Ranbir Kapoor's Complex Daddy Issues On Screen

Ranbir Kapoor's filmography frequently explores complex father-son relationships, from rebellious youth seeking approval to sons grappling with loss and dysfunctional dynamics, culminating in his latest role as an exiled prince honouring his father's promise in Ramayana.

If granduncle Shashi Kapoor's iconic 'Mere paas maa hai' line is hailed as the one last word to beat all last words in Hindi movie history, Ranbir Kapoor's onscreen saga of daddy issues is worth a thesis.

There's a running joke on the Internet how RK's faulty father figures warrant a 'universe' for the constant emotional turmoil they stir up in the traumatised lad. Even in films like Anjaana Anjaani, where we don't even see his dad, estrangement is implied and reconciliation is confirmed.

In the 43 year old's latest project, the actor plays an exiled prince honouring his pujya pitaah Dashrath's (essayed by the OG Lord Ram Arun Govil) promise to third wife Kaikeyi by gracefully leaving his kingdom for 14 long years in Nitesh Tiwari's Ramayana.

On that note, Sukanya Verma looks at Ranbir's father-son equations on screen.

Wake Up Sid: The Journey to Self-Worth

Ayan Mukerji's coming-of-age chronicles a lazy youth's growth from happy-go-lucky to purposeful.

Whiling away his time with friends in a fancy car, failing at exams, hesitant to inherit his family's bathroom furnishings business, demanding a Porsche in exchange of showing up for a month at work, refusing to live by his self-made dad Anupam Kher's rules, leaving home in rebellion, Ranbir Kapoor's insolence is a classic case of privileged brat.

It's only when he struggles on his own, finds his calling in the camera and realises he gets his photography passion from his dad, Ranbir's Sid is hit by a sense of self-worth and a desire for acknowledgement from the one he's let down. Rushing to give his first paycheck to a proud papa and prove he's not so worthless after all, the reunion is all kinds of aww.

Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani: Playful Banter and Protection

Rajkumar Santoshi's madcap romance showcases Ranbir's prowess in comedy.

Treating every dramatic confrontation as a gag, including the playful banter between Ranbir and his disgruntled daddy Darshan Jariwala as he reprimands his son for his good-for-nothing ways every time he catches him freeloading at his cafe, eating non-vegetarian food or wearing women's clothing.

Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani's whimsical tone is equally quick to capture the love the twain share after RK's father shows up at the villain's den to protect his son from harm's way as well as beam with pride when the latter is hailed as a hero.

Raajneeti: Politics and Paternal Absence

Prakash Jha's modern-day Mahabharata set against the backdrop of politics doesn't have too much time for father-son bonhomie.

And so when Ranbir's US-returned character drops in briefly, his politician pitaji, played by Chetan Pandit, is much too immersed in an election campaign to spend quality time with his son.

The only time they do spend is on the way to the airport when the soft spoken father and courteous son respectfully bond as Ranbir shares his plans to take up a teaching job in the States -- one that's promptly chucked to become a political architect for his family after his dad's assassination in the scene that follows.

Barfi: A Heartbreaking Bond

Anurag Basu's cheerful slice-of-life comes alive in the adorable antics of Ranbir Kapoor in and as Barfi.

As a single dad doting on his only child, born with hearing and speech impairments, Akash Khurana is mostly amused by his spirited son's series of misadventures. Fondly named Murphy after the radio, pronounced Barfi by Ranbir, the son reciprocates his love in equal measure.

Their sweet, snuggly bond is short-lived when the father has a medical emergency, one that Ranbir fails to realise because of his handicap, resulting in an expensive treatment for which he must arrange a large sum of money by hook or crook.

By the time he succeeds, his father has passed away leaving the boy completely heartbroken.

Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani: Regret and Remorse

Takes his old man for granted, speaks curtly to his step mom, does his own thing without informing anyone what he's up to, that's Ranbir's Bunny in a nutshell in Ayan Mukerji's lively celebration of youth.

Despite his errant ways, papa Farooque Shaikh is a picture of calm and understanding. Even though he worries himself to death, he is not only respectful of Bunny's nomadic spirit but even gives him a travel bag for his trip showing a sense of support.

Too bad Bunny's callous attitude costs him big when he learns he's been AWOL all the time his father got sick and died, leaving him with a lifetime of regret.

For all his self-serving goals, it's not like Bunny doesn't take his father's feelings into consideration. Before leaving for America for further studies, he tells his dad he's willing to give up his dream if that would please him. The gesture alone is enough to move his caring dad as he proceeds to bless Bunny and say, 'I am always with you.'

Besharam: An Unlikely Partnership

Ranbir's only celluloid outing with his dad and mom, Rishi and Neetu Kapoor, resulted in an embarrassment called Besharam.

The veteran duo aren't his biological parents in the movie, which casts him as an orphan, but a childless couple that decides to adopt him towards the end of this dud revolving around a pair of cops chasing down a car thief.

For most part though, it's a prickly camaraderie transforming into an unlikely partnership between RK senior and RK junior.

Tamasha: Challenging Conventional Paths

Imtiaz Ali deep dives into a complex hero's deep-rooted anxieties and struggles to maintain work-life balance whose origins stem from a stubborn father's (Javed Sheikh) insistence on forcing his son down a conventional road and chasing standard ideas of success against his wishes.

Ranbir delivers a tour de force as the struggling son blessed with an artistic imagination yet stuck in a robotic, corporate existence until he decides to rewrite his story and make his father understand he was never cut out for it.

Thankfully, the father gets the message and all's well that ends well.

Jagga Jasoos: The Search for an Adoptive Father

Anurag Basu gives Ranbir Kapoor another daddy worth rooting for, so what if it's the adoptive kind, in Saswata Chatterjee's delightful turn as part of the quirky musical adventure.

Tutti Futti, as he is fondly referred to by Ranbir's titular Jagga not only teaches him to use singing as a means to counter his stammer but also about the ways of the world through VHS tapes he regularly sends on his birthday while out and about on a secret mission.

Although Ranbir's adult Jagga reunites with his missing-in-action father figure only towards the emotional climax, the entire narrative is fuelled by his frantic search for him along with partner-in-crime Katrina Kaif.

Sanju: Unconditional Paternal Support

Biased as Sanjay Dutt's biopic by friend and filmmaker Rajkumar Hirani may be, there's no denying Ranbir's committed portrayal of the actor across several stages of his hugely controversial life.

Paresh Rawal pitches in as Sunil Dutt, the affectionate father risking his reputation as a senior actor and respected politician for the sake of his wayward son through his drug addiction and TADA incarceration.

As Sanju, Ranbir does his best to humanise the problematic temperament of a reckless star son as well as convey the shame of putting his distinguished father in a humiliating position. The gratitude he feels towards the latter for loving him unconditionally till the end is the most genuine note in all of Sanju.

Brahmastra: Part One - Shiva: A Destructive Legacy

Ranbir slips into Harry Potter mode as Shiva, the orphan with super 'astra' powers mentored at a school for gifted folks where he discovers the truth about his parents from Amitabh Bachchan's Guruji. As it happens, Shiva's dad Dev is a sort of destructive Voldemort type seeking all the powers for himself.

The father-son face off forms the crux of Ayan Mukerji's sequel in works even as Dev's identity remains up for debate with many wondering if he too will be played by Ranbir as well.

Shamshera: Clearing a Father's Name

Like father, like son.

Or so goes Shamshera -- the ambitiously-scaled lost opportunity starring Ranbir in a double role. Both as a British-era martyr fighting for his tribe's freedom and his slacker beta inspired to clear the false charge of 'traitor's son' and revolt for the same cause against Sanjay Dutt's scheming tyrant.

The father-son don't have any scenes except one the symbolic merger of ideologies when the spirit of his departed daddy against a flock of crows directs him onto the path of fearlessness.

Animal: Dysfunctional Dynamics

'Papa meri jaan', declares Ranbir Kapoor's Ranvijay to the point of no return in Sandeep Reddy Vanga's bloody, perverse ode to father-son relations.

If Anil Kapoor's Papa is an aloof industrialist too busy to bother with fatherly duties or address his attention-seeking, obsessive son's increasingly aggressive behaviour, Ranbir is the eager-to-please, protective beta turning ultra-violent because of his father's shabby treatment in his growing up days.

Between his ingrained anger, baffling possessiveness and a Michael Jackson concert he had to skip for the sake of his Papa, Animal makes for dysfunctional baap-beta at their worst.

Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar: Papa Paradiso

Producer Boney Kapoor makes his acting debut as Ranbir's chilled out, chai loving, rich dad with little to object and nothing to lose.

Happy to approve of his son's romantic choices, too preoccupied lounging around to scold him for his business blunders and adventurous enough to accompany his joint family for the quintessential airport happily-ever-after, Ranbir's peaceful dynamic with Boney is stuff of Papa paradiso.

Photographs curated by Manisha Kotian/Rediff