{"id":6622,"date":"2016-05-12T19:44:15","date_gmt":"2016-05-12T14:14:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622"},"modified":"2016-05-12T19:44:15","modified_gmt":"2016-05-12T14:14:15","slug":"not-overshadowed-by-amitabh-bachchan-in-gulabo-sitabo-ayushmann-khurrana-holds-his-own","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?p=6622","title":{"rendered":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood’s Most Bankable Lead Right Now?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

I<\/span>f you had to pick one actor from the entire industry who could give you a 9\/10 performance regardless of the demands of the role, the one who would top the list is Ayushmann Khurrana. As an actor, he is as bankable as they come. A Rahul Dravid of Bollywood, if you will. His latest role as Baankey Rastogi in Gulabo Sitabo<\/em> has just added more weight to that argument.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, but as Baankey, he sheds the charm and confidence for desperation and struggle. Working in a wheat mill and struggling to feed his family, the role is characterised by his constant bickering with Mirza, played by Amitabh Bachchan. Their attempts at one-upmanship and sharp zingers in Hindi-Urdu-Awadhi are the heart of the film. As a simpleton who is trying to scheme his way into acquiring Mirza\u2019s property, Ayushmann once again brings his trademark quirk and freshness to the role that we have been so used to over the years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Besides, there aren\u2019t too many actors who can hold their own in Amitabh Bachchan’s presence. There\u2019s the late Irrfan Khan, who met him fair and square in Shoojit Sircar’s Piku<\/em>, Manoj Bajpayee is another one. But as Khurrana\u2019s last few outings, like last year’s Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan<\/em> have evidenced, the young actor is unafraid of taking serious \u2013 and seriously challenging \u2013 roles head on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even though Khurrana has only played the lead in all his films, he fits the description of a \u201c27-percenter\u201d, a term coined by an Empire magazine article<\/a>. It is applied to actors like Nathan Fillion or Chiwetel Ejiofor or Oliver Platt \u2013 you know the guys whose names you can\u2019t remember but whose faces you\u2019ll immediately recall? These guys transcend genres and deliver performances that make a film 27 per cent better by their mere presence. Khurrana will never be Brad Pitt, but he will most certainly become a John Cusack.

Even though Khurrana has only played the lead in all his films, he fits the description of a \u201c27-percenter\u201d.<\/blockquote>
In fact, Khurrana\u2019s electric screen presence and effortless, believable acting guarantees that you\u2019re with him throughout the 120-minute runtime of the otherwise frustrating and uneven Meri Pyaari Bindu<\/em>. The movie, his third outing with Yashraj Films, shifts between the past and the present, called upon him to essay two distinct versions of the same character. In one, he\u2019s the young, optimistic Abhimanyu who dreams of settling down with Bindu and his two children with a smile plastered on his face; in the other, he is the brooding jilted writer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through Dream Girl<\/em> and Shubh Mangal Savdhaan<\/em>, Ayushmann cemented his reputation for playing small-town characters who act as a critique of passive-aggressive masculinity. As Karam\/Pooja in Dream Girl<\/em>, he delivered a rip-roaring performance as a 20-something guy adept at mimicking the voices of women, and the subsequent comedy of errors on account of having such a talent. Mudit from Shubh Mangal Savdhaan<\/em> \u00a0is a character millennials would hard-relate to, as he brilliantly navigated having a \u201cgents problem\u201d in a middle-class family that wouldn\u2019t understand it, and a bunch of friends who weren\u2019t reliable with help.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

You could certainly have been friends with Dum Laga Ke Haisha<\/em>\u2019s Prem Prakash Tiwari, a young, resentful Haridwar shopkeeper. Khurrana charted an unusual victory for a mostly selfish and unfeeling character by making him immensely likeable. When he complains to his friend about how his life is ruined, especially after \u201cshaadi ka tilak laga diya papa ne\u201d, you find yourself sympathising with him, even though you\u2019re aware that you\u2019re not supposed to. The undertone of innocence and vulnerability that Khurrana brought to Prem, despite his inconsiderate behaviour, held up a mirror to thousands of men in small-town India. Shah Rukh Khan tried it in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi<\/em>, with patchy success \u2013 always hindered by his own stardom.

It\u2019s this crazy ability of making every character he plays seem like it was tailor-made for him that makes Ayushmann really stand out.<\/blockquote>
In a way, Khurrana is repeating the role that made him famous. Vicky Donor<\/em> released in 2012, the year that Karan Johar launched Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, and Siddharth Malhotra in Student of The Year<\/em> and Arjun Kapoor made his debut with Ishaqzaade<\/em>. As Vicky Arora, the Delhi boy who agrees to become a sperm donor in exchange for quick money, Khurrana reflected a middle-class Punjabi entrepreneurial aspiration that was simultaneously novel and believable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s this crazy ability of making every character he plays seem like it was tailor-made for him that makes Ayushmann really stand out. But what will he do next? Will he remain Hindi cinema\u2019s middle-class middle-brow boy, forever the 27-percenter? Your move, Bollywood.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gulabo Sitabo\u00a0is now streaming on\u00a0Amazon Prime Video<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he’s as bankable as they come.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":6623,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7083],"tags":[7989,702,2218,10664],"class_list":["post-6622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-features","tag-amazon-prime-video","tag-amitabh-bachchan","tag-ayushmann-khurrana","tag-gulabo-sitabo"],"yoast_head":"\nIs Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Arr\u00e9\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1520\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"850\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Arr\u00e9 Bench\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:title\" content=\"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:description\" content=\"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Arr\u00e9 Bench\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Arr\u00e9 Bench\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076\"},\"headline\":\"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood’s Most Bankable Lead Right Now?\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622\"},\"wordCount\":825,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1592309112.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Amazon Prime Video\",\"Amitabh Bachchan\",\"Ayushmann Khurrana\",\"gulabo sitabo\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Features\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622\",\"name\":\"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1592309112.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076\"},\"description\":\"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1592309112.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/07\\\/1592309112.jpg\",\"width\":1520,\"height\":850},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?p=6622#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood’s Most Bankable Lead Right Now?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/\",\"name\":\"Arr\u00e9\",\"description\":\"In every person lies a creator and in every creator, an enterprise.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.201.39.237\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076\",\"name\":\"Arr\u00e9 Bench\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Arr\u00e9 Bench\"},\"url\":\"http:\\\/\\\/13.207.105.184\\\/?author=30\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?","description":"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?","og_description":"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.","og_url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622","og_site_name":"Arr\u00e9","article_published_time":"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1520,"height":850,"url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Arr\u00e9 Bench","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_title":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?","twitter_description":"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Arr\u00e9 Bench","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622"},"author":{"name":"Arr\u00e9 Bench","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076"},"headline":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood’s Most Bankable Lead Right Now?","datePublished":"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622"},"wordCount":825,"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","keywords":["Amazon Prime Video","Amitabh Bachchan","Ayushmann Khurrana","gulabo sitabo"],"articleSection":["Features"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622","url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622","name":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood's Most Bankable Lead Right Now?","isPartOf":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","datePublished":"2016-05-12T14:14:15+00:00","author":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076"},"description":"Ayushmann Khurrana is no stranger to playing the common man, the boy next door, right from Vicky Donor, to his latest release, Gulabo Sitabo. He has a crazy ability of making every character seem like it was tailor-made for him. As an actor, he's as bankable as they come.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#primaryimage","url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","contentUrl":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","width":1520,"height":850},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?p=6622#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Is Ayushmann Khurrana Bollywood’s Most Bankable Lead Right Now?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#website","url":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/","name":"Arr\u00e9","description":"In every person lies a creator and in every creator, an enterprise.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"http:\/\/13.201.39.237\/#\/schema\/person\/3162a11ec8fc96b1945b22a7db113076","name":"Arr\u00e9 Bench","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/27785a75876f863a9969da540f665bb7d59053f4669b2653c29a6ffd987bcfbb?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Arr\u00e9 Bench"},"url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/?author=30"}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/1592309112.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6622","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6622"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6622\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6623"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6622"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6622"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/13.207.105.184\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6622"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}