Badlapur, October to Border 2: 7 Films that Highlight Varun Dhawan’s Range as a Dynamic Actor

Banger after banger after banger – that’s what Varun Dhawan is serving. To be perfectly candid, Dhawan has been inventing and reinventing himself ever since he stepped foot into Bollywood with his debut, Student of the Year, and has come far enough to depict on-screen flamboyance with a plethora of releases. Here’s looking at 7 on-screen films that place him as a 360-degree performer.

Student of the Year: In 2012, Varun Dhawan made his debut with Student of the Year, and served a mix of campus drama and sweet romance, contrasting spaces that made the audience feel included; a win in itself. With his first, he established himself as a boy next door with the potential to explore.

Badlapur: In 2015, Dhawan’s intent took center stage with the cult film Badlapur. Here, he tapped into an intriguing shade as an actor that unpacked the real performer in him, one who could strike a balance between different cinematic spaces with ease and intrigue. The film spotlighted his range and sparked curiosity among the audience to watch more of him.

Badrinath Ki Dulhania: In 2017, Varun Dhawan took the audience on a rollercoaster of laughter, romance and slice-of-life moments with the unforgettable Badrinath Ki Dulhania. By playing a wealthy man’s son from Jhansi, the actor pulled off the role by touching corners with a flamboyant body language and an accent that brought believability, all while tapping into concepts of gender equality, family dynamics and entrenched patriarchy.

Sui Dhaaga: In this 2018 family drama, Varun Dhawan played Mauji Sharma, who, alongwith his wife Mamta, begins his own small-scale clothing business. In Sui Dhaaga, Dhawan served an engaging performance that’s considered one of his finest and most earnest so far. The actor broke out of the typical commercial hero mold and tapped into innocence, resilience and the body language of a small-town tailor.

October: In 2018, Varun headlined the slice-of-life drama film, October, and tapped into his subtlest shade to let it speak for his performance. No larger-than-life spectacle, no noise, no excessive drama; pure performance and pure narrative that worked.

Bhediya: In 2022, Varun headlined Bhediya, a one-of-a-kind horror-comedy film that was a deal-breaker in Hindi cinema, a space that was rarely tapped into. Taking the creative risk is what drives Varun, and he did exactly that by playing a man who gets bitten by a wolf and begins to transform into the creature.

Border 2: Varun Dhawan placed himself in the league of versatile actors with his latest release, Border 2, an epic war film that spotlighted his intent to reinvent as a performer. As Hoshiar Singh Dahiya, the actor brought the required grit and poise to play a soldier, making the audience and critics notice the range to go above and beyond.

You know him as Badri, you know him as Bhaskar – but the man to bring these vibrant characters alive by displaying his range is Varun Dhawan.