Best acting performances of 2024: From Fahadh Faasil in Aavesham to Kani Kusruti in All We Imagine As Light
2024 was a gift in terms of some beautiful and stunning performances by a variety of actors. How many of these have you seen?
We go to the movies and life stops for a while. These characters on screen become real and some, by the sheer force of presence of the actors alone, accompany us even when the film is over. Their presence blooms like a flower, and grows in its fragrance day after day.
2024 at the movies gave us many of these flowers. It was an incredible year for Indian cinema, and here are some performances that provided me with a sense of joy, across platforms and languages. (Also read: Exclusive | Alice Rohrwacher says she loved Payal Kapadia's All We Imagine As Light, calls it a ‘big revelation’)
Anna Ben in Kottukkaali
Anna Ben barely has a word to say in PS Vinothraj's spellbinding second feature film, but it is her eyes which carry the entire weight of the narrative. What must she say to endure less of all that is in store? What can she do more to change her situation? What is her mistake? These questions lie uncovered in the blank stare that Anna Ben aims at the camera- a stare so haunting and powerful that it says everything without spelling a single word. It is a performance that lingers like a feverish dream.
Also read: Kottukkaali movie review: Soori, Anna Ben bring alive PS Vinothraj's masterpiece
Fahadh Faasil in Aavesham
Is there anything Fahadh Faasil can't do? He is one actor who continues to reinvent himself on screen and surprise his audiences. He gives a volcanic, career-best turn in Jithu Madhavan's action drama as the flamboyant gangster Ranga. Fahadh brings so much comic texture and rich interiority to Ranga, from the way he looks out for his new group of friends to the way he breaks out into an impromptu dance in a towel. Ranga is a character for the ages, and Fahadh makes him unforgettable.
Richa Chadha in Heeramandi
Richa Chadha might have had the shortest screen time in the ensemble of actors in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Heeramandi: The Diamond Bazaar, but she creates the most impact. As the daydreaming and delusional Lajvanti or Lajjo, the actor is able to infuse pathos and heartbreak even in the slightest of her actions- be it spraying perfume on her neck or pretending that she has been proposed to by her lover. Her breathtaking kathak sequence is an emotional breakdown in elegiac motion.
Also read: Richa Chadha exclusive interview: ‘Lajjo is very different than what people expect of me’
Kani Kusruti in All We Imagine As Light
Early in Payal Kapadia's sublime fiction feature debut All We Imagine As Light, Kani Kusruti's Prabha gives in to the requests of her fellow nurses to accompany them for watching a movie together. In the dark space inside the theatre, we see Prabha's eyes, as if a wave of melancholy has just washed past her body. We know not what she wants, but Kusruti guides the viewer with patience and empathy. So much of this magical film rests on the actor's presence. Prabha's sense of loneliness, desire and cynicism is not for the world to see, she must protect her space first and foremost. Kusruti is a marvel in the way she moves across these scenes; it is her generosity which provides the film its guiding light.
Raghav Juyal in Kill
What Raghav Juyal manages to do in Kill is some sort of a magic trick. His Fani is unhinged, reckless, cruel and terrifying all at once, and Raghav manages to create this person beyond just a caricature of an evil antagonist. He nails the unpredictability of his character, merrily giving cricket references and Amitabh Bachchan dialogues one second and then mercilessly indulging in the bloodbath. One somehow hates him and yet cannot wait to see what he does next. It is a gamble and the actor proves he is more than just a firecracker of a slow motion dancer. Raghav's performance is the real killer.
Also read: Kill review: Lakshya, Raghav Juyal kill it in this gory, gruesome bloodbath
Shiboprosad Mukherjee in Bohurupi
Shiboprosad Mukherjee masters the role of many disguises in Bohurupi, the Bengali film he co-directed with Nandita Roy. As Bikram Pramanik, a man who is first wrongly accused of manslaughter and nurses his deep anguish to become one of the most cunning bank robbers in the history of Bengal- the actor is practically in most of the scenes. There is a spontaneity and liveliness in the way Siboprosad responds, how he moulds his body language with every new disguise. He is always at an arm's length from the viewer, always a step ahead, and the actor nails the character's unpredictability and theatrics effortlessly.
Preeti Panigrahi in Girls Will Be Girls
Preeti Panigrahi in Girls Will Be Girls brings memories of a young Carey Mulligan in An Education- a performance that seems to have been tailor-made for the young actor. In Shuchi Talati's sharp coming-of-age tale, the adolescent Mira is a living, breathing girl who somehow begins to see her mother (Kani Kusruti) as her biggest adversary. But as the film slowly reveals itself to wiser truths, Mira will come to realize how she has been mistaken all along. Panigrahi is fascinating to watch, giving a performance akin to walking a tight rope above the ground, alive to every new emotion.
Prithviraj Sukumaran in Aadujeevitham The Goat Life
A lot of surrounding narrative revolved around the release of this survival drama film directed by Blessy. Be it Prithviraj Sukumaran's shocking physical transformation for the real-life story of a Malayali immigrant who was forced into slavery and shepherding goats, or the fact that the film took years in the making. Inspite of these factors, Prithviraj's work as Najeeb stands out on its own. It is an intensely physical performance, and the actor delivers a vulnerable, deeply moving turn of a man who is not ready to give up. The subtle shift in his speech pattern with time, down to the manner in which he begins to use his hands, are remarkable.
Diljit Dosanjh in Amar Singh Chamkila
Imtiaz Ali's Amar Singh Chamkila is powered by an arresting, career-best turn by Diljit Dosanjh in the titular role. Who was this singer, making songs which had sexually explicit lines, dubbed the ‘Elvis of Punjab', shot dead in public? The actor allows these answers to reveal gradually, with complete surrender to the psyche of a man who sang what he knew, unafraid of what lay ahead. Watch out for that particular scene when he says that there will be a time to rethink the actions and consequences, but now, it is time to go out and sing. Diljit's performance is restrained, generous and deeply moving.
Ponvel M. in Vaazhai
Director Mari Selvaraj extracts a terrifyingly good performance from child actor Ponvel M in Vaazhai. From that stark opening sequence when he wets his pants to the giant leap he takes when everything else around him refuses to make sense, his Sivanaindhan is a child thrown to confront the harsh realities of his life with little warning. He must see and process and say nothing because there are no words for it. What must he do to refuse the injustice of it all? What must he mourn? The actor gives this part his all, guiding the viewer even in the most horrifying moments he will have to witness, with a gut-wrenching emotional clarity. It is the performance of the year.
Also read: Vaazhai review: Mari Selvaraj’s powerful story has achingly beautiful performances
Special mentions: Chandan Sen in Manikbabur Megh, Sai Pallavi in Amaran, Chhaya Kadam in Laapataa Ladies, Reenu Roy in Premalu, Karthi in Meiyazhagan, Barun Sobti in Raat Jawaan Hai, Bonita Rajpurohit in LSD 2.
Get more updates from Bollywood, Taylor Swift, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.
Get more updates from Bollywood, Taylor Swift, Hollywood, Music and Web Series along with Latest Entertainment News at Hindustan Times.