2023 turned out to be a great year for Bollywood lovers as stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Ranbir Kapoor and Salman Khan delivered stellar performances and ruled the silver screen with their blockbuster films.
So, before bidding adieu to this year, audiences especially hardcore moviegoers must take a look at male actors who entertained them with their acting prowess and contributed to making 2023 a remarkable year for cinema.
Shah Rukh Khan
2023 was undoubtedly the year of Shah Rukh. After a hiatus of four years, SRK made a grand comeback with Sidharth Anand’s Pathaan in January. In the film, SRK donned an action avatar and left everyone in awe. The film broke several records at the box office and managed to grab a name in the list of one of the highest-grossing films in the Indian film industry.
Remember the clamorous death knell tolling for the Hindi film industry all through 2021 and 2022? His film literally ended Bollywood’s dry spell at the box office.
Pathaan will always remain special for SRK and his fans as the film marked SRK’s first hit after his sabbatical of four years post delivering a series of duds like Zero and Jab Harry Met Sejal.
After Pathaan, King Khan returned to theatres in September with Atlee’s directorial Jawan. The film once again saw SRK in an action avatar. Like Pathaan, Jawan also managed to strike a chord with the audience. The film collected over Rs 1000 cr. at the worldwide box office. Needless to say, SRK has had a phenomenal year.
SRK did not stop here. On December 21, he came up with his first-ever collaboration with Rajkumar Hirani. Titled Dunki, the film focuses on the issue of immigration.
Its title is taken from the term “donkey journey”, which refers to the long-winding, often dangerous routes that people across the world take to reach the places they want to immigrate to. However, the film received mixed reviews from the audience. It is doing decent collections at the box office but it failed to create the same sort of buzz as Pathaan and Jawan.
Sunny Deol
Sunny Deol witnessed mega success after over two decades with Gadar 2. The film saw Sunny reprising his role as Tara Singh from the iconic movie Gadar (2001). The audience accepted the sequel with open arms and let Sunny’s “dhai kilo ka hath” create history at the box office. After Pathaan, Gadar 2 became one of the fastest movies to reach the Rs 500 crore club.
After the film’s huge success, Sunny at a press event said, “I was quite stressed over the period of time and when this film hit the cinema halls, I don’t know why it felt like God came inside me. I was crying and laughing all night and evening. I also met my father (Dharmendra) and said no I am not drunk, I am happy what do I do.”
Speaking of Sunny’s upcoming projects, he will be seen headlining Rajkumar Santoshi’s film Lahore 1947. Aamir Khan is producing it. Sunny and Aamir have never worked together before this.
Salman Khan
Bollywood’s bhaijaan Salman came up with two films this year. His film Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan failed to impress the audience but Tiger 3 was enough to let Salman’s contemporaries know that he is the ultimate Tiger of Bollywood. The film, which was directed by Maneesh Sharma, grossed Rs 466.63 crore at the box office.
Talking exclusively about the massive box office collection of Tiger 3, Salman Khan told ANI, “It was Diwali time and the World Cup was going on and everyone’s interest was in that but despite that the numbers that we have received are wonderful…we’re very grateful and happy about it.”
Tiger 3 is the third instalment of the Tiger franchise and a part of the YRF Spy Universe with the likes of War and Pathaan.
Interestingly, it also has cameo appearances of Shah Rukh and a post-credit scene featuring Hrithik Roshan.
Ranbir Kapoor
Ranbir is one of the best actors in Hindi cinema. With his versatile acting skills, he has always proved that he is the true heir to Raj Kapoor’s legacy. He can step into any character and make it believable. Animal is no exception. He once again left everyone surprised with his powerful performance.
Animal is now Ranbir’s biggest-ever hit, but has also been criticised for its depiction of misogyny. Kabir Singh fame Sandeep Reddy Vanga directed the film.
Before showcasing his gangster role in Animal, Ranbir revived his chocolate boy avatar with Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar. Released in March, the film had a successful run at the box office.
It has truly been a special year for Ranbir, who has delivered two back-to-back hits. (ANI)
