Ever wondered how some debutants reached their zenith of success and popularity overnight are suddenly crashed down ? It’s still a mystery, sometimes it’s just luck as they may have been a fluke or a case of bad career decisions, an attitude does matter, when your head gets swollen with unmanageable success the next step us professional harakiri.
In the first segment of fallen stars who are referred to as one hit wonders we look at five leading men who tasted overnight success only to be dissolved into oblivion thereafter.
Kumar Gaurav: son of the legendary jubilee Kumar (Rajendra Kumar) Manoj Tuli rechristened Kumar Gaurav reached the top league with his debut Love Story(1981) and was adjudged the next best thing owing to his chocolate boy looks and growing popularity amongst the 80s youth. But subsequent releases like Lovers(1982), Teri Kasam(1982), Romance(1982), Star(1982), All Rounder(1984), and others bombed badly pushing him into the unreliable non star bracket within a year of his first release itself. He tried resurrecting his nosedived career with Naam(1986) but unfortunately the movie helped Sanjay Dutt further pushing Gaurav out of the Bollywood circuit.
Kunal Goswami: another star son, Manoj Kumar’s baby boy debuted with the mega blockbuster Kranti(1981) which had around 25 big stars, he very easily got lost in the huge multi starrer. Though the debut was a big success his subsequent movies were a complete no show. His acting was compared to his superstar father but what worked in the 60s was outdated in 80s. Though paired with stars like Sridevi and Meenakshi Seshadri he couldn’t breathe oxygen into his dead career. His last attempt at regaining his lost stardom was the disaster Jai Hind The Pride(1997) opposite Manisha Koirala. He quickly vanished from the arch lights after that.
Rajiv Kapoor: son of the biggest showman of Indian cinema, the great Raj Kapoor, this boy was no chip off the old block. He appeared in the highest grossing blockbuster Ram Teri Ganga Maili(1985), which though not his debut it did make him the next biggest upcoming star. His next releases flopped badly making people realise the blockbuster wasn’t Rajiv’s effort as it were Mandakini’s assets and the showman’s golden touch that attracted the audience. Rajiv was soon relegated to third lead roles in B grade movies like Zalzala(1988) and Naag Nagin(1989). To put it politely he was shown the exit door by the viewers.
Vivek Mushran: the Dev Anand lookalike was introduced by the showman Subhash Ghai with the super hit Saudagar(1991). Mushran got an opportunity to rub shoulders with veterans like Dilip Kumar and Raaj Kumar in his debut. Unfortunately the journey thereafter was a painful bumpy ride all his movies in the 90’S started collapsing at the box office including Saatwan Aasman(1992) and Prem Deewane(1992) both opposite Puja Bhatt. He shifted gears to television in the late 90’s and also played inconsequential cameos in movies but the first brush with Saudagar was his only certified success.
Vijay Arora: when you hear Arora’s name you instantly connect the soulful duet Chura Liya Hai with him. His only confirmed super success is Yaadon Ki Baraat(1973), remembered for its melodious music and a dream run at the box office. Paired opposite sexy Zeenat Aman, Arora wooed the audience with his charismatic charm. But success eluded him in his later movies which bombed badly. He shifted to supporting roles immediately with Roti(1974) and also played guest roles in Ramsay’s horror flicks. His stint with television with the super successful Ramayan(1987) was short lived as he soon disappeared from the acting field.
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