What could've been!!

Over the years, Bollywood has given birth to many stars and superstars, who've dazzled, awed and entertained us on their way to the top. Some have sustained it over many years. Others have come and gone. This is a look at a few, who've not been able to sustain or reach the heights they were supposed to due to lack of drive, bad luck, personal tragedies or any other reason.

1) Bhagyashree- MPK made Salman a star but it was Bhagyashree who captured the nation and he'll be the first one to tell you that. She literally had lineups of producers outside her house but decided to get married(arranged) and not pursue her acting career, choosing to become a house-wife. She later changed her mind towards films, but only on the condition that her husband would be her hero, everytime. She was such a star that one brave producer did take the risk. The film was a massive disaster and we wouldn't hear from Bhagyashree for a long time. What could've been...

2) Divya Bharti- If tabloids are to be believed, mostly all of Bollywood felt that Divya Bharti was the most perfect Indian heroine EVER and it was only a matter of time before she would dethrone the big three(Madhuri, Sridevi, Juhi). Her boxoffice score was mediocre but that hardly mattered as she was being compared to Madhuri and Madhubala after just a couple of films. Could she have been the biggest female superstar of all time like many predicted? I guess we'll never know as a untimely tragic death put an end to all speculation. RIP

3) Abhay Deol- Abhay made Indies cool before any of the big studios got on board. While he was never touted to be the next big thing, he had built a very solid fan base with his choice of films. Then he got cocky. From public spats with his own producers, to publicly blasting the way the industry worked to rejecting rather harshly many scripts, Abhay did all the wrong things. Then in the middle of his best career phase(OLLO, Dev D, ECKLL) he decided to move to NYC for a year to try his hand at glass welding. Things would not be the same when he returned. If only he would've played his cards right, Abhay would very well still be relevant in the age when all the big studios are backing good scripts.

4) Hrithik Roshan- Surprisingly, Hrithik has made my list even though he's very much a superstar. Its just that he could've been THE SUPERSTAR. Hrithik had a start that most actors can only dream of. His father. Rakesh Roshan, compared this overnight stardom to Rajesh Khanna(widely considered the biggest superstar of Indian cinema). But that would more or less be the peak of Hrithik mania. He would go on to give more blockbusters but always seemed to lag behind the KHAN trio. He failed to capitalize on this dream start with mediocre films and decent, but not great performances which were far and few in between. If only he would've done more films, better films outside his father's banner and been more involved in his career. Many felt this was the start of the Hrithik era but unfortunately he will be a footnote in the KHAN era due to his personal choices. Nobody remembers #4, just ask Jeetendra.

Agree? Disagree? Who do you think could've been much more...add to the list.

Very random and I don't know why I remember this, but when Hrithik mania was at its peak some random astrologer had said that he would never be number one though he would always be successful and have a lot of industry goodwill. He had also said that the Khans would rule for the next 15-20 years (this was when all three Khans were down on their luck). I distinctly remember this because everyone thought he was crazy. I don't even follow astrology but for some reason this keeps coming back to me because it was so eerily accurate, lol.

I don't if I would include Hrithik in this list. He's done fairly well...The Khans, however, are on a whole different level that I don't think anyone in the future can match up to. Just a personal opinion. (I love HR)!

Interesting topic.

Agree and disagree on Hrithik Roshan. Agree because at one point it definitely looked like he would be number one and enjoy that status for a few years. Disagree because relative to others on your list he is doing extremely well for himself. Also the whole "number one" concept doesn't even seem to exist anymore. It was more a 90s thing. Now a days it's the 3 Khans who are circling the top positions.

As for adding to your list, the only name that pops into my head is Pooja Bhatt. Her first film Daddy was a critical success and the next two, DHKMN and Sadak were hits. I'm sure she had other hits to her credit but she was never able to regain the momentum she had after the first three movies. At one point she was considered a threat to Juhi Chawla who was considered a threat to Madhuri Dixit. I don't know what happened? I think if she was in today's time she might have had more success. Some of her movies were too off beat for the 90s. And it looked like she was in the news more for her personal life than her professional life.

Hrithik is a huge mega star but if he did more films maybe he would have been the undisputed no . 1 . Then again that's only if those films would've worked . But 2005 , 2007 , 2009 he had nothing . Those were his prime years so who knows

I really liked 3) and 4). I like them both.

I loved Abhay's films. He was at the right place at the right time. He was doing different films, which definitely got him noticed. But I am not sure if he will come up again. He is a talented actor, and someone with great potential.

I was a huge fan of Hrithik after KNPH and in some ways I still am a fan of him (just can't praise him 24/7). He was an overnight success and he had a lot of fans after KNPH. I watched most of his shitty movies in the theater too. I think the flops terrified him. He stopped doing too many movies and started focusing on a few of them, which was a good move at the time, because his career did pick up again. But he should have taken a few more risks. He can still do more movies and almost all Hrithik fans will agree - they want to see more of Hrithik.

Apart from Divya Bharti everyone got what they deserved. Death didn't give her a chance.

Hrithik just didn't do enough films...didn't quite capitalise on his early success as well as he should have...but nevertheless still a huge star

Vivek Oberoi is one name that comes to my mind. Another is Shahid. If their personalities were different and they had known how to cash in to success they could have done better.

Originally posted by: RockChicGirl

Apart from Divya Bharti everyone got what they deserved. Death didn't give her a chance.

Here's something to ponder about Divya Bharti. Her death, very tragic and sad as it would be for anyone who's only 23/24, has immortalized her. Every time her name comes up we all have the same reaction that she would have been a huge superstar had she lived. But, would she have? She was at a very good place in Bollywood and was going up. However, she was also secretly married at the height of her career in the early 90s. How long would she have been able to keep that marriage a secret? And in the early to mid 90s what would have happened to her career once it was out that she was married? I do wonder if had she lived she might have gone the Farah (Tabu's sister) and Ayesha Jhulka route.

How many releases did she have after her death? If I'm not wrong none of those did well did they?