From Debutants to Superstars

Ranbir Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh came with a strong Bollywood connection as their families have been a part of the film industry for years while Deepika Padukone made a dream debut with Bollywood's biggest super star Shah Rukh Khan. Although Padukone's Om Shanti Om is the only film that can be termed as a hit film, the other three debutants are doing equally well for themselves even as their debut films sunk at the box office. So is this a case of acting talent succeeding or a pure case of mathematics where the films are more than the stars available in the market?

Box Office Results

Ace filmmaker Sudhir Mishra opines a box office hit doesn't matter for a debutant. "When you are making a debut what you want is that the audiences should notice you, your acting… your presence should be felt. If the film becomes a hit then that is a bonus," says Mishra, who has launched and worked with many new faces including Shiney Ahuja. "In Ranbir and Sonam's case they were already stars considering their background and lineage. The only thing that has happened with Saawariya not doing well is that their super stardom might be slightly delayed. That's all!"

Subhash Ghai, one of the most successful Bollywood directors, agrees with Mishra. "See for a filmmaker it doesn't matter how the film does at the box office. That is something a producer or distributor will look at. For me I am going to look at their acting skills, how they own the screen in their performance. If I like it as a director then I will snap them up for my next film and that is why as soon as I have the right script I'm going to sign up Ranbir and Sonam," says Ghai.

Potential Barometer

Earlier, when a film flopped, most of the times it meant an end of the actor's career but this is not the case with these young stars. So is it a case of lineage helping them or good acting skills. "When a film works in a niche audience then you know if you take the hero and heroine and put them in a mass appeal film then you will have a hit. That's the barometer of determining a debutant's potential," explains Mishra.

Stardom Made Easy

Mishra feels stardom is much more easily available to stars today. "With corporates coming in, money is being thrown right and left. And they make it a point to hype the film to such a large extent and make the entry into an event. This is okay to some extent but at the same time it makes things a lot easier for the young kids. To be an Aamir or SRK you needed to have 10-15 hit films back to back earlier but today you become a superstar with your first film only!"

Ghai adds that stardom is directly related to an actor's shelf life which is very short in today's Bollywood. "Earlier an actor lasted from 1957 to 2007 but today an actor lives from 2004-2007. That's it! So if actors keeping coming and going obviously every new actor becomes a superstar. Plus honestly speaking all this is only media hype. We as filmmakers or others in the industry don't talk to anyone like they are superstars. They are just actors. Today in Ranbir or Sonam or Deepika's case they are all students and if I am to work with them then I will expect them to behave like students. For us filmmakers you are a successful actor after 4-5 hit films," says filmmaker in a forthright manner.

Tricky Road Ahead

Ghai feels that for him Ranbir and Neil are the biggest winners of this race. "The two of them will go very far. For an actor to make it he needs more performances but for an actress it's more hits. Ranbir and Neil really showed their acting skills in their films and for me they will be here for long. But for the actresses it's all about hits and that's what determines how successful they will be," says Ghai, "In Deepika's case she has immense pressure because she was a part of film that made a whole lot of money so filmmakers working with her will go and tell producers and distributors we have the girl from OSO but that doesn't mean they are serving up another OSO!"

Sudhir Mishra seconds Ghai's opinion. According to Mishra making the debut was the easy part as they had great filmmakers behind them. He says, "That they can act has been determined but whether they can hold a film all alone is what their next lot of films will show. All four of them can act but their true test will lie in their upcoming work. For me the most potential lies in Ranbir and Neil. I think Deepika has a lot of pressure on her because now in her next film she doesn't have the King Khan clout which will bring audiences to the theatre. She is stepping out from that Khan zone and will be stepping out on her own. And that's the case with all four of them. They are great actors… now they need to become superstars!"

Who has what?

Neil Nitin Mukesh – Probably the most successful of the four the actor has already finished his second film titled Tera Kya Hoga Johnny by Sudhir Mishra and has signed a 3-film deal with Adlabs Films.
Deepika Padukone – The actress has been snapped up to work opposite Akshay Kumar in Nikhil Advani's Chandni Chowk to China as well as a Yash Raj film which stars Ranbir Kapoor.

Ranbir Kapoor – The actor's next film is Siddharth Anand's next film made by Yash Raj.

Sonam Kapoor – Although no official announcement has been made the actress is rumoured to be acting in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Dilli 6.