Unlike in Hollywood, not many Bollywood actors prefer to turn to direction — and with good reason. We look at Bollywood actors who turned director and tasted very little success
Rishi Kapoor, Ajay Devgn, Pankaj Kapur, Naseeruddin Shah
Brilliant actors don’t always make good directors — but at least Hollywood tries. In the Hindi film industry, actors going behind the camera is a rare phenomenon.
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And the few who did try their hand at directing weren’t really proud of their work. No wonder here actors would rather set up a production house than helm the direction. With Ryan Gosling’s directorial debut, Lost River, getting panned at Cannes, We take a look at Bollywood actors who turned director and tasted very little success.
Ajay Devgn
Lowdown: Devgn directed the 2008 romcom, U Me Aur Hum. Very few things worked in the film’s favour. Kajol’s superlative performance was one of them. After this debacle, Ajay hasn’t worn the director’s cap again.
Pankaj Kapur
Lowdown: He may have won acclaim for his acting chops, but Kapur’s directing skills have in fact, disappointed the audiences. When his film Mausam, starring son Shahid Kapoor, released in 2011, it sank without a trace.
Rishi Kapoor
Lowdown: Kapoor’s directorial debut, Aa Ab Laut Chalen (1999), neither shined at the box office nor made the critics go gaga. Since then, RK Films hasn’t made another movie — ditto for Rishi Kapoor.
Naseeruddin Shah
Lowdown: By his own admission, his directorial debut, Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota: What If...? (2006), was a terrible mistake. Not surprisingly, he hasn’t shown any interest in directing a film now.
Anupam Kher
Lowdown: Om Jai Jagadish (2002) was supposed to star Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan together for the first time. Had that happened, this film could have turned out differently. But instead it starred Anil Kapoor, Fardeen Khan and Abhishek Bachchan, and the film did nothing for Anupam’s career.
The exceptions
In recent times, some actors have done fairly well in the director’s chair…
>> Aamir Khan earned acclaim for his heartwarming film, Taare Zameen Par (2008). He is known to be very curious about the various aspects of filmmaking.
>> Pooja Bhatt made a notable transition from delivering several onscreen performances to behind-the-scene work with bold films like Paap, Dhoka and Jism 2 to her credit.
>> Abhishek Kapoor couldn’t make become a successful actor but he went on to win accolades when he directed Rock On!! (2008) and Kai Po Che! (2013).
>> Nandita Das is presently active in theatre but her directorial debut, Firaaq (2008), was well received. She’s said to be scripting her next directorial venture as well.
>> National Award-winning Revathy has managed to do well in both departments: acting and direction. Her directorial debut, Mitr, My Friend, won recognition for both her and the lead actress Shobana.
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