Ranbir Kapoor & His Attempts To Defy The Loverboy Romantic Hero Image

On Ranbir Kapoor's 41st birthday, we look at how Ranbir Kapoor has experimented with diverse roles and characters on screen and yet struggles with the 'loverboy romantic hero' image

On Ranbir Kapoor's 41st birthday, we look at how Ranbir Kapoor has experimented with diverse roles and characters on screen and yet struggles with the 'loverboy romantic hero' image

Ranbir Kapoor made his debut in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's musical romance Saawariya in 2007. Despite the box office bomb of a movie, Ranbir Kapoor received a lot of appreciation for his earnest performance which helped create an impression the megastar has found difficult to shake off even now--The Loverboy

Ranbir continued the love-stuck hero role in Yash Raj Films banner film 'Bachna Ae Haseeno' in 2008. The womaniser hero that had been played by the likes of Akshay Kumar and many more before him underwent a tonality change with Ranbir Kapoor's portrayal in the film. Interestingly, not many know that 'Pathaan' and 'WAR' fame director Siddharth Anand directed Ranbir Kapoor in the 2008 film.

With 'Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year', Ranbir Kapoor played an aspiring salesman. Yet, despite the critical success of the film and Ranbir Kapoor's performance in the film, a character arch slightly different from the rom-coms he had been acing, 'Rocket Singh' failed at the box office.

RK then went on to 'Wake Up Sid', 'Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani' and then 'Rocket Singh'. While playing a certain kind of narrative acrh that confimed to the coy, not-so-obvious romantic hero image, Ranbir broke out of the mold in the politicial thriller 'Raajneeti' where his character took inspiration from Al Pacino's Michael Corleone from 'The Godfather' film series.

Barfi! In 2012: Ranbir starred alongside Priyanka Chopra in 'Barfi' where he played the role of a differently abled man. Ranbir's romantic persona was evident in the film but his mannerisms adopted from the likes of Roberto Benigni, Chaplin and his own grandfather got the actor massive appreciation from critics and audiences. This was Ranbir's another attempt to transform and break off the 'romantic hero' image but not completely

Ranbir Kapoor then went on to work with Anurag Kashyap in his failed magnum opus 'Bombay Velvet' alongside Anushka Sharma. The crime-drama based on Gyan Prakash's book 'Mumbai Fables; portrayed Ranbir as an ambitious boxer who is drawn into the life of crime. The film bombed at the box office despite receiving acclaim for Ranbir Kapoor's performance. 'Bombay Velvet' was another arch of the romantic hero gone rogue into action and crime that RK played with.

In 2017, Ranbir Kapoor reunited with Anurag Basu in the musical mystery film 'Jagga Jasoos' and despite a different story arch altogether, the film bombed at the box office. Ranbir Kapoor did manage to get positive reviews for his performance as he again tried to break away from the mold of the set pattern of 'romantic hero' who against all odds with the help of his leading lady to achieve desired results.

Ranbir's last release 'Brahmastra' despite being touted as India's first sci-fi film by Ayan Mukerji with Ranbir as Agni Astra heavily relied on his earnest loverboy image for the film to succeed. And, that is a big turn off for any sincere Ranbir fan who keeps hoping that the megastar will outdo himself after films like 'Sanju', 'Tamasha', 'Rockstar', and more. ( All Pics: IMDb)