Can Ranbir Kapoor make a comeback with Tamasha?

The industry, desperately in need of young bankable stars, had high hopes from ‘Shaandaar’. More so because, Shahid Kapoor was returning a year after the critically acclaimed ‘Haider’, before which he delivered a box office hit in the form of ‘R… Rajkumar’. But the response to ‘Shaandaar’ has been lukewarm in the first two days and the trends suggest that the film is likely to be yet another failure / average grosser for Shahid.

All eyes will now be on ‘Tamasha’, the trailer of which has received a mixed response. Ranbir will be making a comeback after two back-to-back disasters in ‘Besharam’ and ‘Bombay Velvet’, both under the direction of Kashyap brothers. For an actor who could do no wrong just a couple of years ago, the trade is no longer confident of ‘Tamasha’ taking a good initial at the box office, even though the film has Deepika Padukone and director Imtiaz Ali – who has previously directed films like Jab We Met, Rockstar, Highway and Love Aaj Kal.

Tamasha releases two weeks after Salman Khan’s Prem Ratan Dhan Payo and if that film is received as well as Bajirao Mastani, then the opening of Tamasha could be affected, much like ‘Drishyam’ earlier this year. Even if PRDP isn’t received well, Tamasha is unlikely to open as well as ‘Besharam’ and would struggle to match the opening of ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ also starring Ranbir and Deepika in the lead.

YJHD had a terrific trailer, outstanding music, got a favourable release period, was backed by Dharma Productions and marked the comeback of Ranbir-Deepika after their public break-up. On the other hand, Besharam released after the outstanding success of YJHD and had a holiday advantage.

Tamasha will be a huge test for Ranbir. If it works, his career will be back on track. Else, Ranbir, along with the investors of the much-delayed Jagga Jasoos will be worried!

They say, form is temporary and class is permanent. Ranbir is one of the most talented actors in the industry, but since his target audience is at bigger cities and his films rely heavily on multiplex business, where his script sense and choice of films would eventually make the difference. And it’s in this area that Ranbir has failed in the last couple of years.