2006 has seen many great performances from the male actors in Bollywood. It has marked the return of one from a hiatus, some proving they can still churn out the hits, others proving they still have the talent, and the young guns that show that they are here to stay. 2006 has shown us that we have an abundance of talent in the industry and it spells for a good future. Since there were so many actors who made a great impact this year, unfortunately we had to omit some capable candidates. People who just missed the cut are Salman Khan, Shahid Kapur, Akshaye Khanna, Ritesh Deshmukh, Kunal Kapoor, and Siddharth. The saddest omission has to be Amitabh Bachchan. He had a slow year, and we were just not able to fit the Godfather in the list. 2007 will hopefully be a better year for the true number one in the industry and he will be back where he belongs- the top. Well here is the list, the great “minds” of Bollyspice have come up with:
10. Akshay Kumar
Akshay continues to further himself as one of the top actors in the industry. It has been a good year for him as he gave a huge hit with Phir Hera Pheri and a wonderful performance in Jaanemaan. In the past, he has proven he can act as well as dish out hits. He hasn’t stopped doing either and it doesn’t look like he will anytime soon as well. The future is looking very good for Akshay and I’m sure he will be much higher on this list next time around.
9. Shiney Ahuja
Shiney is one of those rare talents who make a big impact very early in their career. Last year he swept all the awards for best newcomer for his amazing performance in HKA. This year further proved that Shiney is definitely a force of the future. He gave two different and amazing performances in Gangster and Woh Lamhe. All these great performances are opening the door for him to sign many promising movies in the future. Shiney has officially stepped into the Bollywood biggies. We know he will stay there as well. He’s one to truly watch out for.
8. John Abraham
John keeps evolving as an actor every year. At first known only for his looks because of his modeling days, he is polishing himself to become a fine actor now. He proved this with his performances in Zinda, Taxi 9211, and Water. Water has become Canada’s official entry to the Oscars for best foreign film. Another feather in John’s cap indeed. As long as he keeps growing as an actor, there is no telling how far he can go. He already has some great projects lined up for next year. The future is very bright for John Abraham, and it won’t be long until he becomes part of the top tier of Bollywood.
7. Ajay Devgan
Ajay has proved over and over again that he is one of the best actors the industry has to offer. He will never disappoint you as he always comes to work and it shows in all his performances. He may just be the most underrated actor in Bollywood especially considering how much better he is than some of the people that get more attention than him. Nonetheless, he has had a great year with Golmaal proving to be a big hit for him and Omkara showing the brilliant acting we have grown accustomed to from him. After all these years, he still hasn’t slowed down and gives it his best with every movie. With the talent he has, Ajay will be around for a long time and making these lists will be a common thing for him.
6. Saif Ali Khan
Saif Ali Khan is the true underdog story of Bollywood. Written off by almost everybody early in his career, he bounced back in a big way with some unforgettable performances and proved he has a position in this industry. This year was no different as Saif he gave us a character no one will ever forget. Langda Tyagi was the soul of Omkara and will define Saif’s career once it is over. This performance alone validates his position on this list, but he also had Being Cyrus which was something different and he gets points for experimenting with his roles. Saif is quickly proving how versatile he is and it is evident that he is ready to claim the top spot in Bollywood.
5. Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh has had a rather interesting year. He gave us a truly horrendous performance in KANK, but then bounced back with a solid effort in Don. Two totally different results from his performances. Whatever may be the case, he was still able to deliver two big hits. That is the sole reason he makes the list. SRK may be used to being in the top of these lists, but there has been too much inconsistency for him to be there this year. It seems as if his time at the top is running out. He still is SRK and has good projects lined up, so it doesn’t look like the end will be in the near future.
4. Sanjay Dutt
It has been a rather tumultuous year for Sanjay. His case is still going on and it will not be finished for another month or so. Although this controversy is hurting his personal life, his professional life couldn’t be any better at the moment. He has given two of the best performances of his career this year. Zinda and LRMB were both landmark films in Baba’s career. LRMB even went on to become one of the top five grossers of all time. Age hasn’t seemed to have caught up with Baba, as he still is showing that he is one of the best actors in the industry. Even with all the legal troubles, he still gets offers, and has interesting projects coming up. When all this legal mess is resolved, expect Sanjay to start right from where he left off.
3. Abhishek Bachchan
After such a big bang in 2005, it has been a rather subdued 2006 for Abhishek. Even with a relatively quiet year, Abhishek seems to be making news all the time. The entire year, the focus of the media was on his alleged relationship with Aishwarya Rai. Now there are rumors of the two getting married. That should help keep his name in the news even longer. But professionally, Abhishek has still been able to get the job done. He gave an amazing performance in KANK. Some believe he was the only thing the movie had going for it. This was followed up by Umrao Jaan where he took the back seat to his lady love Ash, but still made his presence felt. He was also a part of the biggest grosser of all time, Dhoom 2. With three straight successful years, Baby B is no fluke. He is the real deal and will prove it even more so in the immediate future. He has some intriguing projects coming up, led by the soon to be released Guru, which can be a career defining role for him. The rise of a new Bachchan is only beginning.
2. Aamir Khan
Aamir totally busted out of a shell this year. After a four year hiatus, he came back last year with the much anticipated Mangal Pandey. That is all we got from him last year because he rarely gives us more than one film a year. We were treated to two Aamir films this year, and honestly speaking, we are all the better for it. RDB and Fanaa were two of the best movies this year, as well as, two of the biggest hits of the year. Aamir has given outstanding performances in both films, but this should come as no shock as he always delivers. He has proven that he can still deliver the hits as well as the great performances. His future films are limited at the moment, but make no mistake, there just may be an announcement soon for the next Aamir Khan movie. An Aamir Khan movie is always special and it will remain so until the end of his career. The way he’s going, it looks like his future is very bright and long.
1. Hrithik Roshan
It looks like the one year hiatus has surely paid off for Hrithik. After not having any releases last year, Hrithik came at us like a blitzkrieg with two HUGE movies. Krissh and Dhoom 2 were sequels to two of the biggest and most popular movies in Bollywood. The sequels indeed proved to be even bigger than its predecessors, as both became two of the biggest hits of the year. As a matter of fact they are two of the biggest grosser of all time, and Dhoom 2 is the biggest grosser of all time. Most of the success of the two movies can be attributed to Hrithik as he was marvelous in both films and showed to us what we had forgotten after his one year absence- no one meshes looks and talent better than Hrithik Roshan. It looks to only get better for Roshan Jr. as he has a great line up of movies in the future including the much anticipated Jodha-Akbar. He is the number one at the moment. It looks like he will stay there for quite some time as well.
There you have the ten best actors of the year 2006. These ten have surely shown us they are the best the industry has to offer. But right behind them are the people I mentioned right before my list. There are many more actors who weren’t mentioned at all who just may make an impact in the future. 2007 will be a very interesting year for actors. We shall see how many of our current top 10 can sustain their position, and how many new faces we will see. The future is looking good for the actors as well as the fans.
