Shahid Kapoor

However, his performance as Jaidev Vardhan, a man who is sucked into the world of money and greed in John M. Matthan's drama Shikhar was critically acclaimed, earning Kapoor his first Star Screen Award for Best Actor nomination. According to IndiaFM, "Shahid Kapoor is only improving with every film. He matches up to Ajay in almost all sequences." Read Less

His first release was Ahmed Khan's Fool and Final. The film received negative reviews and failed to do well at the box office; Kapoor's performance in the film did not receive positive reviews. His next release, Imtiaz Ali's comedy-romance Jab We Met, opposite Kareena Kapoor, became one of the biggest hits of the year. The film tells the story of two people with two very different personalities meeting each other on a train and how they fall in love eventually. Kapoor portrayed the character of Aditya Kashyap, a dejected young industrialist full of angst and despair. The film was well-received by critics and Kapoor's performance earned him several nominations for Best Actor at a number of award ceremonies, including Filmfare. Rajeev Masand from CNN-IBN noted, "Despite the risk of being overshadowed by Kareena, his co-star in the film, Shahid Kapur leaves an indelible impression with a performance that is understated and mature, and indeed the perfect foil to Kareena's boisterousness." Kapoor then appeared in the Aziz Mirza-directed film, Kismat Konnection (2008), opposite Vidya Balan. Upon release, the film under-performed at the box office. Read Less

The film was released on June 22, 2012, to mixed to positive reviews from top critics. However, Kapoor's performance was generally well received. Taran Adarsh of BollywoodHungama gave a positve review to Kapoor's performance stating, "Not many actors get the opportunity to portray three diverse roles in a single movie. But Shahid carries each of those parts with refinement, besides looking debonair in each character. There is no quizzing his performing abilities either. He pulls the act with effortlessness and panache. As a matter of fact, whenever Shahid has attempted something diverse, the results have been luminous. From playing a musician in Bollywood to a compulsive flirt in Punjab to the unflustered and trendy youngster settled in U.K., Shahid does an exceptional job. Among the three characters, his take as Javed is sure to win him accolades." Sonia Chopra of Sify.com noted, "Shahid Kapoor is so good in the film, he’s sure to increase his fan-following several fold. He’s excellent in each of the stories, and one can imagine viewers debating on where he was the best." Madhureeta Mukherjee of Times Of India also gave a positve review and said, "Shahid Kapoor is best as the badnaam shayar Javed. He uses his boyish charm effectively, dancing like the wind (in Uff and Humse Pyar Karle Tu), and cheekily winning women in every janam. Shahid seduces the audience with his style and shayari, sparking life into this cliche-riddled kahaani." Read Less