Top 20 Lead Actors Who Dared To Play Negative Roles

Most actors, particularly those in Bollywood, shy away from playing negative roles believing it would tarnish their image. But frankly, the protagonists in movies are more often than not unrealistic and impractical. The gray characters have more space to be explored, more emotions and realism, which makes them more complex roles to play and do justice to. Most actors have garnered endless critical appraisal and awards for their negative roles. It has helped them cement their place as the best that Bollywood had to offer and proved their metal as quality actors. Here we present a few of the greatest actors who dared to let go of their secure positive actor image and explored themselves as actors by probing the psychology of their negative characters.

1. Shah Rukh Khan Shah Rukh Khan or also known as SRK is a prominent >> Read More...

It is hard to believe that the man who played the psychotic stalker in ‘ Darr Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, is also Raj, the man who taught the true essence of romance to the entire country. He has played numerous roles as the lead actor, and when he chooses to play a negative character, his charisma is such that it covers even the positive actors in the movie, and all we see is him. One such example is ‘ Don Click to look into! >> Read More... ’ and ‘ Don 2 Click to look into! >> Read More... ’.

2. Priyanka Chopra Born on 18 July 1982, Priyanka Chopra is an establ >> Read More...

Her journey of playing negative roles started with ‘ Aitraaz Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, where she played a bold, sensuous woman. It was a role she played tremendously well even though it was a surprise for the then not so modern industry. Then came ‘Saat Khoon Maaf’, where she played a woman who killed her seven husbands and justified it to herself by believing it was in her quest for love. Now, the whole world will know how brilliant she is as a villain in her upcoming Hollywood venture, ‘ Baywatch Click to look into! >> Read More... ’.

3. Bhumi Pednekar Bhumi Pednekar is Maharashtrian unconventional act >> Read More...

This woman is remarkably dedicated to her job, as we saw in ‘ Dum Laga Ke Haisha Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, where despite being in an industry where fitness is the top priority, she gained several kilos for her role. Her new role, in her third film, is that of a villain, which is a very daring move considering the fact that she is just beginning her career.

4. Madhuri Dixit Madhuri Dixit is not just known as the also a smil >> Read More...

Her innocent smile and the truth in her eyes made her character as an obsessive lover in ‘ Pukar Click to look into! >> Read More... ’ even more captivating as she plotted to get back at her childhood friend and force him to marry her. This, when the two actors already share such a great chemistry as seen in the many films they have done together and in their iconic song, ‘ Dhak Dhak Click to look into! >> Read More... ’.

5. Kajol Devgan Born on 5th August 1974, Kajol was the heartthrob >> Read More...

Bollywood’s Simran, in her movie ‘ Gupt Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, played a role in which she was seen in an avatar that had never before been seen. Since the movie only leaves indications on who commits the various murders, there is always the element of mystery and the perpetual need to be sure that she will get who she wants portrays great insight into her dysfunctional mind.

6. Kareena Kapoor Khan Kareena Kapoor is a super hit actress working in I >> Read More...

Today Kareena is known for her many, many tantrums, one of them being that she will only work will A-list actors. However, there was once a time when she was trying to prove to the world her finesse as an actor, and she played the alluring temptress in ‘ Fida Fida is a Telugu soap opera that was aired in Zee >> Read More... ’, acting as a villain in the life of a man she, in real life, had impeccable chemistry with, that is Shahid Kapoor Shahid Kapoor also identifies as the name Shahid K >> Read More...

7. Bipasha Basu Bipasha Basu, born in January 7,1979 in Delhi, is >> Read More...

The movie ‘ Jism Jism is a Hindi television series premiered on cha >> Read More... ’ gave us one of the hottest couples Bollywood has ever seen, Bipasha and John. Through this movie, Bipasha established herself as not only an incredibly sexy woman but also a master of the thriller genre, which she continued to conquer even further with back to back movies in the genre.

8. John Abraham Like some of our sexy stars, John Abraham has had >> Read More...

When he played the villain in movies like ‘ Karam Click to look into! >> Read More... ’ and ‘ Zinda Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, he was the classic bad boy; undeniably good-looking, alluring, ripped, and bad. And who can forget that he has played a huge role and contributed highly to the fame that the ‘ Dhoom Click to look into! >> Read More... ’ franchise enjoys since he was the first villain of the first film and the weight of the movie mostly lay on his shoulders.

9. Deepika Padukone Deepika Padukone is an Indian actress and model. S >> Read More...

The most beautiful and the most successful actress in Bollywood today, Deepika is a unique amalgamation of talent and beauty. She is like poetry in motion when she dances and she is an incredibly strong woman. Our Mastani however, played the bad girl a few times, like in ‘ Race 2 Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, and played it just as well as she plays her regular characters.

10. Sanjay Dutt July 29, 1959, was the day when the two legends of >> Read More...

He is the quintessential villain, sometimes a good boy turned bad and sometimes just plain evil, he has done iconic movies like ‘Vaastav: The Reality’, ‘ Khalnayak Khalnayak is a Bengali TV serial on Deepto TV that >> Read More... ’, ‘ Agneepath Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, and done them as well as the many films he has done as the male lead, like the ‘Munna Bhai’ movies.

11. Emraan Hashmi Emraan Hashmi is one of the most successful & cont >> Read More...

He has made it clear that he believes a character with darker shades presents the actor with more chances of exploring the character’ psyche and his own talents. He believes it is these roles that have more realism in them, and he has been proving so with the negative roles that he performs, as he did in ‘ Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai Click to look into! >> Read More... ’.

12. Vidya Balan Vidya Balan is an award winning Bollywood actress >> Read More...

She does not need to say it that all she wants from her characters is depth and substantiality. Her movies and her performances speak for themselves. Be it a ghost in Bhool Bhulaiyaa Click to look into! >> Read More... or a badass woman in ‘ Ishqiya Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, she has turned out to be one hell of a woman and actress!

13. Jimmy Shergill Jimmy Shergill is a renowned Indian actor and prod >> Read More...

Jimmy entered the industry long back in 1996 with ‘ Maachis Maachis is a Pakistani television reality show air >> Read More... ’ by ‘Gulzaar’. He looked like a regular good looking actor who could be seen in films as a positive supporting actor. But then the world saw him play a darker character in movies like ‘ Rajdhani Express Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, and he found the appreciation he always deserved.

14. Govinda Govinda is a popular Bollywood star who is known f >> Read More...

Govinda has played roles in almost every genre. He was successful in creating a dance form of his own and established himself as a comic actor, a serious actor and a romantic knight in shining armor. In 2009, through ‘ Shikari Click to look into! >> Read More... ’, he turned the last stone and played the bad guy. The role won him several nominations, including that of the Filmfare Best Villain.

15. Konkona Sen Sharma Konkona Sen Sharma is a Bollywood actress hailing >> Read More...

Konkona is one of the underrated actresses who has proved time and again that she is deserving of much more attention than she usually gets. Not everyone can pull off a witch’s role, and Konkona did it, with just the perfect balance of grimness and intensity in ‘ Ek Thi Daayan Click to look into! >> Read More... ’.

16. Vatsal Sheth Vatsal Sheth is a light eyed, 5.8 feet good lookin >> Read More...

The actor was seen as the cute orphaned boy in ‘Tarzan The Wonder Car’. But a few projects later, he took a 360-degree turn and returned as the vain and cruel Shaurya Goenka. It was surprising how his light eyes that he once used as a mirror to his pure heart suddenly could be seen holding so much hate and pride. He was the typical spoilt brat, chasing after girls and putting his money on display, unmindful of the many lives he ruined. He played the role well, and thankfully the daily soap, Ek Haseena Thi, was not stretched beyond the interest of the audience. Infact he was so convincing as the bad boy that the next time he appeared on screen was with a similar role in, ‘Rishto Ka Saudagaar: Baazigar’ and the show is successfully holding the audience’s interest.

17. Hrithik Roshan Hrithik Roshan with his unimaginable dance moves i >> Read More...

The Greek God, worshiped by his fans throughout the country and beyond, has played many roles and performed many dance steps that are now his trademark. The actor played something akin to a villain in the second installment of Dhoom called ‘Dhoom 2’. He was a thief in love, and he stole many hearts through the role. It was also a wonderful way to show to his audience how far he had come from the time he played the good boy Rohit in his debut film, Kaho Na Pyaar Hai, which had made him a superstar overnight.

18. Vivan Bhatena Vivan Bhatena is a well-known face among the aud >> Read More...

The actor initially started out by playing positive roles, mostly supportive in technical terms. People noticed his good looks and physique, but that was just about it. But then he started playing negative roles, and there he never had to share the limelight with anyone again. He is now counted as one of most good looking villains and has been doing so well that he will soon be seen in Aamir Khan Aamir Khan or Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan is Bolly >> Read More... ’s ‘ Dangal Dangal is a Hindi live debate show that aired on A >> Read More... ’.

19. Anita Hassanandani Born as Natasha on the 14th of April, 1981, Anita >> Read More...

The actress was seen in many movies. In most of them, she played the positive female lead but rarely any of them managed to work in the box office. She also acted in daily soaps, a lot of them were for Balaji Telefilms and were mostly successful. But her most loved ventures are those where she plays the gray character. Indian television’s current favourite daily soap, Ye Hai Mohabbatein, has her as the vamp, and she has been supported and loved tremendously for it.

20. Ronit Roy Ronit Roy (Ronit Bose Roy) was born on 11th Octobe >> Read More...

He has been acknowledged time and again as possibly the best villain of Indian cinema. After having a rollercoaster ride of a career, he has managed to achieve the status that he enjoys today. Although there are many times he has played characters that can neither be called white nor black, one of his most remarkable performances was in his 2010 film ‘ Udaan Udaan is a Hindi Daily series which aired on 18th >> Read More... ’, which went on to win many well-deserved awards.