What were they thinking!

Bollywood stars are known to experiment with their looks, roles, directors, and sometimes the experiment comes a cropper

They are doing well. They are very successful. The reviews are good. Their industry rating is great and the money’s asking questions on where it should park itself. Then comes this one crazy, undecipherable move that makes us wonder what prompted that! Time and again, Bollywood stars are known to ‘experiment’ with their looks/ roles/ directors/ acting chops, and sometimes the experiment comes a cropper. This year we’ve had enough and more of that. What exactly were these stars thinking, asks HARSHIKAA UDASI

Ranbir Kapoor and Besharam

This one had to top the list as this boy had given us Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani earlier this year. No piece of art that either, but an easy breezy romantic film which made enough money for him and his producer. Then Ranbir topped it up with Abhinav Dabanng Kashyap’s Besharam . All those disgusting jokes could not be digested by the audience, let alone his fan base. Before the movie, Ranbir was apprehensive and said that he was trying his hand yet again after Bachna Ae Haseeno (don’t remember that one?) for a ‘hero-type’ film. It met with a similar fate, only with more brickbats for Ranbir, as he is now seen as the superstar of the next gen. Not too sad it failed, as it would have definitely deterred the Kapoor scion from signing more such. Or so we can hope! Ditto Rishi and Neetu Kapoor.

Priyanka Chopra and Krrish 3

This one could be a book: The saga of Priyanka and her quest for being on the silver screen. She’s not had a release this year, but she kept getting in the news — for the wrong reasons. Her second international single Exotic did not find takers in the national audience. And her penchant for item numbers turned out to be a pain. There were three item numbers in Shootout at Wadala : Sunny Leone’s, Sophie Chaudhary’s and Priyanka’s. PC’s Babli Badmaash was the biggest dud. Then came Zanjeer , where even the original was an Amitabh Bachchan film all the way, with Jaya Bachchan giving minimal support. What was Priyanka doing there, and why that eyesore of a song called Pinky ? Loud, vulgar, and so not her. We thought that was the limit, till a film titled Ram Leela released, and Priyanka’s new item song (which she kept denying she was doing) Ram Chahe Leela was unveiled. Priyanka, aren’t you the one who’s given us the delightful Barfi! ? Don’t lose yourself in this ‘let’s expose’ mission. Krrish 3 was possibly important because they hadn’t bumped off your character, else you had precious little to do. Yes, even lesser than Kangna, the mutant.

Ajay Devgn and Himmatwala

They say that ‘friends’ is a dicey word in the movies; it’s good to have them around, so as to make your ‘camp’ strong, but a sort of a pain when one of them wants to make a movie, regarding which you aren’t really convinced, with you. Such was the predicament of Ajay Devgn. Sajid Khan is a college friend, crazy since college days regarding this movie called Himmatwala then starring Jeetendra and Sridevi. He comes to Ajay with a revised script and says, ‘I am making a film and I want you in it. Can you guess which?’ Ajay agrees on the condition that it will not have Jeetu-style dancing and Sajid-style vulgarity. On hindsight, it must be the actor’s last-ditch attempt to deter Sajid from casting him. Nothing works. Not even the film. Obviously.

Aamir Khan and Dhoom 3

Why? Oh why? Actually we know why. He has never been out of the news but wasn’t his last big outing 3 Idiots four years ago?

Preity Zinta and Ishkq in Paris

Okay, so you wanted to produce a film and you cast yourself in it. Understandable. But we expected better of Preity than to trudge along the beaten I-am-the-producer-and-I-will-make-a-self-indulgent-film-based-in-Paris. With a new face for a co-star, was Preity expecting to solely carry off the movie whose release was hindered several times? Why, her character was bizarrely named Ishkq in Ishkq in Paris !

Kangna Ranaut and Rajjo

We cannot say that the absence of a male lead did Rajjo in. The want of any lead at all did it. When the season began, she had the never-seen-before mutant act in Krrish 3 , the nautch girl in Rajjo and Vikas Bahl’s Queen . It’s two down and no thumbs up yet.