{"id":1829,"date":"2016-03-12T00:42:28","date_gmt":"2016-03-11T19:12:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=1829"},"modified":"2026-07-17T19:47:36","modified_gmt":"2026-07-17T14:17:36","slug":"sahil-vaid-sidekick-vikrant-massey-deepak-dobriyal-bollywood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?p=1829","title":{"rendered":"Phata Poster Nikla Hero\u2019s Sidekick"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

B<\/span><\/p><\/div>

\nack in 2014, Sahil Vaid ended up giving a whopping <\/span>16 auditions<\/span><\/a> to play Poplu, one of the two sidekicks of Varun Dhawan\u2019s Humpty in Shashank Khaitan\u2019s charming <\/span>Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania<\/span><\/i>, a modern-day update on <\/span>Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge<\/span><\/i>. Three years, after a 100-crore box-office hit, and unanimous appreciation from audiences and critics, Vaid reprised his role of the affable hero ka dost this March in the sequel, <\/span>Badrinath Ki Dulhania<\/span><\/i><\/a>. Except, the second time around, he had the role handed to him without any audition. He didn\u2019t have to share sidekick duty with any other actor; this time around, he was the star. <\/span>\n\nAs Somdev, the illiterate, lovelorn, and entitled Badri\u2019s bestie, Vaid singularly infused warmth, impeccable comic-timing, and anguish into what could have easily been restricted to being a stock character, forcing the audience to sit up and take notice of his irrepressible talent yet again. And that too, in a film that boasted of a crackling chemistry between its two leads, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt. Somdev is the guy who will not end up with the girl he loves, but yet we can\u2019t help but root for him. <\/span>\n\nIn a year where Bollywood has been plagued by disastrous box-office results, mainstream film letdowns, and inconsistent performances by its superstars, men like Sahil Vaid — ones whose wonted obligation is to make the hero look larger than life — have been a constant. The hero ka dost, until this year, was an underwritten character, solely existing as a prop for punchlines. He was unremarkable and it was difficult to differentiate one from the other. <\/span>\n\nBut, 2017 changed that.<\/span>\n\n2017\u2019s sidekicks have one thing in common: They\u2019ve all risen above weak storylines, limited screen time, and the unbearable weight of the film\u2019s \u201cstar presence\u201d to deliver noteworthy performances. <\/span>\n\n

After Rajkumar Hirani\u2019s Circuit, delivered flawlessly by Arshad Warsi, Bollywood has had a lull in spectacular sidekicks<\/p><\/blockquote> \n\nVikrant Massey\u2019s<\/span><\/a> earnest roommate act as Shailesh in <\/span>Half Girlfriend<\/span><\/i><\/a> was the only redeeming factor of the disastrous film adapted from an wholly unnecessary book. Besides giving <\/span>Arjun Kapoor<\/span><\/a> a masterclass in how to get the Bihari accent right, Massey\u2019s distrustful Shailesh, unwilling to change his worldview, seemed believable in a cinematic universe <\/span>headlined<\/span><\/a> by an actress who is magnetically attracted to rains and a Bihari prince. Massey also stood out in a brief role among the talented women in Alankrita Srivastava\u2019s <\/span>Lipstick Under My Burkha<\/span><\/i><\/a> but he knocked it out of the park in Konkona Sen Sharma\u2019s <\/span>A Death in the Gunj<\/span><\/i><\/a>. As the fragile Shutu, he delivered one of the finest performances of 2017. Massey\u2019s year then, has been the kind of evolution that sidekicks dream of.<\/span>\n\nThere was also Herry Tangri\u2019s (best remembered for playing Yuvraj Singh in <\/span>M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story<\/span><\/i>) Haryanvi sidekick in <\/span>Behen Hogi Teri <\/span><\/i>that<\/span> provided the perfect foil to Rajkummar Rao\u2019s Gattu. As Bhura who unwittingly ends up getting caught in Gattu\u2019s chaos, Tengri gives a face to every neighbourhood best friend, stealing scenes with his faultless comic timing. <\/span>\n\n\"Sidekick\"\n

\n

As Somdev, the illiterate, lovelorn, and entitled Badri\u2019s bestie, Sahil Vaid singularly infused warmth, impeccable comic-timing, and anguish into what could have easily been restricted to being a stock character.<\/p>\n

Image credit: Dharma Prodctions<\/p>\n<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\nMatching Tengri was Rohit Chaudhary in the immensely enjoyable <\/span>Bareilly Ki Barfi<\/span><\/i><\/a>, a film that witnessed two of the country\u2019s finest young actors share the screen. To stand out in a film boasting of the collective brilliance of <\/span>Rajkummar Rao<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Ayushmann Khurrana<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>Pankaj Tripathi<\/span><\/a>, and Seema Pahwa is no mean feat, but Chaudhary manages to shine in a small role. Just like Deepak Dobriyal\u2019s chawl-residing Shyamprakash Kori, in <\/span>Hindi Medium<\/span><\/i><\/a>. <\/span>\n\nAs the large-hearted neighbour of Irrfan Khan, Dobriyal is a complete hoot, whether it is him trying to fake an accident to help Khan\u2019s Raj Batra, or delivering hilarious takes on poverty with a straight face. The actor artfully transforms Kori\u2019s naivete into comedy; especially in a scene where he pushes Khan out of an ATM booth, assuming that his poverty has led him to stealing money. He\u2019s equally earnestly innocent in the scene where he helps Khan clean a floor of his house, mistaking him as the servant.<\/span>\n\nAfter Rajkumar Hirani\u2019s Circuit, delivered flawlessly by Arshad Warsi, Bollywood has had a lull in spectacular sidekicks, but now Sahil Vaid, Vikrant Massey, Herry Tengri, Rohit Chaudhary, and Deepak Dobriyal seem to have come to the rescue of this potentially important character to make sure that the humble hero ka dost does not get cowed down any longer.<\/span>\n\nBollywood biggies collectively took up the task of being mediocre this year and the sidekicks came to their rescue. And 2017 would have ended up being the year where an out-of-bounds Varun Dhawan, a lacklustre <\/span>Shah Rukh Khan<\/span><\/a>, a frighteningly dull Salman Khan, and a misguidedly awful Hrithik Roshan reigned, if not for these fabulous supporting actors, and for that, Bollywood\u2019s gotta bow before them.<\/span>\n\n\u00a0\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a year where Bollywood has been plagued by disastrous box-office results, mainstream film letdowns, and inconsistent performances by its superstars, it\u2019s the hero\u2019s humble sidekick who has wowed.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":103,"featured_media":1832,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[82],"tags":[1464,141,3588,3589,3590,3591,3592,3593,3594,3595],"class_list":["post-1829","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pop-culture","tag-badrinath-ki-dulhania","tag-bollywood","tag-circuit","tag-deepak-dobriyal","tag-half-girlfiend","tag-heros-best-friend","tag-hindi-medum","tag-sahil-vaid","tag-sidekick","tag-vikrant-massey"],"yoast_head":"\nPhata Poster Nikla Hero\u2019s Sidekick<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In a year where Bollywood has been plagued by disastrous box-office results, mainstream film 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