An actress from the 90s once said fans do not easily accept that their stars are aging as it also means that they are no longer in their prime.
Hey you all mamas and papas of teenagers, if you were a 90s kid, do you still swoon over your teenage crush? There are quite a few of the same vintage who are still around and trying hard to be relevant. However, many others proved to be a one-wonder or only-a-few-movies-wonder. But boy, what rage they were when they burst onto the scene.
Mamta Kulkarni
One of the most popular actresses of that decade, Mamta is today not much to be seen. She broke onto the scene with a bold and controversial photo shoot for a magazine. Some of her movies like ‘Karan Arjun’ did exceptionally well and are considered cult today. She was one of the Marathi girls who managed to make it big in the B-town with Madhuri Dixit, Sonali Bendre, Ashwini Bhave, and Varsha Usgaonkar being others.
Fate had something else in store for her. Work dried up for Mamata and she slowly faded into oblivion. Later on, it was also alleged that she was reportedly involved in a drug racket.
‘Kabhie Tum Kabhie Hum’ is her last known Hindi movie after which she reportedly did a Bangladeshi movie in 2003.
Anu Agarwal & Rahul Roy
Fans of ‘Aashiqui 2’ will hardly believe that the first installment of the movie was an even bigger hit. Its songs were nothing less than an anthem for the youth then. With ‘Aashiqui’ Mahesh Bhatt launched two actors - Rahul Roy and Anu Aggarwal. Despite having a smashing debut, both of them could not achieve great heights in their careers. While Anu’s last movie was ‘Return of Jewel Thief’ in 1996, Rahul went on to participate in ‘Bigg Boss’ and win it. Today, Anu believes that she was “ahead of times” in her personal life and it did cost her.
Ronit Roy
‘Yeh Akha India Jaanta Hai....’ the mere mention of these lyrics will flood back images of a young and handsome youth dancing to this hit song. However, despite the foot-tapping number making him a household name, success eluded him in movies. Not to give up so easily, he went on to play some iconic roles on the small screen. His portrayal of Mr. Bajaj in ‘Kasauti Zindagi Ki’ was highly appreciated. He also successfully played Mihir in ‘Kyun Ki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’ and that led to a second stint in his career. Today, he is a part of several big movies and TV shows as a character artist and is one of the most sought-after actors.
Divya Bharti
Once touted as a carbon copy of Sridevi, or her successor when it came to looks, Divya Bharti’s story is one that of a talented life cut short by the cruel hands of fate. Just within a work span of not more than five years, she delivered mega hits like ‘Deewana’ and ‘Shola aur Shabnam.’ In a short span, she acted in 21 films. Her untimely death in 1993 is a tragedy still shrouded in mystery.
Sanjay Kapoor
He belongs to a family of filmmakers and actors. Therefore it didn’t come as a surprise when right in his first year as an actor in 1995, he had three releases of which two were hits. Hits ‘Prem’ and ‘Raja’ ensured a steady flow of work but success was far and between. Almost three decades after his debut, last year he collaborated with Madhuri Dixit for ‘The Fame Game’ on OTT. His movie appearances today are limited today. Work-wise he will be sharing screen space with Vijay Sethupathi next.
Manisha Koirala
Manisha Koirala should be termed as a rarity in Hindi movies. She is one of the few actresses who has seen mega success in Bollywood despite not being Indian. In 1991, she was launched by none other than Subhash Ghai. Her looks and acting prowess made her an instant success and overnight sensation. However, the success was hard to follow through and she had to wait a lot till came ‘1942: A Love Story’ and ‘Bombay’. Hits like ‘Khamoshi’, ‘Company’, ‘Dil Se’ ensured that she was one of the top actresses of her time. Today, she is a cancer survivor and is seen at least in one movie every year.
Mahima Chaudhry
Another actress whose name started with ‘M’ and was launched by Mr Ghai was Mahima Chaudhry. She got a dream debut with Shah Rukh Khan in ‘Pardes’ in 1997. Later, she appeared in over 30 movies which include ‘Daag’, ‘Dhadkan’ and the multi-starrer ‘Lajja’. One of the most popular actresses of 90s, of late has been battling personal and health problems. However, her fans should be happy as she will be seen essaying the character of Pupul Jaykar in Kangana Ranaut’s ‘Emergency’.
Jugal Hansraj
His portrayal of an ‘illegitimate’ child in a movie based on Segal’s ‘Man, Woman and Child’ made him a child star. His innocence, sweet voice, and hazel-colored eyes melted everyone’s heart, including that of the character of his stepmother played by Shabana Azmi. Unfortunately, the stardom that he achieved as a star was not to be achieved as a grown-up. He debuted with Urmila Matondkar, who played his step-sister in ‘Masoom’. A few songs were hit here and there but that’s about it.
Madhoo
Can you ever forget the girl who danced to ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa…’ from Roja? No one can. After a smashing debut with Ajay Devgn in ‘Phool aur Kaate’, a relative of Hema Malini, Madhoo went on to star in movies like ‘Yodha’, ‘Gentelman’ and Diljale among others. Other priorities took over and Madhoo’s film career didn’t match the success she tasted right at the beginning of her career. Recently she was seen in ‘Thalaivi’ with her ‘Roja’ co-star Arvind Swamy.
