Love affairs to enviable film lineup: How birthday boy Vicky Kaushal's life has been 'High on Josh' since 'Uri: The Surgical Strike'

By Gurpreet Kaur

on May 15, 2020

Vicky Kaushal might be Bollywood’s poster boy at the moment ruling the hearts of almost every woman out there. But let’s not forget, the actor, who turns 32 today, has had a tough journey to start with. He kickstarted his career in showbiz as an assistant director on the sets of Anurag Kashyap’s Gangs of Wasseypur (2012). There he met Neeraj Ghaywan and that’s how he roped Vicky for the role of Deepak in Masaan three years later in 2015. But unnoticed by many, he made many blink and miss appearances between 2012-2015 in films like Bombay Velvet and Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana.

While he was still struggling in the acting world, Vicky was one of the first few actors who took a plunge into the OTT platform when he starred in Love Per Square Foot (2018). Then came Raazi with Alia Bhatt and to say the least, Vicky did complete justice to the man in uniform who walks the thin line of being a dutiful husband and a patriot. The magic didn't stop there. The same year, Vicky once again lit up the OTT screens with an anthology Lust Stories, followed by another path-breaking role of his career, Sanju, a role which no one expected would hog the equal limelight as Ranbir Kapoor's brave leading man act. Vicky ended 2018 with the Anurag Kashyap’s Manmarziyaan, where he channelled his inner Punjabi - brazen, brash and badass.

Albeit, the biggest highlight of his career came when he ventured straight into 2019 with Uri: The Surgical Strike, which became one of the top ten highest-grossing domestic films ever. With the energetic chant of "How’s the josh?" his fans couldn’t help but say “High Sir!”. And one can safely say, post the release of Aditya Dhar’s film, Vicky’s life has also been on a high, be it personally or professionally. While he was rumoured to be have broken up with then-girlfriend Harleen Sethi, with whom he was often spotted with, his career took a flight.

The national darling emerged as a bonafide star in Bollywood and ranked higher on every filmmaker's wish list. With his latest projects catching the attention of the audience, his love life too remained to be the spiciest gossip of B-Town. Soon Vicky, who was linked up with a number of leading actresses, but it was his association with the stunning superstar Katrina Kaif made headlines throughout the year and followed! Be it their secretive outings, or reportedly brining in 2020 at Alibaug together, Vicky turned out to the quintessential poster boy lover. However, Vicky dismissed all the rumours as false, claiming that he can't lie and said there is no story between Katrina and him. But then, there is no smoke without fire!

2020 saw Vicky taste the bitter-sweet side of failure when his horror film Bhoot Part One: The Haunted Ship didn't rake in the desired moolah at the box office. However, his stardom remains undisputed, and there has been no stopping for Vicky. The actor's envious lineup includes the highly-anticipated, filmmaker Shoojit Sircar's Sardar Udham Singh, showcasing the life of Udham Singh, the great Martyr and Indian freedom fighter who bravely assassinated Michael O' Dwyer (the former lieutenant governor of Punjab) in 1940. Vicky is also set to reunite with his Uri director Aditya Dhar for his next, in which he will play Ashwatthama. The superhero three-part mythology project will see him step into the shoes of an Indian superhero, undergoing a massive physical transformation. But his turup ka ikka is Karan Johar’s ambitious multi-starrer Takht, co-starring Ranveer Singh, Kareena Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Anil Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor and Bhumi Pednekar, the most-awaited film in his repertoire. Vicky will embrace the darker side for the first time as he will essay the rule of the barbaric Mughal emperor Aurangzeb, unleashing his demons to fight the battle of good vs bad with Ranveer's Dara Sekhon.

Despite being on a career-high and a slew of interesting films in his kitty, what makes Vicky the 'it' actor of the current generation? Vicky makes diligent efforts to be humble towards his stardom, press and fans alike. Be it AD brands or fashion tabloids, the spotlight has definitely been shifted to the 'man of the hour.' In Vicky's own words (from Sanju)...'Tiger hai tu Tiger…… Roar, Roar, Roar'...

The best has just begun!