From playing chocolate boy to essaying flawed 'Sanju': Evolution of Ranbir

One of the most bankable stars in Bollywood Ranbir Kapoor who will be turning 39 on Tuesday is a name that has time and again engaged audiences in his work due to his striking screen presence stellar performances and impeccable acting chopsIn a career spanning over 14 years Ranbir the grandson of the Indian film industrys Greatest Showman Raj Kapoor and son of late Rishi Kapoor has carved his niche as an actor with his diverse character choices He made his Bollywood debut with Sanjay Leela Bhansalis Saawariya in 2007 and since then he has given his fans an expansive range of performancesFrom lover boy to a man ruined in love from a dream chaser to one suffocated under the burdens of society Ranbir has played all his characters with excellence As he turns a year older here is a look at some popular films that bear testimony to his talentWake Up Sid 2009A cult film in its own right this comingofage drama featured Ranbir in the role of an entitled spoiled rich brat who finds his own feet and deals with adulting This movie is literally about him waking up and taking control of his life It made a solid impact with its relatable plot and effective presentationCostarring Konkona Sensharma Ayan Mukherjees directorial debut Wake Up Sid won many hearts thanks to Ranbir and Konkonas ineffable chemistry The film emerged as a sleeper hit at the box office while receiving rave reviews from criticsRocket Singh Salesman Of The Year 2009Though this comedydrama didnt work commercially it sure did establish Ranbirs versatility as an actor Ranbir as Harpreet Singh Bedi was outstanding as he portrayed a dogged salesman who runs a covert computer assembly and service company within a bigger onePenned by Jaideep Sahni and helmed by Shimit Amit it remains one of Ranbirs most memorable performances and brought him praise for his earnest actingRaajneeti 2010Ranbir spiced his career by doing a political drama focused on the life of a specific family Raajneeti which was an absolutely performancedriven film Even in a cast filled with some amazing actors Ranbir managed to stand out by putting in a restrained performance that was a far cry from the cute romantic characters that he had earlier playedHe played the character of a young politician in the movie who is initially studying abroad and has no political aspirations but eventually gets sucked into the political rivalry between the families Playing such a character is not an easy task but the actor was able to bring out some shades of grey hidden in the roleThis can be considered as the first serious film for Ranbir and he definitely made everyone take notice of him The multistarrer was directed by Prakash Jha and also starred Ajay Devgn Katrina Kaif and Arjun RampalRockstar 2011This was the first collaboration of Ranbir and Imitiaz Ali Ranbir breathed life into the complicated character of Jordan who was an aspiring rockstar The lovestruck musician falls in love and experiences heartbreak which brings him the pain that he was told is required to sing soulful songs that seem to emanate straight from the heartHe portrayed various shades of emotions and performed like a real rockstar bagging several awards for his outstanding performance in the film The movie also featured debutant actor Nargis FakriBarfi 2012Easily one of Ranbirs most lauded and loved roles Barfi had him playing the character of a deaf and mute boy in Darjeeling alongside Priyanka Chopra and Ileana Dcruz Gorgeously shot by Ravi Varman under the direction of Anurag Basu the movie despite allegations of plagiarism continues to shine because of its leading manNailing the most challenging role in his career Ranbir outdid himself as a man who refuses to be limited by his disabilities and takes the audience on an emotional joy rideTamasha 2015Imitiaz and Ranbir collaborated once again for this film and the movie also featured Deepika Padukone Ranbirs character in it was helpful for many people who were trying to find themselves in the bust robotic livesReferred to as a masterpiece by many of the actors and directors fans Much like Ved the character played by Ranbir in the film people were so inspired by the movie that some even decided to quit their jobs and follow their passion Though the movie got mixed reviews from critics they widely praised the performances of lead actors but criticized the unsatisfactory togetherness of the plotSanju 2018After a brief lull Ranbir Kapoor bounced back in 2018 with a careerdefining performance in Raj Kumar Hiranis Sanju which was based on controversial actor Sanjay Dutts life This was Ranbirs first biopic and though it was another challenging role for him his enthralling performance smashed box office recordsIt revolved around difficult chapters of Dutts life and hit the right notes with its effective presentation From getting the mannerism of Dutt to transforming physically to suit his role Ranbir did a splendid job in playing the troubled star Sanju got an amazing response and Ranbir even bagged the Filmfare award of the Best Actor for the filmApart from these a special mention is needed for films like Ae Dil Hai Mushkil and Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani which along with stellar performances from its lead cast which included Ranbir were hailed for their mix of foottapping and soulful musical tracks that are even today listened toAlso Read Birthday Special Ranbir Kapoor and his four underrated largely unseen outings While Ae Dil Hai Mushkil which was the story of a distraught onesided lover featured songs like Buleya Channa Mereya The Breakup Song and its title track along with many others Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani was the exhilarating and terrifying journey of four characters as they navigate through their youth and had songs like Kabira Badtameez Dil Ilahi and Dilliwaali GirlfriendHis future projects include Karan Malhotras directorial Shamshera which is said to be a dacoit drama set in the 19th century It will chronicle the story of a dacoit tribe fighting for their right and independence from the BritishHe will also be seen in Luv Ranjans next directorial venture opposite Shraddha Kapoor and Brahmastra which features Alia Bhatt and Amitabh BachchanToday after over a decade in the film industry Ranbir has established his credentials as one of Bollywoods most talented leading men Undoubtedly he has given several big hits in his career so far which are worth watching and many more are still to comeIt is not easy to switch between the two personalities but Ranbir does it effectively enough that it invokes strong empathy from his viewers hence the actor gets appreciation for his work from critics and audiences even for flops films This is a testament to his skills as one of the best actors of his time in Hindi moviesAlso Read Ranbir KapoorAlia Bhatt doing a recce for a wedding venue in JodhpurThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness 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