Debuts Gone Wrong: Forgettable debuts in Bollywood

Some of the hapless actors who had the most forgettable debuts in Bollywood during 2013

Very few actors make it in Bollywood. Well, fewer get a debut film to start with. And those who do receive a chance aren't always able to pull it off either because of a meatless script at hand or their own dismal skill sets. Because of which, the blame game can go on forever.

Turns out 2013 -- yes, we couldn't wait till the year ended -- hasn't been an exception when it comes to actors who made their debut in Bollywood. Some of them indeed ended up setting the bar high for themselves while others sank with brickbats from critics. Here's HitList taking a look at those who didn't score much...

Ram Charan
Film: Zanjeer
Verdict: When you decide to enter Bollywood with a role that personifies Amitabh Bachchan's Angry Young Man, you'll have too much at stake - not to forget, too much expectations as well. On both these accounts, this South star fell short of delivering anything substantial to rave about. To his credit, the cop persona did fit him well but not for a long while. In simpler words, it was a terrible mistake to make a foray with the Zanjeer remake.

Poonam Pandey
Film: Nasha
Verdict: There's no dearth of horrible films in our country, not just Hindi film industry. They almost churn out in an assembly line format every second Friday without fail. One of the factors that contribute to this phenomenon is the thriving list of actors who ham professionally. Poonam, who revolutionised the concept of publicity (good or bad, who cares?) with her skin, was the protagonist in this never-should-have-been-made film.

Tamannaah Bhatia
Film: Himmatwala
Verdict: For some reason, South actresses believe Hindi cinema is the ultimate destination. This year too, the industry saw imports as usual. Taapsee was soon joined by Tamannaah in the tepid category. Come to think of it, hardly anything was right about the Sajid Khan debacle. But for a Bollywood debutante with an established name down south, Tamannaah could have done much better.

Sasha Agha
Film: Aurangzeb
Verdict: When you have a voice to die for (after all, there aren't many actresses who can sing), should you really focus on something you aren't good at? Besides, Sasha went ahead and made her acting debut in a movie where she had very little to offer. Other than her good looks, nothing else struck as her dialogue delivery clearly went out of the window. Related: Acting school can't be very far away.

Elli Avram
Film: Mickey Virus
Verdict: In all probability, she's the prettiest thing to have happened to Bigg Boss. The same can be said about her debut film as well. The only difference between the two projects is she's effortlessly entertaining in the ongoing TV reality show while she seemed absolutely clueless in Mickey Virus. Along with the half-baked script, she was the weakest link in the film. Tip: Learn Hindi before Katrina does.

Puneet Singh Ratn
Film: Satya 2
Verdict: When you're directed by someone who made the original Satya, you're bound to surrender yourself to the director. However, in Puneet's case, it might have worked against him. Throughout a disaster titled Satya 2, this young actor emotes with so much hollowness in his eyes that you almost pity him for having to work under such stress. Or maybe that was a deliberate exercise. We'll never know

Leander Paes
Film: Rajdhani Express
Verdict: All of a sudden, this legendary tennis player thought it was a good idea to bring the actor out of him in a spectacularly ridiculous film. Cherished for age-defying achievements in sports, Leander came across as a derailed protagonist. If there's a list of worst films ever made, this one will easily get in. And if there's a list of worst career moves ever made, Leander's will be a part of it too.

Dev Goel
Film: Hum Hai Raahi Car Ke
Verdict: Ever wondered who dubs for the animated characters on your television set? Voiceover artists, actually. Dev, in his debut film, spent more than half of his onscreen time sounding like a Hindi-speaking cartoon character from Disney -- leaving very little space for anything else. He was so lukewarm that he made Adah Sharma look better. If you're still wondering `Dev Goel, who?`, it's alright.

In the club
A list of those debutants who charmed with their performances...

Shraddha Kapoor (Aashiqui 2)

Sushant Singh Rajput and Amit Sadh (Kai Po Che)

Dhanush (Raanjhanaa)

Neeraj Kabi (Ship of Theseus)

Vikram Maasey (Lootera)

Manish Paul (Mickey Virus)

Nimrat Kaur (The Lunchbox)

Shadab Kamal (BA Pass)

Siddhant Kapoor (Shootout At Wadala)

Some of those who are all set to make their Bollywood debut in the not-so-distant future...

Mahesh Babu (Krishna DK-Raj Nidumoru's untitled next)