Wednesday, 8 February 2023

MULTIPLE ROLES IN BOLLYWOOD


#oneactormanyroles 

It's quite some time back that I took up this topic during the release anniversary of Mahaan.
Since then ( end of April) it was on a Back burner.
Recently again saw Bairaag a few days back on Zee Classic and it brought me back to this topic.

While going about collecting more Trivia I stumbled upon 25 actors whobhas done Triple roles or more in Movie's.
Of these 9 are more than a Triple role.
TRIVIA
In One film 3 actors had Triple Roles
(Saif Ali Khan, Reitesh Deshmukh and Ram Kapoor in One Film Hamshakals.
Three  Actors
Kamal Hassan,Rajnikant and Kadar Khan have done this twice.( Triple or more Roles)
Kamal Hassan did his first in Appu Raja (1989) and DASHAVATAR ( Ten Roles ) ( 2010)
Kadar Khan did a Triple role in
 The Don (1995) and a Year before that Five Roles in Pehla Pehla Pyaar.
Rajnikant did a Triple Role in John Jaani Janardan (1984) and the Photorealistic motion capture film Kochadaiyaan (2014)
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PART 1:
Coming First now to the FOUR Roles and More :

WHATS YOUR RASHI (2009)
Priyanka Chopra plays 12 characters, depicting the signs of the zodiac; each character has traits related to her astrological sign.
Directed by Ashutosh Gowarikar
This had Harman Baweja (Priyanka's then close confidant) playing Yogesh Patel, a Gujarati NRI, who must marry in ten days to save his brother from harm; Yogesh agrees to meet twelve potential brides (all played by Chopra), one from each zodiac sign).
The film Bombed but Priyanka Chopra broke Kamal Hassans record of 10 roles.

DASHAVATAR ( 2010)
Kamal Haasan, who also wrote the screenplay and story of the film, plays TEN distinct roles. Asin appears in two roles and Mallika Sherawat plays a subsidiary role. 
Some critics felt that the plot was confusing and that Kamal Haasan's ten roles were forced, with only three relevant to the plot.
This movie broke the record of 9 roles.Kamal Haasan was keen to break the record for an actor appearing in the most roles, so he came up with an original storyline incorporating Indian religion and mythology.

NAYA DIN NAYI RAAT (1974)
 Sanjeev Kumar (9 roles)
The film is famous as Sanjeev Kumar reprised the nine-role epic performance by Sivaji Ganesan in Navarathri (1964).
Sushma, ( Jaya Bhaduri) a young girl, runs away from home to escape an arranged marriage. On her way, she meets many people, each representing a distinct facet of human nature, who help her in her difficulties.
Sanjeev Kumar's nine roles here represents 'NavRas', the different moods of man as per the Indian art ethos. This is his film all the way. He play lover, a brave hunter, an epileptic, a coward, a transvestite, a drunkard, a poetic heart and a Dacoit.

PRITHVI ( 1997)
Shakti Kapoor played 7 roles
as Sunil Shetty's friend / BellBoy) Embassy Staff/ Mental Patient/ Sikh bypasser / Transgender.
Starring Sunil and Shilpa Shetty 
This had Shilpa Shetty in a Double Role.

HADH KAR DI AAPNE (2000)
Govinda [6 roles]
Govinda enacted 6 roles in the movie. He plays  his grandparents,uncle, mother & sister in the movie.
These roles are situational. See the Video
https://youtu.be/f2Fbb-2vN-c

BADHTI KA NAAM DADHI (1974)
Kishore Kumar [5 roles]
Kishore Kumar as Hero/Theatre Owner / Police Commissioner / Director / Constable in the movie.
It was a comedy with the Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi Trio plus Amit Kumar and Bappi Lahiri ( as an actor)

PEHLA PEHLA PYAAR (1994)
Kader Khan (5 roles)
Kader Khan plays 5 roles in this film, which is a copy of the Hollywood classic, Roman Holiday. 

GAJA GAMINI (2000)
Actress: Madhuri Dixit (5 roles)
In this M.F. Hussain directed movie Madhuri Dixir essayed five character named Gaja Gamini/Sangita/Shakuntala/Monika/Mona Lisa.
The movie also has Shahrukh Khan and Naseeruddin Shah.
Went unnoticed.

TRINETRA (1991)
Actor: Laxmikant Berde [4 roles]
Laxmikand plays roles of Ajit / Akbar / Anthony / Amar in the movie.
Adding the comic Quotient to this action drama.

So these are as I have found the Actors who have done four or more Roles in a film.
Additions , Trivia Welcome.

PART 2 FOLLOWS WITH 
TRIPLE ROLES...,💫
#oneactormanyroles 
PART 2

TRIPLE ROLES.

In Part one we looked at 4 or more roles.
Now the part many were waiting for 
TRIPLE ROLE

Covering till 1990 here (First 10)

Three roles by same actor was first seen in the films 

PHAGUN ( MADHUBALA)
This reincarnation drama directed by Bibhuti Mitra had Madhubala and Bharat Bhushan essaying lovers in a previous birth and husband-wife in the current birth. Madhubala has a triple role as she also gets to play the mother in the previous birth and had a very small role as she dies at childbirth. 

MADHUMATI (VAIJANTIMALA)
This one was a love story-cum-murder drama and featured Vyjayantimala in a triple role giving one of her career-best performances. She plays a village girl in love with Dilip Kumar in a previous birth but sadly kills herself when Pran attempts to molest her. He buries her body without anyone’s knowledge and in his quest to get to the truth Dilip Kumar enlists the help of a young woman, a look-alike of his dead lover. In the third role she is the wife of Dilip Kumar in the current birth.

1970 saw Two unique Triple Roles where the actors took to the screen together.
Actor: MEHMOOD
Movie: HUMJOLI (1970)
In HUMJOLI, Mehmood played the triple role imitating the Kapoor clan by portraying Prithiviraj Kapoor, Raj Kapoor and Randhir Kapoor. 
The movie was a big hit and the three Mahmood had even a song together.

Actor: I.S. JOHAR
Movie: JOHNEY MERA NAAM (1970)

He essayed the characters of Pehle Ram / Dooja Ram / Teeja Ram in Dev Anand starrer Johny Mera Naam. 
They are three brothers Pehleraam (a police constable), Doojaram (a purser) and Teejaram (a bartender in a hotel).His performance was so much appreciated that he went on to win Filmfare Best Comedian Award. 
THIS triple role was 3 Brothers.
Vijay Anand used this triple role to the films advantage.

Actor : SHATRUGHAN SINHA
Film : MILAP (1972)
Directed by B R Ishara this reincarnation saga had Shatrughan Sinha playing Reena Roy’s lover in a previous birth as well as the current birth. Apart from these two there is also a snake in the current birth that takes the form of Shatrughan Sinha to be close to his old lover Reena Roy. Though a weird concept for a reincarnation theme, it was certainly a novel one with Shatrughan giving a very good performance in all three roles.

Actor: DILIP KUMAR
Movie: BAIRAAG (1976)
Dilip Kumar was acclaimed for his triple-role in the film and also received a Filmfare nomination for Best Actor. 
Father and two lost sons .
Directed by Asit Sen
Kailash (Dilip Kumar) loses his eyesight after a car accident. His wife gives birth to twin boys, one of them blind. Before his wife gains consciousness, he asks the doctor to get rid of the blind baby, because he doesn't want his son to live a life where he can't see at all. The doctor's wife leaves the blind baby in a Hindu temple, where he is discovered by the temple priest who raises the boy, now called Bholenath (Dilip Kumar). Kailash feels guilty about what he did to the blind baby and confesses it to his wife several years later. She becomes so distraught that she dies.The second son Sanjay plays a spoilt brat.
Saira Banu and Leena Chandavarkar are the female leads 
Dilip Kumar is simply brilliant in all three roles bringing finely etched nuances to each character.

Actor: ASRANI
Movie: Hum Nahin Sudhrenge (1980)
This film was also directed by Asrani.
He played Three different but identical looking people.
This film is a total fantasy, inspired by a real incident in Allahabad, in the Sixties, when three con-men cheated a private general insurance company in connivance with its staff.

Actor: AMITABH BACHCHAN
Movie: MAHAAN (1983)
In the movie, Amitabh Bachchan essayed the role of Amit, a lawyer on the run and he also palyed the role of Amit's two sons who were twins.
Amitabh manages to enact the three characters with a lot of variation and there are interesting confrontation scenes between the different ‘Amitabhs’ to entertain the audience.

Actor: RAJNIKANTH
Movie: JOHN JAANI JANARDAN(1984)
 It is a remake of the 1982 Tamil film Moondru Mugam which starred Rajinikanth and Raadhika. It was successful at the box office and completed 100 days run at the box office.
Here again the Triple Role was Father and Two Sons.
The father Rajnikant who is an honest cop gets killed by the leader of the gang selling illicit liquor and his wife dies giving birth to twin sons.

ACTOR : KAMLAHASSAN
FILM APPU RAJA (1989)
Father and twin sons
This one was a dubbed version of the outstanding Tamil original titled Apoorva Sahodargal where he is murdered in the father’s role and his twin sons get separated after birth. While one of the twin sons becomes a car mechanic, the other son is a dwarf in the circus.
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TRIPLE ROLES IN 1990 AND BEYOND
COMING IN PART 3 (III)#oneactormanyroles 

PART 3 (Triple Role 1990-2020)

Actor: KADER KHAN
Movie: The Don (1995)
In this film starring Mithun Chakravorty and directed by Farooque Siddique, Kader Khan gets to play triple role – as a Chaprasi Rajaram (peon), a Principal (Amarnath) and a Professor(Raghav)- all in the same college. As the Principal and the Professor, they are in love with the same lady Professor and the Principal at times makes cheap attempts to impersonate the Professor to get close to her. This track is only to lighten the otherwise gloomy underworld drama.

SHAHRUKH KHAN
Movie English Babu Desi Mem (1996)
This film features Shahrukh Khan in a triple role 
The story revolves around a wealthy London businessman Gopal and his twin sons Vikram and Hari. (All Shahrukh)
While Gopal and Vikram are busy amassing wealth, Har is a simpleton and to esacpe this life he gets on to a plane and escapes. However the plane crashes and everyone assumes that Hari is dead. But Hari survives, marries a girl and sadly on the the day of delivery, both he and his wife die and the new-born child is left in the care of the wife’s sister. Years later, the nephew stakes claim on Gopal’s inheritance and Vikram comes to India to verify the claim and comes to know of his brother’s truth.

MITHUN CHAKRABORTY
Movie: Rangbaaz (1996)
Rangbaaz is unofficial remake of Tridev where Mithun plays all 3 roles of Sunny Deol, Jackie Shroff & Naseeruddin Shah.
He plays Inspector Kundan, happy-go-lucky Kishen and a Robin Hood type of villager Banarsi helping the poor and needy. 
Kanti Shah Directs 

DHARMENDRA
Movie: Jeeo Shaan Se (1997)
Our desi He-man plays triple role in this box-office dud which also stars Vikas Bhalla & Monica Bedi.
Dharmendra plays three identical brothers- Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesh. 
Talat Jaani Directs.

JOHNY LEVER
Movie: Achanak  (1998)
Johny Lever also hasn't stayed behind in donning a triple role. He does it in Govinda starrer Achanak.
This is basically a revenge drama starring Govinda and Manisha Koirala where Govinda’s father is killed and Johny Lever is one of the people who help in nabbing the killers. He gets to play three identical brothers – Joni,  Moni & Toni Kapoor. Being the super actor that he is, the scenes are very enjoyable.

TABU
Meenaxi Tale of Two Cities (2004)

Nawab, a popular Hyderabadi novelist, is suffering from a classic case of writer's block. Five years have passed, and stories of substance seem to have dried up. Then, almost providentially, Nawab comes across a young woman named Meenaxi. She's enigmatic and individualistic – and not quite willing to perform the part of a passive muse. But that doesn't deter a rejuvenated Nawab from giving her different personae – she can be the mysterious perfume trader of Hyderabad, the exotic desert bloom of Jaisalmer or the orphaned Maria of Prague. Inexorably, she consolidates her command over the novelist. 

PARESH RAWAL: 
FILM :Oye Lucky Lucky Oye (2008)
Three different look-alikes
This surprise hit of 2008 directed by Dibakar Bannerjee starring Abhay Deol.
Veteran Paresh Rawal got to play three different characters in it- Abhay Deol’s father, a gang-leader Gogi and a shrewd and calculating Doctor Handa and excels in all three roles.

RAJPAL YADAV: 
Hanstey Hanstey (2008)
In this 2008 film directed by Tony, comedy actor Rajpal Yadav tries to infuse some life into the otherwise listless proceedings with his triple role- a father, his flirtatious son and uncle. Though the film’s publicity centered on Rajpal’s three roles, the film sank without a trace and one wonders if anyone ever heard of this film

SAIF ALI KHAN/
RETEISH DESHMUKH/
RAM KAPOOR
Movie: Humshakals (2014)
This Sajid Khan debacle had Saif Ali Khan, Ram Kapoor and Riteish Deshmukh in triple roles. 
There are three different sets of look-alikes which give rise to amusing situations and cause confusion and misunderstandings. Saif and Ritesh have the same name ‘Ashok’ and ‘Kumar’ in all three roles- as two friends, as two mental asylum patients and another set of look-alikes is created by plastic surgery to confuse issues. Ram Kapoor gets to play the role of Saif’s evil uncle, a dangerous mental asylum patient and a disco owner who agrees to help Saif to thwart the evil uncle’s evil plans.

RAJNIKANT
Movie: Kochadaiiyaan (2014)
India's first photorealistic motion capture film, Kochadaiiyaan had Rajikanth in triple role again after John Jani Janardhan.

The Triple and More Roles Saga Ends as of now..
Open to Trivia , Additions , Suggestions..

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