The race to superstardom

Reigning kings

Who is a true superstar? Bollywood fraternity debates the question and comes up with a few names that can keep the ‘phenomenon’ alive, writes Roshmila Bhattacharya

“Ihad dreams of being Babu, the guy from Mahaan (1983) with the light eyes... I had dreams of lighting a stick of dynamite with a beedi like Vijay in Trishul (1978), and coolly sauntering away... I had dreams of pocketing the key like Deewar’s (1975) Vijay and telling the baddies, ‘Only one of us will leave this room unhurt...’” Shah Rukh admitted to this correspondent during an interview in February 2000, adding that when he’d come to Mumbai in 1993, the man behind these heroes was ‘the’ Amitabh Bachchan. “Today, I’m working with him in Mohabbatein (2000), and he still remains ‘the’ Mr Bachchan, the hero who fills the screen. I’m completely awe-struck!”

Khan, by then, was a box-office badshah himself, with superhits like Baazigar (1993), Darr (1993), Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai ( 1998), yet, he remained a starry-eyed schoolboy in the presence of not just ‘the’ Bachchan, but Dilip Kumar and Kamal Haasan too. “I get up 10 times and offer them my chair because, for me, they will always be superstars,” he reasoned.

Not so long ago, this kind of idol worship was ‘common’ among movie buffs. Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s Guddi (1971) was an attempt to dissect the malaise, and by cutting a superstar down to size, offering a cure. But to his surprise, Dharmendra discovered that the film made him a bigger star, with real life Guddis queuing up with proffered palms and dupattas for autographs.

And it didn’t stop with just autographs and photographs. Rajesh Khanna’s car would be covered with lipstick marks and he got sack loads of love letters daily, written in blood. Fans from Uttar Pradesh and Punjab still gather outside Bachchan’s bungalow every Sunday for darshan, and on his 70th birthday last year, even performed hawan (rituals) and distributed laddoos. Down South, Rajnikanth and Kamal Haasan are gods, while some have temples in their names.

But, points out filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, even gods are losing their omnipotence, using the recent victimisation of Kamal Haasan over the Vishwaroopam controversy to underline the fact. “The power of these icons of the entertainment world is limited to the virtual world. Outside the darkened auditorium, the real power rests with the ones who pull the string,” he sighs.

Actor-director Anant Mahadevan agrees, recalling the larger-than-life hoardings outside Naaz and Minerva cinema dominated by elusive phantoms like Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand who came down to earth only on rare occasions, at premieres in Metro. “Today’s stars are seen everywhere, and the aura is lost. In the making of Ek Tha Tiger (2013), you see a stuntman doubling up for Salman Khan, and the myth is blown. We know Alice’s wonderland is a world of make-believe and so would rather ‘follow’ a rock band or a football club like Man U than unconditionally surrender to a ‘human’ star,” he argues.

For Mahadevan, the true superstars were Dilip Kumar and Shah Rukh who epitomised romance, and Amitabh Bachchan, the champion of the underdogs. In between, on either ends of the scale, are Aamir Khan, whose versatility appeals to the intelligentsia, and Salman Khan, whose herogiri appeals to the aam janta.

And after them, you wonder, and Mahadevan says he’s pondering the same. “I thought Hrithik Roshan, but while hugely popular, he doesn’t evoke that maniacal euphoria. Ditto for Ranbir Kapoor who’s going steady, but not quite there,” he says.

Ranbir’s is a name that crops up in conversation with Sanjay Dutt who predicts that Arjun Kapoor and Ranbir are the stars to watch out for. Dutt’s Policegiri producer, T P Aggarwal, who sees him as the most likely contender to step into Amitabh Bachchan’s shoes, is also rooting for Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh. “Ranveer came out of nowhere, like Shah Rukh, while Ranbir has the ‘family’ connections and the boy-next-door appeal,” Aggarwal asserts.

Filmmaker Shoojit Sircar has his hopes pinned on his Vicky Donor, Ayushman Khurrana, and Ranbir “if he selects the right films”.

Film journalist and Dilip Kumar’s biographer, Udaya Tara Nair, sides with him on Ranbir. “Even Dilip saab, in his book, roots for the young RK in whom he sees flashes of Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor. Ranbir has the gift of genes and the versatility to be the next big superstar. All he needs is a massive hit like Zanjeer (1973),” she maintains.

Tara remembers how, once, Dilip Kumar, when shooting for Leader (1964) in Rajasthan, found himself surrounded by a mob of frenzied fans, one of whom had thrown his cycle in front of his car and brought it to a stop. Afraid for Vyjayanthimala who was in the car behind with only her make-up person, the star stepped out and walked across to pick up the cycle. “Immediately, there were many helping hands and the embarrassed fan murmured that he only wanted to see the star from up close. With a few words and smiles, Dilip Kumar had calmed the crowd and was soon on his way,” she reminisces.

That’s the power of a superstar, applauds filmmaker Mehul Kumar, recalling a similar situation during the climax shoot of Krantiveer (1994) in Film City. “With 1,500 junior artistes, 500 from out of the state, I was on the edge, but while they clapped and cheered Nana Patekar’s every dialogue, there was pin-drop silence between shots and during lunch break,” says Kumar, pointing out that with the focus now being on visuals, techniques and the Rs 100 crore club, cinema has turned from art to mart and stars have become cheap commodities. “Where are the superstars today?” he asks.

Subhash Ghai, who defines superstar as a charismatic actor who rises above the discrepancies in the script to brings in the audience to the theatres, irrespective of how good or bad the film is, points out that superstars stay around for a decade or two, from 30 to a maximum of 50 years, then fade away to make way for another.

“Salman admitted to me only last month that superstardom is short-lived. He knows that the minute his movies start failing, he will fall from grace. He told me that ‘superstar’ is only a media tag based on box-office figures, and not for him. I agree,” asserts Ghai. “For me too, there are no superstars, but only good actors who can become icons for Gen X!”

Superstars down the decades

* Ashok Kumar: Hindi cinema’s first anti-hero, he picked pockets and stole hearts in Kismet (1943), then ruled for over 40 years as son, father and grandfather.

* Raj Kapoor: The blue-eyed boy of Bollywood’s first family, at 22, he founded a banner that gave us evergreen hits from Barsaat (1949) to Bobby (1973) and Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985). The Chaplinesque Raju made us laugh and cry, and believed till his last day that the show must go on.  
* Dilip Kumar: The tragedy king, lived the role of Devdas, and commands awe, even to this day.

*Dev Anand: India’s Gregory Peck, lived and loved cinema with unbridled enthusiasm.
8Shammi Kapoor: The guitar-strumming James Dean was a rebel without a pause, who filled the ’60s with his war cry, “Yahoo!” 

*Manoj Kumar: Mr Bharat made patriotism the formula for success and created Kranti till the ’80s.

* Rajendra Kumar: The Jubilee Star, plain lucky, who found an equally ‘lucky’ successor in Jumping Jack Jeetendra. 

*Rajesh Khanna: The ‘phenomenon’ of the ’70s, he had the sapnon ki ranis chasing him in his dreams till the dream ended.

* Amitabh Bachchan: The angry young man, epitomised the simmering angst of the ’70s and found able supporting partners in He-man Dharmendra, dashing dude Vinod Khanna, and evergreen charmer Shashi Kapoor.

* Nana Patekar: The crusader who brought a wave of revolution with his maniacal energy and fiery dialogues, once the highest paid star after Rajnikanth. 

* Shah Rukh Khan: From Baazigar to Dilwale..., SRK’s love story continues uninterrupted. The jaan of Bollywood romance from the ’90s to 2013.

* Salman Khan: We still love Prem even as Robin Hood Pandey, who unabashedly plays to the gallery, and is Bollywood’s Most Wanted today!

* Aamir Khan: He never ceases to spring a surprise with every film of his, and even after a quarter of a century, can be expected to create Dhoom at the box-office.

The contenders

* Hrithik Roshan: Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai, he entreated a decade ago, and his fans haven’t stopped saying the words. Picky-choosy, Hrithik’s movies are always eagerly awaited because they are so few. Can convincingly carry off any role, from a wheelchair-bound paraplegic to a superhero parachuting from the skies! 

* Ranbir Kapoor: The young RK can woo audiences as a guitar-strumming Rockstar, and even less, a speechless deaf-mute. On a roll, Ranbir keeps the Kapoor flag flying high!

*Ranveer Singh: He sailed into the industry with a band, baaja aur baaraat and is hoping the celebrations never end.

* Arjun Kapoor: Boney Kapoor’s son has uncle Anil’s street smart charm to launch another Tezaab attack!