Editors Take: Ranbir Kapoor The Talent You Can Never Take for Granted

Ranbir Kapoor has always been an actor who keeps surprising us. From his debut in Saawariya (2007) to Wake Up Sid (2009), Rockstar (2011), Barfi! (2012), Sanju (2018), and Animal (2023), he has shown just how much he can do on screen. Off screen, he remains a contradiction, private and detached, yet funny, curious and always full of questions when you meet him.

In Jitesh Pillaai’s words:

I watch him perform on the set. His yammering fills the air. He channelises some strange energy from the ether and brings it to the screen. Barfi! (2012), Sanju (2018), Ae Dil Hai Mushkil (2016), Animal (2023), Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year (2009), Wake Up Sid (2009). He never fails to astound.

I’ve known him for two decades now. The first meeting was at Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s home, where he spoke head down when he was asked a question just before his debut in Saawariya (2007). Today, when he sees me, he pelts me with questions. Where do your parents stay?  Who are you seeing?

We shoot the air about unrequited love, older and younger women, his dogs. The wall of diffidence sometimes peels away like paint. He’s a reluctant human being, but a not-so-reluctant actor. To watch Ranbir Kapoor perform and act is one of the small joys of being a film journalist.

He doesn’t answer calls or reply to messages. He’s very contradictory in his behaviour. But he doesn’t play games. I’ve seen few actors like that. For someone fully entrenched in the business, he’s also very detached. I’ve heard enough gossip about him to fill years of purple prose. But he’s a cool guy at the end of the day. And his screen magic is dynamite.

Then there’s him. When some actors appear on screen, the camera does a double take. It follows them like an ardent puppy. It lingers on them, it savours their talent. Such talent is rare, like that of Ranbir Kapoor.

Arguably the best talent we have seen in years. Despite a bizarre launch like Saawariya, RK showed us the entire acting spice rack. You had to engage with him.

Wake Up Sid, Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year, Rockstar, Barfi! are films where he pried open his soul and showed us his scars. The wounds ran deep. How could you not get hooked? It was our coming of age too.

He’s addicted to drama both on screen and off it. And yet there is a remarkable sense of detachment from the business, from people. He can invest in you when you’re with him. And then never call you ever for the rest of your life. It’s this delicious irony that informs his acting too.

You can never take him for granted, and he makes sure he won’t let you.

It’s a pity that some of the films he chose to greenlight were bad choices, but he won’t go down under. Because with that kind of prodigious talent, these are just like minor bumps on the road.

He’s a miracle worker on screen. Everything just lights up. He can make you believe that a man can sing, romance, dance and cry all the time. He can be the darkness and then, in a flash, show you the light.