Return of the original AK

Akshay Kumar is the flavor of the season. With 2007’s four biggest hits under his belt, he seems to be the hottest property in Bollywood. The ‘Khiladi’ AK will be doing what he does best, in 2008. Whether it is hosting ‘Fear Factor’ or representing the cricket team of Delhi Daredevils or returning to action genre in ‘Tashan’ we will get to see him doing those death defying stunts with a flair never seen before.

So ‘Khiladi’ AK is back to what he originally was known for. But there is something happening elsewhere which hasn’t gone unnoticed. And that is the resurgence of Anil Kapoor – the original AK has returned.

Both the AK’s have few things in common. Both have Punjabi roots. Both are the ones who have always belted out hits and are dependable stars. They both have power of drawing audiences on the first day. They both have done action and comedy with élan. They have always worked with biggest stars of their times – both males and females. They both have seen long periods when they were almost lost in oblivion. They both have done outright bad movies at times like Andaaz (Anil) and Talaash (Akshay). And they both have made successful comebacks many a time. Still they were never considered ‘Number One’ actors by media and critics, though masses thought otherwise. There was always someone else lapping up all the awards barring on one or two rare occasions.

Akshay Kumar reinvented himself with ‘Hera Pheri’ and made poker faced comic acts his forte. Incidentally, no brainers and comic capers have ruled the box office in last 5-8 years. Also because most of the other big stars like Shahrukh Khan starting working exclusively for few people, many independent film makers had no other option than making films with easily available though dependable actors (Read Akshay). Akshay’s associations with Priyadarshan (Hera Pheri, Bhool Bhoolaiya) and Vipul Shah (Aankhein, Waqt, and Namastey London) also have been fruitful and has catapulted him to the top league.

Anil Kapoor’s renaissance story is even more fascinating. There was a time when his films used to release as prolifically as happens with Akshay now. He did big movies with successful directors. Tezaab, Ram Lakhan, Kishen Kanhaiya and Mr. India are some of his hit movies, which any actor would be proud of in Bollywood. Then something happened in 90’s. Khans emerged on the scene and took the country by storm. Weddings and Romance was the only genre which was doing well at ticket window. Masala entertainers started biting dust. All of a sudden Anil was little old for such movies and the times called for fresh faces. Anil did some of his worst work during this period – I believe it must be for money and not for any creative satisfaction. Even in this period he managed to give some remarkable performances like the ones in Virasat and Pukar (He won a National Award for it). But they were far and few. Then by the turn of the millennium Amitabh Bachhan struck gold with the success of KBC and he started bagging all character roles as well. All the successful villains and comedians of last two decades also started playing character roles at much cheaper price. Last year Anil’s daughter Sonam Kapoor made a debut with disastrous Saawariya and everyone thought that that’s the end of Anil Kapoor’s career as a leading man and he would be limited to fringe roles in second rung movies. But Anil isn’t a guy who will take things lying down.

Within months we saw him performing like never before. He was back to his best as Majnoo Bhai in ‘Welcome’. It reminded me of his Ram Lakhan act. Then came ‘Black and White’ and all critics were happy seeing him play a serious role. Next month came out ‘Race’. It is strictly an average movie though it is registering great collections. But Anil is the only likeable character in the movie. His corrupt detective act is totally opposite of what he did in Black and White. This is the mark of a great actor.

So what changed the fortunes for Anil? I believe there are three major reasons for that. Firstly multi starrers have returned with a bang so that gives a huge scope to film makers to take diverse actors. Secondly all kinds of films are being made these days, so dependable and good actors like Anil will always find good work to do. They need not do movies just for the heck of it. Lastly and most importantly, Anil Kapoor is one of those rare actors who don’t do advertisements and very less exposed to public. So with audiences demanding freshness and novelty in every movie, he has become an apt choice. Moreover one can’t keep an actor of his caliber down for a long time.

And with Tashan (Anil is looking great in its teaser) already being touted as a big hit even before its release, Anil is well set to make a “Last Impression” and a lasting one too.

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