From write-offs to right-ons

The next time, when an actor is down and out, don’t count him out of the game just yet. Vivek Oberoi and other stars have managed to bring their careers back from the brink. J Kothari explores the phenomenon

IN the early 1970s, it looked as though the sun would never set on Rajesh Khanna’s superstardom `85 but it did. The almost-total eclipse happened in the mid-’70s when film after film of his sank deeper than the Titanic, submerging his career along with it. Rajesh Khanna is fond of telling the story about how, pushed to his limits, he went up to the terrace of his bungalow and had an anguished conversation with God in the pouring rain. Divine intervention, or not, his career took a sharp u-turn and he had his first success, Amardeep, after years.

Subsequently, with two more hits (Avtaar and Souten), he became a huge star all over again – something which would have been deemed impossible in his darkest hour. Such stories are inspiration for all those who say there are "No second acts in public life." Bollywood has witnessed several startling reversal of fortunes, in which stars have managed to bring their careers back from the brink.

Vivek Oberoi is the latest example. Time was when Vivek Oberoi was the hottest potential star after he delivered a one-two knockout punch with Company and Saathiya in the same year, 2002. But the young star’s attitude did not win him many friends in the industry and the Salman imbroglio worsened the situation. The ultimate blow was the way in which his important films (Yuva, Kyon Ho Gaya Na, Kisna, Home Delivery) all fell like nine pins at the box office. Vivek became an object of ridicule within the industry. There came a time when it looked as though he could do nothing right.

Vivek hung in there, ignored the sniggers, and gave his all to an author-backed role in Shootout. And with the critical and commercial success of his latest film, Shootout, Vivek successfully smashed the hermetic shield around success. Today, everyone is interested in Vivek once again and he can ask for a multi-zero price tag. The relieved 30-year old breathes sigh of relief and says "I am so happy. I knew Shootout would be successful."

As his Shootout co-star Sunil Shetty, himself a survivor of the wild swings of fortune, had said: "The industry forgets and forgives easily. One hit after a string of flops and you are happily welcomed." Vivek is not alone. Cataclysmic changes in the careers of stars have resulted in comeback stories that boggle the mind. When Sanjay Dutt took a break from his career and cleaned himself out in the mid-1980s, few expected him to be able to woo success again. But he did. What was even more surprising was the way his career rebounded after his jail term in the mid-1990s. To Sanjay’s credit, he did not give up under the weight of his troubles; but worked on his looks and performances.

When he returned from jail, Sanjay had not worked for years, but he slogged on, ignored initial disappointments like Daud and Dushman, and sprang back with Vaastav. Amitabh Bachchan too fought back furiously when fate suddenly dealt the superstar a bad deal in the late 1990s. His films like Mrityudaata and Lal Baadshah were drawing ridicule, his age seemed to preclude him from hero roles and his unsuccessful business venture ABCL had put him in the red for a dizzying number of crores.

With his back to the wall, Amitabh dared to do the unthinkable – host a TV programme (Kaun Banega Karodpati)! But it turned his life around. The obituary for Hrithik’s career too had almost been written when the actor, who had come in like a whirlwind with Kaho N Pyar Hai, seemed to dissipate like a leaky balloon after being pricked by a string of disappointments (Yaadein, Aap Mujhe Achhe Lagne Lage, Mujhse Dosti Karoge, Main Prem Ki Deewani Hoon). It was his stunning performance in dad Rakesh Roshan’s Koi Mil Gaya which brought Hrithik’s floundering career back on track.

For heroines, it becomes difficult to make a comeback after a long dry spell because of the age factor. Setbacks in the initial years however can be surmounted. After her debut in Narsimha, Urmila’s career was rocked by many a flop like Shriman Aashiq and Aa Gale Lag Jaa. "Nobody was as royally written off as I was," Urmila admits. Urmila, however, proved all dictats wrong with Rangeela. The go-nowhere heroine became so hot that people broke the glass panes in theatre lobbies to get her posters.

Recently, Ash too survived a misguided attempt to break into Hollywood, several flops and fallings-out with leading heroes Shah Rukh, Aamir and Salman to make a stunning return to form with Dhoom 2 and Guru. But this was after the rumbling wheels of her career had jammed at the top and slipped into reverse gear. She had had no hit for four years between Devdas (2002) and Dhoom 2 (2006) and actually had to do an item number to facilitate a return to the Yash Chopra camp.

It is these success stories that keeps a Govinda or a Bobby still in the fray today, trying to hitch onto the rainbow again. With the nature of Bollywood fortunes being what it is, anybody trying to make predictions ends up as confused as a chameleon crossing a multi-coloured shirt.

— Bollywood News Services

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