After a long hiatus of two years, Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor recently featured in the opening credits of Sharmaji Namkeen, his late father Rishi Kapoor’s last film that has earned many plaudits for its rarity. With Paresh Rawal stepping in to play the titular role, the film saw two actors playing the same character—and it was a one-of-a-kind experience. The Barfi actor recalled how he considered using prosthetics to replace his father in the film, but it didn’t work out eventually.
It’s been two years since Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor featured on the silver screen. His fans are waiting with bated breath for his upcoming movie, Brahmastra, in which he co-stars with his soon-to-be bride Alia Bhatt, along with superstars like Amitabh Bachchan and Nagarjuna Akkineni.
Ranbir started his career with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Saawariya, followed by films like Bachna Ae Haseeno and a cameo in Luck By Chance. By then, he had already garnered a massive fan following. However, it was Ayan Mukerji’s coming-of-age movie Wake Up Sid, starring Konkona Sen Sharma that made him a breakthrough star, and there has been no looking back since.
Ranbir is known for his choice of movies that aren’t quite mainstream. His choices are different—eclectic even. While Ranbir is a terrific actor, it somehow feels, that he’s never hit the heights he’s supposed to. On one hand, Ranbir delivered hits like Barfi and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, while also going on to star in absolute duds like Besharam and Bombay Velvet. However, he always chooses something that’s fun to watch, be it playing the smart Sardar in Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year or a stammering detective in Jagga Jasoos. Ranbir has completed 15 years in the industry and has delivered several hits and flops during his cinematic journey. Let’s take a look at some of his best movies that left an impact on his fans and changed the way we look at life.
1. Wake Up Sid
The year 2009 perhaps witnessed his best films. After the failure of Saawariya in 2007, he bagged Wake Up Sid, a film that made him the star. Even though Konkona stole the show, Ranbir’s sluggish, carefree and rich college boy character ‘Sid’ managed to impress the audience. He was also nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor. Following that, he did Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani with his then-girlfriend Katrina Kaif, and ended the year with Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year.
2. Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year
The film failed to create any buzz at the time of its release but got the much-deserved raving reviews years later. Way before Rockstar, Barfi, and Jagga Jasoos happened, the actor stunned the audiences as Harpreet Singh Bedi in Rocket Singh—one of his best performances till date which unfortunately went unnoticed by the audience, but not so much by the critics. He bagged the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor for this film.
3. Raajneeti
Ranbir as Samar Pratap in Prakash Jha’s Raajneeti was simply a masterstroke. He shed his charming lover boy image and dived into the stream of politics and strategy, which soon turned into an unlikable character. The transition and layers in his character are indeed remarkable and he played it with so much conviction and honesty.
4. Rockstar
The Imtiaz Ali film saw Ranbir pull off two characters in one film. The first half saw him portray a coy, hopeless Delhi dude while in the second, he turned into this flamboyant, angry rock idol, Jordan. This flawless cinematic experience was one of his most loved films of 2011. We don’t mind watching this film again and again.
5. Barfi
Barfi is Ranbir’s best movie so far. Taking a leaf out of the Charlie Chaplin school of acting, he aced the character of a deaf and mute boy with outstanding expression and physicality. The actor left the audience spellbound with the way he emoted throughout the film. And of course, he won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor that year. Because, who else if not, Barfi?
6. Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani
Different people have different opinions about this Ayan Mukerji film and how it revolves around the cliched romantic plot of opposites attract—but the one thing that stays intact is Ranbir’s stellar acting skills. And what we can’t ignore is Ranbir and Deepika Padukone’s unparalleled chemistry on screen. Full points for that.
7. Tamasha
Director Imtiaz Ali, Ranbir and Deepika are the perfect trio and this film is proof. After the massive success of Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Ranbir and Deepika’s fans had to wait for another two years to watch them together and it was worth all the wait. Ved and Tara’s love story was nowhere close to a fairytale romance. Ranbir trying to discover his real self was relatable for many of us on so many levels.
8. Jagga Jasoos
Anurag Basu’s Jagga Jasoos was a throwback to the era of musicals, through the course of which he gave us a cute and loveable detective who sang his way through investigations. Some may not have liked the film or found it boring, but in all honesty, it was a delight for true cinema lovers.
9. Sanju
Ranbir prepared really hard for this film and it showed! He underwent an intense physical transformation to look like Sanjay Dutt in his biopic—and the end result was that he was a near-spitting image of the Munna Bhai MBBS actor. From Dutt’s mannerism to the physique, he absolutely nailed it to the T. He won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for the film in 2018.
10. Brahmastra
Pictures from Brahmastra shooting sets, promotional events, vacations and temple visits are all over the internet with fans gushing over Ranbir and Alia’s chemistry. The most awaited multi-starrer film of the year is slated to release in theatres on September 9 this year. The superhero romantic drama is directed by Ayan Mukerji and it is going to be the first movie that features the lovebirds together. We are sure you can’t wait for the two to weave magic on screen. We can’t either!