Does anyone remember Hritik Roshan’s iconic black mesh fishnet shirt during the song In Kaho Naa..Pyaar Hai? I do. Vividly. That was the first time the teen me was gaping at Hritik Roshan on screen for three hours straight. After his debut, Roshan was straight away catapulted into the Bollywood hall of fame, and also in our hearts and our bedroom walls.
For decades now, Bollywood’s seen enough star kids, one-film wonders, and second-coming stories to fill a thousand Reddit threads. But every once in a while, a debut hits—whether it’s a heartthrob who makes the nation weak in the knees, a director who retools the language of cinema, or an unknown actor who shows up, shatters expectations, and makes you sit up straighter in your seat. It leaves the kind of impact that lingers.
And so, these famous Bollywood debuts have become time capsules of eras and of us, and are still as watchable today as they were back then.
Maine Pyar Kiya (1989)
Salman Khan’s acting debut
Maine Pyar Kiya (1989)IMDb
Before he became Bollywood’s walking bicep, Salman Khan was just this lanky guy in a denim jacket, talking to pigeons and falling in love. This movie is still considered to be one of Khan’s most iconic and loved films that eventually became a cult favourite because of its songs and dialogues.
Masaan (2015)
Vicky Kaushal’s acting debut
Masaan (2015)MUBI
I had no idea who Vicky Kaushal was when I watched Masaan. He wasn’t plastered on billboards or launched on Kapil Sharma’s show. He just showed up on screen – understated, brilliant, and heartbreakingly real. It felt like the start of something—and in retrospect, it was: the arrival of one of the biggest actors in Bollywood.
Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai (2000)
Hrithik Roshan’s acting debut
Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai (2000)IMDb
Kaho Naa… Pyaar Hai came out when I was barely a teen, but even then, the mania trickled down. I learned the entire “Ek Pal Ka Jeena” hook-step, “Rohit” as a name became hot again. The Greek God of Bollywood literally incinerated everything around him with this debut with his perfect body and dance steps – but also his annoyingly undeniable talent. This is still one of the best Bollywood debuts in history.
Om Shanti Om (2007)
Deepika Padukone’s acting debut
Om Shanti Om (2007)Netflix
We all saw it—everyone saw it. The first time Deepika turned her face to the camera in that slow-mo swirl, you knew. She didn’t need lines. Her face had already done the job. Om Shanti Om gave Deepika everything: the grandeur, the drama, the most Shah Rukh Khan of all SRK plots. But even beside that man’s megawatt charm, Deepika held her own.
Deewana (1992)
Shah Rukh Khan’s Bollywood debut
Deewana (1992)IMDb
In hindsight, you can tell this is where it clicked. SRK enters the film like a man who has no idea he’s about to own the decade. The hair is floppy, the shirts are questionable, but the charisma and the eyes were just to die for. He wasn’t the hero. He was the other guy. And yet, by the end, you weren’t thinking about Rishi Kapoor—you were watching Shah Rukh take the spotlight like he’d been planning it all along.
Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na (2008)
Imran Khan’s acting debut
Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na (2008)MUBI
Imran Khan gave us the original blueprint of the softboy prototype. Jaane Tu… Ya Jaane Na was light, clever, and perfectly pitched to a generation caught between MSN Messenger chats and A.R. Rahman soundtracks. Imran was sensitive, self-aware, and just awkward enough to feel real. The chemistry with Genelia was sweet, the writing was sharp, and the film became a cult classic overnight with the youth. Imran’s debut will be the eternal millennial comfort food.
Dangal (2016)
Fatima Sana Shaikh & Sanya Malhotra's acting debut
Dangal (2016)Netflix
Most newcomers struggle to hold their own next to an Aamir Khan juggernaut. But Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra damn near stole the film. Dangal wasn’t an easy debut to navigate. It demanded intense physical transformation, emotional depth, and technical precision in the wrestling ring. In a film filled with high-stakes nationalism and parental ambition, they brought vulnerability, fire, and fight.
Band Baaja Baaraat (2010)
Ranveer Singh's acting debut
Band Baaja Baaraat (2010)Yash Raj Films
There was something so disarming about Ranveer Singh in Band Baaja Baaraat. He wasn’t polished, he wasn’t famous, he wasn’t trying to be anyone else. Instead, he was a bit loud, very Delhi, and yet charismatic. There was no gap between the character and the actor—you felt like you were watching someone real. Bittoo Sharma was a character fully inhabited, rough edges and all. YRF gave Ranveer a rom-com, and he turned it into a story for a generation-defining actor.
Rock On!! (2008)
Farhan Akhtar’s acting debut
Rock On!! (2008)IMDb
I remember thinking, “Wait, he acts now?” when I saw the trailer for Rock On!!. Farhan Akhtar—the guy who made Dil Chahta Hai—was suddenly the frontman of a rock band with feelings. And honestly, it worked. This wasn’t a vanity crossover—it was the birth of his second act, one that’s only grown more interesting since.
Student of the Year (2012)
Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan & Sidharth Malhotra
Student of the Year (2012)Netflix
Look, SOTY wasn’t a film—it was a crazy fever dream. A glittery, Glee-meets-Gossip-Girl concoction where teenagers had abs and dance battles and life lessons sponsored by Gucci. But it gave us three names we still haven’t stopped hearing. Alia Bhatt was barely out of school and already delivering memeable one-liners. Varun Dhawan had the Bollywood hero walk, and Sidharth was the brooding outsider energy. It was ridiculous, sure—but we all loved it.
Saiyaara (2025)
Ahaan Panday & Aneet Padda
Saiyaara (2025)IMDb
Look, the film’s box office numbers are absurd. ₹153 crore in six days? That kind of debut doesn’t happen anymore. But what’s even more surprising is how good these two actually were. Ahaan Panday—yeah, you rolled your eyes at first because, you know, nepotism fatigue—but then he showed up and delivered a performance with restraint and charisma. And Aneet Padda was a total revelation. Saiyaara is what happens when the launch vehicle is actually backed by talent. For once, the hype feels earned.
Wake Up Sid (2009)
Ayan Mukerji’s directorial debut
Wake Up Sid (2009)Netflix
Ayan Mukerji, all of 26 at the time, made a film about aimlessness. It was a movie that truly understood the new generation of India – especially those who wanted to live on their own terms. It was soft, it was sharp, it had Konkona Sen Sharma moving into an apartment with a leaky tap, and somehow that made us all fall in love with Bombay. Ranbir Kapoor’s Sid was a man-child before we had the vocabulary for it, and Ayan treated him with both compassion and exasperation. The film was brilliant.
Dil Chahta Hai (2001)
Farhan Akhtar’s directorial debut
Dil Chahta Hai (2001)IMDb
Let’s not play—this one redefined Bollywood. Dil Chahta Hai was Farhan Akhtar’s directorial debut, but it felt like the arrival of an entire new language of storytelling. We had Goa trips, banter, and heartbreaks. He made male friendships feel honest and women feel like actual people. For every guy who now romanticises long silences on beaches, this was your origin story.
Luck By Chance (2009)
Zoya Akhtar’s directorial debut
Luck By Chance (2009)IMDb
Everyone thinks Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara is peak Zoya, but very few know Luck By Chance is the one. A film about the Hindi film industry, made from the inside, without a hint of self-pity or self-glorification. She pulled back the velvet curtain and showed you the ambition, the compromise, the grind behind the glamour. And she did it with restraint, elegance, and that deliciously sardonic tone that would become her signature.
Masoom (1983)
Shekhar Kapur’s directorial debut
Masoom (1983)IMDb
Shekhar Kapur delivered one of the most emotionally intelligent Indian films ever that was ahead of its time. The story’s deceptively simple: a man brings home the son he fathered during an affair. But the way Kapur handles the silences, the moral ambiguity, the child’s pain—it’s masterful. For a first-time director, this wasn’t safe, and it sure as hell wasn’t easy. Still unforgettable.
