When it comes to acting, Bollywood has had so many great talents over the years. Unfortunately, there are those, whose talents have not been explored to their full potential mainly because of a lack of good writers/directors. They have been repeatedly cast in stereotypical characters which visibly diminished their talents. Then there are actors, who cannot exactly be called “actors”, who get the recognition they still do not deserve. Here is a list of the 15 most overrated Bollywood actors:
Also read: 15 Underrated Bollywood Actors We Wish To See More of!
1. Tiger Shroff
Tiger Shroff undoubtedly made a mark in Bollywood with his muscular physique, martial arts and dance moves. But when it comes to acting, Tiger Shroff has no talent for it. A good actor breaks away from a particular image and moulds themselves according to the character. Tiger Shroff plays himself in every movie. While his dancing was praised, he was never praised for his acting. And yet, most of his movies have been box office successes and he is one of the top paid actors in Bollywood.
Source: Wikimedia
2. Salman Khan
This might upset some of the people because he has an extremely large fan base. I never understood why. All of the movies that he had done till now basically had “Bhai” in them and not any of the characters he played. Maybe that’s how he chooses his scripts. His influence over the industry is undoubtedly huge and he has launched the careers of many of his peers.
Image Source: Wikipedia
3. Katrina Kaif
She is beautiful, she is a good dancer. But she can’t act. Mainstream audiences in India have always had a soft corner for fairness and good looks and Katrina Kaif seems to fulfil both of those.
Source: Wikimedia
4. Kartik Aaryan
First of all, it is refreshing to see an industry outsider making it big in Bollywood. Having said that, his performances in the movies were not impressive. But he does have a growing fan base because of his sweet demeanour. Which, in Bollywood, seems to carry more weightage than being a good actor.
Source: Wikimedia
5. Akshay Kumar
Unlike some of the actors in the list, Akshay Kumar has been versatile in his choice of scripts. He has one of the most interesting careers in Bollywood. While being heavily criticised for his voice, lack of expressions and getting into the skin of the character, the guy gave the producers huge box office profits.
Source: Wikimedia
6. Kareena Kapoor
She was really good in Jab We Met, which let her play herself. Charming, spontaneous and impulsive. But that’s it. She failed to impress us with her acting skills in other movies, like Heroine and Kurbaan, in which she played complex characters that demanded a layered performance.
Source: Wikimedia
7. John Abraham
There was a time when John Abraham chose independent, out-of-the-box, movies: Water, No Smoking, 7 Khoon Maaf etc. But that time has passed. Now he opts for action-packed movies with more or less the same plot. His acting skills, though never great, has gradually decreased with his choice of scripts.
Source: Wikimedia
8. Sonam Kapoor
I have not seen a single praiseworthy performance from Sonam Kapoor. She was never terrible. But she was never very good either. Yet, she is still getting movie offers, but that can be attributed to her status as a star kid.
Source: Wikimedia
9. Varun Dhawan
He has to be one of the most overrated Bollywood actors working in the industry. I was very excited to watch Badlapur after I heard he has been getting a lot of attention for that role. Needless to say, I was extremely disappointed. That character had so much to offer, yet he wore the same expression on his face which wasn’t believable because he wasn’t convinced himself. The supporting actors: Radhika Apte and Nawazuddin Siddiqui were equally amazing in their respective roles.
Source: Wikimedia
10. Shradhha Kapoor
I loved her performance in Haider. Which is probably the best Shakespeare adaptation of Vishal Bhardwaj (Yes, I am going to just say it. Better than Maqbool). But her performances in the other movies were just: Average.
Source: Wikimedia
11. Arjun Kapoor
Without a doubt, he is one of the most overrated Bollywood actors. I never liked any of the movies he ever did. He was fairly good in the recent film Sandeep Aur Pinky Faraar. But that is because he was in the very able hands of director Dibakar Banerjee.
Source: Wikimedia
12. Sonakshi Sinha
Much like Shradhha Kapoor, my opinion about Sonakshi Sinha is a bit in the middle. She hasn’t been that great in any of her movies yet. But it doesn’t mean that she cannot act. She acts better than many of her contemporaries, but she never chose a script that would risk pushing her acting prowess to the limits.
Source: Wikimedia
13. Abhishek Bachchan
This is a bit controversial. I do not think he is a bad actor. He was pretty decent in Delhi-6, Paa and Guru. His script choices have never been that great. Resulting in sloppy performances that were being criticised by audiences and critics alike. Added to that is his status as the son of Amitabh Bachchan, who is one of the, if not the biggest star in India. This one is for you people to decide.
Image Source: Wikipedia
14. Hrithik Roshan
Despite being an admirer of Hrithik Roshan myself, I agree he is not that great on the acting side of things. It looks like he tries his best to get into the character, but his physique gets in the way. For certain roles, actors need to work their bodies. He played the lead in Mohenjo Daro with the same muscular body as he did in Super 30, both of which were unrealistic. Having said that, he is a terrific dancer, and he looks terrific on-screen (fanboy speaking).
Source: Wikimedia
15. Aishwarya Rai
She is dubbed as “most beautiful”, “perfect”, “goddess”, “angel”, but the typical understanding of beauty, that is to say, the contours of the face is not a talent. It is genetic. Similarly, beauty does not guarantee good acting. It is true for Aishwarya Rai. Which makes her one of the most overrated actors in Bollywood.
Source: Wikimedia
Do you agree with the list of these most overrated Bollywood actors? Let us know in the comments.