15 years of Ranbir Kapoor: Even with no Instagram clout, here’s why he’s still the standout star of this generation

It has been 15 years since Ranbir Kapoor first appeared on screen in his 2007 debut Sawaariya. Even though the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film did not find many admirers, Kapoor made sure everyone turned their heads to look closer as he danced in a white towel to Jab Se Tere Naina. His easy screen presence and chocolate boy image were his biggest strengths, riding on which, Kapoor has created a definitive mark as a leading hero in the mainstream Hindi film industry. Now, 15 years and 30 roles later, Kapoor stands tall as the standout actor of his generation. (Also read: Ranbir Kapoor’s five best movies)

2022 alone saw him in two big releases, both of which were met with a very contrasting response. The fate of these two films can also be seen as a reminder of the way Kapoor continues to leave a distinct mark as a leading man. In Karan Malhotra’s Shamshera, Ranbir Kapoor marked his return to the big screen after four years. It was also his first role in a period action film in which he was playing a double role. Made on a huge Baahubali-level scale, Shamshera was peppered with all the elements of a mass entertainer- a big villain, a progressive caste-angle and a revenge story at its core. Yet, the half-baked story was not imaginative enough to sustain anyone’s attention and Shamshera failed to find admirers and bombed at the box office.

His next release was inarguably the biggest of his career, Ayan Mukherji’s Brahmāstra : Part 1. As the first instalment of the Astraverse, the reception of this film was important not just for Kapoor but also for the Hindi film industry, that was going through a rough patch. Brahmastra opened to tremendous opening on Day 1 of its release and grossed more than 37 crores, adding to a lifetime collection of around 400 crores worldwide. In Brahmāstra, Kapoor’s role was not a far cry from his previous roles- a poor guy who lives in a chawl, takes care of orphans and works as a DJ. He plays the same carefree breed of men who isn’t worldly-wise and needs an intervention to make him realise his potential.

Think Wake Up Sid (2009), his first collaboration with Ayan Mukherji, where he played a lazy, careless teenager who hates college and anything that requires him to act like an adult. Or Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013), for which he reunited with Mukherji again, playing a grown-up version of Sid as Bunny, a commitment-phobic wanderer who only cared for his interests. Both Sid and Bunny are spoilt yet made to look endearing, and what both these man-children need is an Aisha or a Naina to bring them back on track. Kapoor excels in these roles, bringing in these wayward, emotionally distant men a good deal of warmth and poise.

In a Sid or a Bunny, Kapoor immediately invokes a relatability with his viewers, where he fails time and again, and seldom thinks consciously before his actions. There is always a relatability in his projection of contemporary masculinity, that wears itself carelessly around the world. Always there for his friends, never for his own needs. This is a far-cry from the “angry young man” image of the Bollywood hero that has caught a motivation to seek revenge. Kapoor owns the image of the boy who is yet to turn into a man, whose very idea of life exists in water-coloured hues.

To say Kapoor has created a safe space within this image is untrue. Unlike his contemporaries, he has taken chances, although with mixed results. In Raajneeti (2010), where he teamed up with Prakash Jha, he played Samar Pratap’ a deceptive and cold-blooded successor to take his family’s political position further. This is the most Kapoor has come to play an outsider in his own clan, a negative character with a shaky moral compass, and he does so with quiet magnitude. In Shimit Amin’s Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year (2009), Kapoor played Harpreet Singh Bedi, someone completely outlier in his mundaneness. Here Kapoor is not exercising his starkid status even for a moment, as a character who wants to break free from the corporate buildup to start his own company. Although a commercial failure, Kapoor’s performance and daring to take on a role so far removed from a Hindi film actor’s range so early in his career is noteworthy. His noteworthy associations with Anurag Basu and Imtiaz Ali has not been smooth either. For a tremendous Rockstar (2011), there is a flawed Tamasha (2015). For a lively Barfi! (2012) there’s a pinching failure in Jagga Jasoos (2017).

It is interesting to note how Ranbir Kapoor has stayed away from all forms of social media in an age when his contemporary actors are tapping on to the same bandwagon. Although Alia Bhatt had revealed in Koffee with Karan that the actor in fact has a social media account, he keeps it a secret. This also means that Kapoor intends to keep his point of contact with his audience strictly with his performances and film-related promotions. He has long been drawn as an extension of his commitment-phobe characters onscreen, with his off-screen relationships with actresses Deepika Padukone and Katrina Kaif receiving high media scrutiny, but Kapoor has not cared to squash this perception even for once. Not embarking on social media in a predominantly digital age of consumerism has enabled the actor to keep on a surprise factor for his onscreen appearances alone.

Kapoor has always been a persuasive actor, one who isn’t scared to take risks with his roles. Even after 15 years as an actor, Kapoor has created an astonishing range for himself in the mainstream Hindi film industry, an actor that can effectively surprise as well as entertain. Despite the liberties that ascertain the fate of his films, he has emerged as a standout actor of his generation.