How The 40-plus Heroes Are The New Age Rockers!

Last decade, they couldn't have enough of the teenie-boppers.Today; the bubblegum brigade only wants more of the 30-40 plus gang of men. Much like the forever changing trends of flared pants versus drainpipes, the battle of the Tinsel throne has raged between the men and the boys for almost as long as the movie industry has existed. And while in the eons-old-Hollywood, the debate rests with the two sides of thirty occupying separate niches with equal importance; the audiences here either sway towards the A-teens or those in the mid of their life (crisis or no crisis). If you see the last decade, or even the eighties, the roost was ruled by the chikna-faced Aamir, Salman, Shah Rukh. With the 'men' like Sunny, Jackie, Sunjay, Anil, Sunil, Akshay, finding it tough to capture the market. Reason?

Because the movie-goers mainly consisted of young collegians, barely departed from their acne and hormonal complaints, gooing 'oooh and aaah' over the pink-lipped young heroes romancing sixteen-year-old pink ladies with bows in their hair and prominent bucks in their smile. The 'mards' had an audience of front-benchers, whistling at the 'punch-ups' and getting CTs (read: Cheap Thrills) at women in white shirts, either in the shower or trying a seduction number on the hero. Except that most time the average front bencher didn't have the moolah to shell out at the marquee. And the young 'uns with the greenbacks found sweaty, fighting rabble-rousers 'oh-so-ugh'! But come the millennium, and things began changing. Probably bored of the same clothes, hairstyles, dialogues, wooing-patterns, shaadi-sequences, tears and finales, the teens chose to look at the men.

And the men, smarting from rejection, often enough, adopted a few tricks of the teens. So Sunny Deol, with his shopping in London ensemble. Sunju baba with his brand new haircut golden at the spikes, Anil with a new look every film, Ajay with a 'becoming' maturity, Jackie with the broad-shoulder-to rely-on masculinity, Akshay and Sunil with newfound get-ups conforming to the new-age - suddenly captured the imagination of the audiences. And at the same time another phenomenon was taking place - the teens of the eighties were growing up! Stepping into the thirties, long since considered the advent of the prime of manhood (which according to Hollywood standards, stays well into the fifties). Suddenly, Shah Rukh, Aamir, Salman, and even the relatively new Bobby Deol and Akshaye Khanna were well into either their early or late thirties. And their captive audiences were growing too, giving way to a new breed of teenagers and young stars.

It was the young Hrithik Roshan in January 2000; Abhishek Bachchan, Fardeen Khan the same time; and Tusshaar Kapoor, Vivek Oberoi in 2002 who took over that segment with terrific debuts. But, like in Hollywood where the best is the preserve of the half-centurions like Jack Nicholson, Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Michael Douglas, Mel Gibson, Sean Connery, the focus shifted to the 'mature' ones. Unlike earlier, when an evergreen Dev Anand was considered as an act apart when he romanced young nubile one-third his age, this time the shift was sure and steady in favour of the goldies.

It was the phenomenal charisma and cinematic clout of Amitabh Bachchan that saw his appeal grow with age into his current sixtieth year. Fans were riveted by his venture on to television with KBC. And his movies pack them in as if the golden age of cinema had never really lost its glitter at all. Even in the great crash of 2002, it was AB alone who stood like a rock. Drawing in the crowds to the year end 'Kaante', more than any other name attached to it.

This has been the trend in recent years. Last year it was a 40-plus Sunny Deol romancing 20 plus Amisha Patel in 'Gadar Ek Prem Katha'. And was one of the biggest hits in the history of Indian cinema. Aamir Khan who's nearing 40 followed it up with 'Laagan'. So has Shah Rukh Khan (he too is close to 40) with Devdas. Before that 40 plus Sunjay Dutt too prove his mettle with 'Vaastav' and more recently with 'Kaante'. For 40 plus men age is no barrier.

Take for instance the last years releases. Out of around two dozen A grade releases only a handful of films like Saathiya', 'Kaante', 'Devdas', 'Company' 'The Legend of Bhagat Singh' and '23 March, 1931 - Shaheed' made their impact at the BO. Out of which only 'Saathiya' and 'Company' had a new and younger actor. Others had heroes who are either 40 plus or nearing 40. So the verdict is clear when it comes pulling in the crowd they have more magical power than the boys. While films of younger actors like Hrithik, Abhishek, Tusshar, Fardeen, all of late,

rather unfortunately, bitten the dust.

It's official now. The men have outpaced the boys this round. What next?