It would not be surprising enough if i go on to comment that Abhishek Bachhan has still to justify himself on a public platform regarding the fact that he is Amitabh's son. The matter may seem blasphemous but if seen from the viewpoint that the father has been deified and has been a legend of sorts,all due to public adulation,the onus naturally falls on the shoulders of the progeny to justify himself outside the logics of biology. It would not have been necessary,because we have had a Kumar Gaurav,a Puru Rajkumaar but when things are seen from the glasses of reality,the situation seems vastly different from the aforementioned cases.
Abhishek is, to say the least,an average actor.Nothing great about him.No screen persona, no charm,no superlative acting skills,not even a cute face to die for,leave apart the less recognised attributes like dancing and jumping. The fact that there definitely seemed a hangover of Amitabh on him,spells the first catastrophe for him.Its like the audience comparing a similar expression of two people related to each other via family bonds rather than comparing vastly different expressions of a father and a son and then passing out a judgement.The latter should have happened in an ideal case,but what happened was that inspite of being a son,his sub-acute impersonation of his father seemed like a third grade mimicry of a stand up comedian.I can vividly remember the days of 'Dhai Akshar Prem Ke' and ' Tera Jadoo Chal Gayaa' when he desperately tried to re-incarnate his father on-screen.Naturally,anudience would have applauded it but the curious case is that they outrightly rejected it.This not only shows rejection for Abhishek's antics but also for the expression that actors used to adorn in the 70's and 80's.The metro India was rejecting the Retro India. Abhishek was just caught in the wrong moment.
The fans say,he has still potential left.The harsh critics say,he is finished.Men like me say,an actor is as good as his previous film.But I also cannot go on maintaining the same view point for long as there is also a phenomenom called 'success at last'[compare it with Martin Luther King's speech in which he says-Freedom at Last]. But success eludes him.Not mainly his fault but probably the fact that inspite of having a strong backup,he inherently does not excite anyone''s neurons. Lets say for an example,if SRK or an Aamir appear on TV even in an advertisement,the respective fans and non-fans alike do maintain eye-contact with the pixels on the screen and try gauging what's the advertisement about.I personally,have never cared for Abhishek's Idea ad. His Motorokr Ads were a bit interesting but rest he fails to ignite the spark.Ranbir has it,Imran a bit less,Shahid is busy saving whatever is left. It's the natural fervor that he lacks.The zeal that should reflect from his persona is missing. Reminisce the scenes from Dhoom 2 where Hrithik seemed to attract eyeballs and on the other end,Abhishek was seen with a mildly protruding belly.He is stylish but that too in a very narrow frame.However good actor you may be,you need to present yourself in a saleable manner.Here the presence should not be confused with looks. He looks moderately fine,just that the glow,the fireworks that other can generate is somewhere lacking in his dull attitude. Sometimes you can't explain failure.Abhishek is the perfect example.
'Naach' was his best to date. The anguish came through vividly.Yuva seems over-rated to me.Bluffmaster is another pinnacle for him.The last time he was somewhere near zenith was in Guru. But these instances are so sporadic that one can count them on fingertips of one hand.Even Ranbir has crossed that since his debut 3-4 years back. Abhishek comes across as a lackluster metal. The presentation has been wrong.The marketing of the commodity has been quite a bizarre one.He had the best platform.He jumped too.But the grace of his somersaults was nowhere to be seen. The pressure of being his father' son might be a heavy one but even then one cannot explain failure,forget justifying it. Justification offered are many,but worth buying are none . One again might say,he can bounce back,I shall agree,but will this not be a very late bouncing back. One that w ill have no meaning. Because the meaning of success still remains relevant for him,but with respect to the audience,he has lost all such meanings.The audience in general does not care about him anymore. Example-KHJJS sank without a trace. And by that I mean in a certain multiplex in Ranchi,only 19 people appeared for the first show. Now that is insult at face. Must say,the same would have been the situation outside Ranchi also. Some may again justify it saying the theme was not audience-friendly,but then the same justification won't be applicable to MNIK/Swades for the same people. The yardstick cannot change. The writing on the wall is clear for sure-ABHISHEK NEEDS SALVATION OR ELSE LIBERATION!
No one celebrates failure. But Abhishek has to learn that success is vital to his importance. Even if the inherent charm is not there,he can surely keep his dying breath alive by doing the correct roles, roles that suit him,might be a Dostana or a Dhoom again. Even a Dus would do. But trying to win accolades by doing gravity-laden movies like KHJJS is not going to help. Trying to win accolades,when commercial acclaim eludes you is a foolish thing to do.Not only foolish,its blasphemous. I personally feel commercial acclaim is the best critical acclaim. We people in India are so diverse that everyone holds his own opinion.If a film stands the test of so many people's opinion,it's the best critical acclaim. Of course that might not be a reflection of the true critic's[read: who understands the fine nuances of cinema] opinion but that is reflective of an opinion that has passed the anvil of a country that boasts of world's second largest population. Abhishek needs to reinvent himself.He needs to re-innovate. He needs to understand his limitations,his acting credentials. He just cannot fit any character,only a few suit him. Concentrating on what you can do is sometimes better than what you think you should do.Going outside the realms of reality hurts what you can do in practical world.
Wishing him speedy recovery from intensive care unit in 2011.Hope he understands that sometimes it's not necessary to try to be a good actor,it's necessary to be a successful star.A successful star can certainly transcend into a good actor,but a good and commercially failed actor can never be a star.The question is not what you will chose,The question is what will Abhishek chose!! Sustained and recognized stardom is what he needs now.Adrenaline sometimes precedes antibiotics!
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