Lights, camera, comeback

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They say ‘turn every setback into a comeback’ and Bollywood actresses know how to spot an opportunity amid n number of casual offers. The recent buzz of Zeenat Aman making a filmy re-entry for a Manish Malhotra project, Rakhee Gulzar finishing the shoot for an upcoming Bengali film and Urmila Matondkar making a comeback with an OTT series, Tiwari, we can’t help but discuss what makes their comebacks more popular than their debuts. As we list some iconic comebacks in the recent past, we also give you a peek at this year’s most-anticipated returns.

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Last year, veteran actress Zeenat Aman made an Instagram debut and turned many heads. There are reports that Bun Tikki, her comeback film, will release this year. The 72-year-old actress will be seen alongside Shabana Azmi and Abhay Deol. She was in Shimla to shoot for the project in January and Manish Malhotra announced the project on Instagram too. In the post, Malhotra wrote, “The Great @azmishabana18 and @thezeenataman both I have been a huge fan of... from their movies to their songs to their clothes… they are so different from each other and both have memorable movies and cinema moments that we all love. It gives me so much happiness that they are coming together after decades.”

Veteran actress Rakhee Gulzar is also finally returning and that too with a Bengali film after a 20-year hiatus in Shiboprosad Mukherjee’s Amar Boss. The shooting for the film began in Sector Five, Kolkata, and some scenes have been shot at various locations around the city. Her last theatrical release was Rituparno Ghosh’s Shubho Mahurat (2003). She was also seen in Gautam Halder’s Nirban, which did rounds at several film festivals in 2019.

And then we have the Rangeela girl, Urmila Matondkar, who has given hits like Satya. She has apparently rejected more than 50 scripts to plan her ‘perfect’ re-launch with the web series, Tiwari to be released this year. Just like Sonali Bendre (The Broken News), Karisma Kapoor (Mentalhood), and Raveena Tandon (Aranyak) who returned with web series, it would be interesting to see what Tiwari brings for her. Urmila last did EMI, in 2008 and after that a few cameo appearances before returning to the glamour world as a judge of dance reality show, DID Super Moms (2022).

Buzz is that Aashiqui (1990) fame actress Anu Aggarwal is also looking for scripts to make a dramatic comeback. She was last seen in Dev Anand starrer, Return of Jewel Thief (1996).

Pushing the envelope

From Neena Gupta making a powerful comeback by playing a pregnant woman in her ’60s in Badhaai Do to Sridevi’s English Vinglish or Sushmita Sen dishing out three seasons of Aarya (her debut web series) Bollywood ladies ace in their comeback game. Neetu Kapoor had mostly stayed away from camera post her marriage to late actor Rishi Kapoor. While every now and then she chose to do a supporting role alongside Rishi Kapoor in movies like Love Aaj Kal, Do Dooni Chaar, Jab Tak Hai Jaan, and Besharam, it was only after her husband’s death that she was ready to embrace acting all over again. Not only did she return to movies with Jugjugg Jeeyo, which was a hit, she also appeared as a reality show judge on TV.

Shilpa Shetty continues to enjoy her celeb status but didn’t appear in films after Apne (2007). Although there were some item numbers here and there, it was in 2021 when she made her acting comeback with franchise film Hungama 2, in which she played the lead role. Her recent theatrical release Sukhee was admired by the masses as was her role as a super cop in digital debut series, Indian Police Force.

Director and actor Divya Khosla Kumar made her acting debut in 2004 with Bollywood film Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo and Telugu film Love Today. She took a formal course in filmmaking and shifted her focus to direction after marrying producer Bhushan Kumar. But in 2021, she made her acting comeback with John Abraham in Satyameva Jayate 2. Last year, she was seen in her home production, Yaariyan 2.

Comeback queen

When you talk about the on and off relationship of actresses with silver screen, Dimple Kapadia is the first name that pops up. The actress, hailed as the comeback queen, had married Rajesh Khanna even before the release of her debut movie, Bobby which became a huge blockbuster of its time. Kapadia made the first comeback of many a decade later in 1984 when she separated from her husband. The very next year, she delivered a hit Saagar. The actress has continued to work but it’s the past few years that have been a different ball game for her. First a Hollywood debut with Christopher Nolan’s Tenet, then a significant part in SRK’s comeback film Pathaan and who can forget her as the lead in web series Saas Bahu Aur Flamingo. It won’t be wrong to say Saas Bahu... is the first series showcasing a drug cartel run and operated by women in India. So, her gangster vibe in approaching versatile roles is hard to miss!

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