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A method actor, a prolific dancer and every woman’s blue-eyed boy Ranbir Kapoor is the quintessential Bollywood star sans a stable career graph. As much as the industry is in love with the aura of this Kapoor, producers are skeptical about casting him.
The 35-year-old has botched up his stardom in the past few years and Rajkumar Hirani’s upcoming biopic release "Sanju will be a litmus test for him.
“Sanju will either make or break Ranbir Kapoor’s career in Bollywood and will decide whether he is here to stay,” said film trade analyst Atul Mohan.
According to Mohan, the film should clock business between Rs 225 crore and Rs 230 at put Kapoor back at the top of the table.
“The trailers have created the much needed hype and curiosity for the audience and we are not expecting an opening Friday with business of any less than Rs25 crore-Rs30 crore but the trend has to continue through the week, the word of mouth has to spread and Sanju has to be at its top game till it crosses the Rs200 crore mark,” said Mohan.
Critiques are counting on both Kapoor’s performance and Hirani’s success rate at the box office. “The first Rs 200-crore movie Three Idiots and the first Rs 300-crore movie PK came from Rajkumar Hirani. So we are hoping that Hirani continues to give the films his Midas touch and turn Sanju into a success,” added Mohan.
If Sanju manages to pull it off well then it will be a comeback for Ranbir Kapoor after half a decade. His last hit Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewaani (YJHD) in 2013 made close to Rs318 crore at the box office. Post YJHD however, Kapoor’s career went through an all time low. Just after his best phase with movies like Barfi (2012) and Rockstar (2011), Ranbir Kapoor took up films like like Besharam (2013), Bombay Velvet (2015) and Roy(2015). The last nail on the coffin was 2017’s Jagga Jasoos that was made on a budget of Rs130 crore and could make only about Rs83 crore at the box office in its lifetime run. Be it an Imtiaz Ali or an Anurag Basu no one could make Ranbir’s films’ commercially successful. The money is on Rajkumar Hirani this time and his track record to turn things around.
If Sanju manages to stay afloat at the box office and makes some money there would also be resurrection of brand Ranbir Kapoor. “Ranbir is a rare actor and while no one has ever doubted his acting skills he desperately needs a hit film in his kitty to turn things around for him. Ranbir 2.0 will begin with Sanju. Going by initial reviews Ranbir 2.0 should have a happier tale to tell,” said brand expert Harish Bijoor.
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