one movie at a time. In 2011, Imtiaz Ali’s Rockstar had him enacting a capricious and complex character with charismatic ease. The movie was a hit but Ranbir’s performance became the talking point and he scooped all major awards that year including Filmfare, IIFA and Screen. Next year, he enamoured the spectators with yet another mind-boggling show in Barfi!. Ranbir got into the skin of the character of a deaf-mute guy like water off a duck’s back and stunned one and all. Though the director of the movie Anurag Basu came under fire for plagiarising several scenes from Hollywood movies, no one could deny Ranbir the credit of conjuring up a seamlessly brilliant performance. Unsurprisingly, he racked up all the awards for Best Actor second year in a row.

Ayaan Mukherjee and Ranbir cobbled together again, after Wake Up Sid, and made waves with Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani. The cracking music, hit pair of Ranbir and Deepika, and stupendous promos worked in movie’s favour and it clocked up more than 170 crore at the ticket window becoming Ranbir’s biggest hit of the career. The scorching success of the movie propelled him in the league of Khans earning him the enviable appellation ‘Superstar’.

Creme de la Crème among contemporaries: As far as his contemporaries – Imran Khan, Shahid Kapoor and Ranveer Singh – are concerned, Ranbir is yards ahead and is running in a one-horse race. None of his contemporary or any actor who made his debut after him – Arjun Kapoor, Ayushmann Khurrana and Sushant Singh Rajput – are in a position to challenge his imperious authority as an actor or as a star. He enjoys an unchallenged and unrivalled position among the actors of his generation.

Shahid Kapoor had an opportunity to establish himself as a superstar after the success of Vivah (2006) and Jab We Met (2007) but Ranbir’s arrival and a string of duds queered his pitch. He hasn’t given a hit since a long time and his bad judgement about choice of movies has diluted his fan-following which he once enjoyed.

Imran Khan is a distant second among his contemporaries. Unlike Ranbir, his debut movie Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na (2008) was a superhit and he later reeled off hits like I Hate Luv Storys (2010), Delhi Belly (2011) and Mere Brother Ki Dulhan (2011). But he’s yet to vindicate his versatility like Ranbir and none of his movies has become a huge blockbuster. Imran is still smarting up from the lover boy image and hasn’t got the chance to portray variety of roles. Also, the turkeys like Kidnap, Luck, Break Ke Baad and Once Upon Ay Time In Mumbai Dobaara! have neutralised his success ratio. He has a charming screen presence and a pleasant personality but is far away from attaining the status where he could claim to ensure thunderous opening for his movies. Also, doing different characters and bagging quality movies must be his credo if he wishes to give Ranbir some competition in the near future.

Ranveer Singh is yet to do anything of note as far as boxoffice is concerned. Ramleela would be crucial to assess where his career would head to. Ayushmann’s first movie Vicky Donor was a hit largely due to fascinating subject and majestic direction by Shoojit Sircar. His next venture Nautanki Saala was a gigantic flop.

Ranbir is in an unusual position enjoyed only by Amitabh Bachchan in his pomp. During 50s and 60s, Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand locked horns for the Numero Uno position, while 90s and 2000s belonged to Aamir, Salman and SRK as they played musical chair to grab the top honours. Rajesh Khanna claimed an unassailable position for a brief period (1969-73) while Amitabh was the undisputed emperor between 1975-85 despite the presence of stars like Dharmendra, Jeetendra and Rishi Kapoor.

Khans’ Kaleidoscope: Despite the relentless applause and boxoffice success, Ranbir still has to play second fiddle to Khans – Aamir, Salman and Shah Rukh – as far as stardom is concerned. The Khan Troika is still ruling the roost and, in fact, they seem to be in the best phase of their careers. It’s rather a testament of Ranbir’s stardom that he’s being pitted against three of the biggest superstars India have ever produced instead of his contemporaries.

When Khans arrived on the Bollywood landscape, Amitabh Bachchan’s career as a leading actor was on the wane while other actors of previous decades were past their prime. So, Khans didn’t have to compete with veterans and after whipping out a string of hits, they established themselves as superstars with Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Raja Hindustani respectively. The same case was with Rajesh Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan. By the early 70s, Raj Kapoor had stopped doing lead roles. Dilip Kumar was at the fag end of his career as a leading actor and Dev Anand too tapered off after 1971. So, the new crop of actors Rajesh Khanna (1969-73) and Amitabh (1975-85) had an open field and competed with each other with fierce intensity.

But that is not the case with Ranbir as the superstars of last 20 years are still going super strong. If one indulges in a comparative analysis of Ranbir’s career with Khans and Amitabh, the Kapoor scion has a better success ratio and more formidable body of work (after their first 10 movies as leading actors). The analysis is also indicative of the fact that Ranbir has learned the ropes of the rapidly, and has displayed exceptional guts and gumption. The key is to maintain the quality of his work which would result in longevity, unabated appreciation and boxoffice rewards.

Recently, Salman Khan heaped encomium on Ranbir and asserted that after the super success of his last movies, he (Ranbir) has become a major force to reckon with. If Ranbir’s next release Besharam, releasing on 2nd October, manages to hit the bull’s eye, he would take a giant leap towards the throne he seems destined to claim sooner or later.

Ranbir ‘Redoubtable’: So what makes Ranbir the most prominent, promising and saleable actor/star of his generation? First comes first, he’s a marvellous actor capable of enacting the wide spectrum of roles with élan. His superb choice of movies is the manifestation of his unerring scrip sense. He possesses humongous knowledge of world cinema and his pulsating passion for the craft shines through in media interactions and in the movies he does. Not only is he a powerhouse of talent, he also beholds the charisma and spark of a star. His demeanour is disarming and he comes across as an exceptionally charming man. The views he echoes are as measured as his dedication towards his work. He radiates Zen-like tranquillity and seems unruffled unfailingly.

Though a supremely ambitious man, he has no delusional of grandeur about himself unlike most stars. He makes no bones about the fact that he wants to be the biggest star and the best actor in the world but he’s candid and honest enough to admit that he has a long way to go despite a stupendous start to his career. On being called a superstar, he says, “I don’t consider myself a superstar as yet. If I’m a superstar, Khans are God. You need a considerable body of work to be put in the same bracket as Khans. They have also contributed a lot towards the society while I’m yet to traverse that path. Probably after a few years of good work, I’ll deem myself as a superstar.”

Being patient and detached are other virtues which stand him in good stead. He firmly avers that after putting in the hard yards and leaving no stone unturned during the making, he gets detached to the outcome of the film at the boxoffice. He’s fairly unaffected by the success and failure as he’s well aware of the intrigues of the show business. The methodical approach and shrewd business sense are backed by the rare quality called detachment. There would be aberrations on some occasions but an actor of his calibre, commitment and charm is bound to reap the rich dividends in the long run.

His father, Rishi Kapoor, once said that the only advice he would give to his son is ‘Don’t take failures to heart and never let success go to your head’. His son is going great guns following his wise words and is carrying forward the luminous lineage of ‘Kapoor’ clan with pride, passion and prestige.