In the 1980s Bollywood got its first superstar in the form of Sridevi. Today when the blockbusters are all male driven, the blockbusters of 1980s from Nagina to Chaalbaaz, from Chandini to Mr.India, were all lead by one actor- Sridevi. Such was her mass appeal that even Actors like Rajnikanth and Sunny Deol played supporting in her films. Sridevi peaked in the late 1980s and by the early 1990s her films like Lamhe, Khuda gawah, Roop ki Rani started getting a mixed response. The audience were ready to have a new queen.
As the 1980s were coming to end, Sridevi had no competition until in 1988 came a song Ek do Teen and thus started the journey of Madhuri Dixit as the next superstar. Such was the superstardom of Madhuri that whichever film she did, became the highest grossing film of the year. 1988 it was Tezaab, 1989 Ram Lakhan, 1990 it was Dil, 1991 Saajan, 1992 Beta, 1993 Khalnayak, 1994 Hum Aapke hai Kaun. In 1995 when Raja became a hit despite bad reviews, distributors felt the film should be named Rani in awe of Madhuri. Even today Madhuri Dixit is considered to be the most successful Bollywood actress of all time.
1995 was a turning point for the Bollywood. It was the first year since 1988 that the highest grossing film of the year did not belong to Madhuri Dixit. DDLJ was the film which ended Madhuri’s 7 year streak and it belonged to Kajol. In fact the 2nd biggest hit of 1995 was also a Kajol starrer, Karan Arjun. Kajol had proven her acting skills and box office appeal which would be repeated again and again in years to come with successes like Gupt, Ishq and Kuch Kuch Hota hai in 1998. While Madhuri had Dil to Pagal hai as a success in 1997, these were far and few and by the late 1990s she was no more a force to reckon with.
If 1995 saw the rise of Kajol, 1996 saw the breakthrough of Karisma Kapoor with Raja Hindustani after many years of struggle. The film earned Karisma a Filmfare Best Actress win and was the biggest earner of 1996. In 1997 while Kajol gave hits like Ishq and Gupt, Karisma followed with Dil to pagal hai, Hero no. 1 and Judwaa. In such times, Karan Johar’s Kuch Kuch Hota hai proved to be a major gamechanger. Not only it catapulted Kajol to the top of the game, it proved to be the breakthrough film for another actress who would go on to reign Bollywood in the 2000s- Rani Mukerji.
In 1999, 3 of the top 5 grossers of the year starred Karisma (Hum Saath Saath Hai, Biwi No.1, Haseena Maan Jayegi). In any other year this would suffice to get Karisma the no.1 position, but 1999 saw the incredible rise of an actress who would go on to become one of the biggest stars that Bollywood had ever seen. Aishwarya Rai rose to instant stardom with two iconic films in 1999- Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam and Taal. Both films were commercially and critically successful with the former winning Aishwarya multiple nominations and her first Filmfare Best Actress Award. After her breakthrough in 1999, Aishwarya cemented her numero uno position in the early 2000s with hits like Devdas, Mohabattein, Josh and Hamara Dil Aapke Paas hai. While her acting talent was often questioned it was not only about films for her. The digital age of websites and emails had just taken off and it was common to find her face as every desktop wallpaper. Ash captured everyone’s attention with her million dollar face and became the face of almost every major brand.
Post Devdas and her tiff with both Shahrukh and Salman Khan, Ash lost out on many Bollywood films and Rani and Preity established themselves as the two pillars of Bollywood through YRF and Dharma films. Rani Mukerjee ruled for four years in a row with hits like Saathiya, CHalte CHalte, Yuva, Hum Tum, Veer Zara, Black, Bunty aur Babli and KANK. Preity meanwhile starred in Dil Chahta Hai, Kal ho Na Ho, Koi Mil Gaya, Salaam Namaste, Veer Zara. While Rani and Preity ruled Bollywood, Ash meanwhile gathered widespread popularity thanks to her international assignments, Cannes visits and dance numbers (Kajra Re).
Karan Johar is responsible for launching many actor’s careers in Bollywood but in 2006 he ended the reign of the top 2 actresses’ of the time- Rani Mukerjee and Preity Zinta with this film Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. Film. Until KANK, both the actresses were at the top of their game, but since then their careers went into a downward turn. Ta Ra Rum Pum, Laaga Chunari Mein Daag, Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, Dil Bole Hadippa all proved to be duds for Rani and thus ended her reign as the Queen. Preity hit harder after her duds Janeman and Jhoom Barabar never made it as the lead in any major Hindi film.
Aishwarya on the other hand did not suffer a fate as Rani and Preity. 2007 was a huge year for her with the success of Guru and her marriage into the Bachchan Family was the biggest media spectacle Bollywood had ever seen. And in 2008 with hits like Jodhaa Akbar and Sarkar Raj, she proved that marriage need not necessary be the death nail for an actress.
But even that could not stop the rise of two actresses in the race to become the Queen of Bollywood. Kareena Kapoor and Katrina Kaif both had a remarkable year in 2007. Kareena had debuted way back in 2000 and after her initial success for her portrayal of Poo in K3G, she gave a string of flops. Hence Jab We Met in 2007 came as a breath of fresh air into Kareena Kapoor’s career, winning her all the Best Actress Awards. While Kareena was often questioned for the choice of her movies, post 2007 she balanced blockbusters (3 Idiots, Golmaal movies) with strong performances in films like Kurbaan and Talaash. However, since her marriage in 2012, she has seen a dip in her career with flops in Satyagraha, Gori tere pyaar mein and supporting roles in Singham and Bajrangi Bhaijaan.
Vidya Balan and Priyanka Chopra were other two major stars during this time, who came very close to be at the top. Vidya Balan was always appreciated for her acting be it Parineeta, Bhool Bhulaiya, Paa or No one Killed Jessica. But she received unprecendent success when Dirty picture and Kahaani both became major hits without any Hero in them. Unfortunately she was not able to continue this success post marriage. Priyanka Chopra started slow with few hits in the form of Krrish and Don, but received widespread acclaim for her turn in films like Fashion and Kaminey. She balanced glamourous roles in Dostana with superlative performances in Barfi and Mary Kom. For the past couple of years she has made waves with Quantico and has the potential to make it big in the west.
While Vidya and Priyanka could not make it to the topmost rung, Katrina Kaif managed to reach there and stayed at the top along with Kareena until 2012. Her string of hits started in 2007, when Katrina gave 4 back to back hits (Welcome, Namastey London, Partner, Apne) and followed it with more hits like Race, Singh is King, New York, Ajab prem ki Gajab Kahani, Rajneeti, Mere Brother Ki Dulhan, ZNMD, Ek Tha Tiger and Dhoom 3. Bollywood had not seen this kind of commercial successful actress since the 2000s. She topped every poll that was conducted and bagged all leading endorsements. But her acting talents and her small roles were often criticized. With back to back flops like Phantom, Fitoor and Baar baar Dekho it seemed that the Indian audience longed for an actress who could balance her commercial hits with strong performances.
The audience got their wish in the form of Deepika Padukone, who is currently the reigning queen of Bollywood. Since Cocktail in 2012, Deepika has never given a flop save Tamasha, with films like Race 2, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, Chennai Express, Raam Leela, Piku and Bajirao mastani. She is followed by Kangana Ranaut who by Queen and Tanu Weds Manu Returns has turned the tables on everyone. Both these top actresses surprised everyone in 2016, when neither of them had a release after being at the top of their game last year. 2017 will be an interesting year for this race as both Deepika and Kangana come with their magnum opuses- Padmavati and Rangoon. After their strong turns in 2016, Two superlative actresses Alia Bhatt and Anushka Sharma have potential to challenge the crown from Deepika and Kangana but the jury is still out on them. May the Best person win.
