Salman Khan launches Sooraj and Athiya 10 Star-kids who were not launched by their parents

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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What's common between Sanjay Dutt, Sunny Deol, Aamir Khan and Hrithik Roshan? Well, all these superstars were launched by their family when it came to mainstream commercial outings. However there are quite a few star kids, especially the newer lot, who have taken a different road. Tiger Shroff was the last example where Sajid Nadiadwala, and not Jackie Shroff, produced a film for him.

This year, the biggest launch pad for Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty, kids of Aditya Pancholi and Suniel Shetty, has been laid down by Salman Khan. Though both Aditya and Suniel have been around for over two decades and have resources to launch their children, they looked at Salman Khan to do the needful. As a matter of fact Suniel Shetty has been a hands- on producer as well for quite a few films but he decided to wait before a correct launch came the way of his daughter.

With things heating up well for Hero and Salman Khan fresh off the All Time Blockbuster success of Bajrangi Bhaijaan, everything seems to be going in the right direction for Sooraj and Athiya's Hero. They aren't alone though when it comes to their fathers deciding to entrust someone else for introducing them to the world of glamour.

Here is listing 10 major actors who had their father as a prominent film celebrity but still decided to prove their mettle with outside filmmakers first. A common trait visible is that there is a huge success ratio in such cases, what with only Sanjay Leela Bhansali's launch pad Saawariya not really working out for Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor when it came to their first attempt.

Salman Khan [Father: Salim Khan, Debut as a lead: Main Pyaar Kiya with Sooraj Barjatya, Verdict: Superhit]
Salim Khan had been a successful writer and could well have launched Salman Khan, had the need arose. However, after making a modest debut as a supporting actor in Biwi Ho Toh Aisi, Salman Khan was launched with much fanfare in Rajshri's Maine Pyaar Kiya which was also the directorial outing for Sooraj Barjatya. Today, Salman is busy launching quite a few careers through his production house.

Abhishek Bachchan [Father: Amitabh Bachchan, Debut as a lead: Refugee with J.P. Dutta, Verdict: Average]
For at least a couple of years it was speculated that Amitabh Bachchan's ABCL would launch Abhishek Bachchan. Eventually, it was J.P. Dutta who came on board and he produced as well as directed Refugee with Abhishek. The film was a multi starrer affair made on a grand canvas, though after the initially hoopla, this really long film just about managed to hit the average mark.

Kareena Kapoor [Father: Randhir Kapoor, Debut as a lead: Refugee with J.P. Dutta, Verdict: Average]
Kareena Kapoor's debut is pretty much a case of folklore. Though she had R.K. banner behind him, it's almost defunct status meant that an outsider filmmaker had to launch her. She even shot for a few days, before walking out and making way for Ameesha Patel. Meanwhile, an opportunity came in the form of 'Refugee' which was the launch pad created by J.P. Dutta for Abhishek Bachchan.

Ranbir Kapoor [Father: Rishi Kapoor, Debut as a lead: Saawariya with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Verdict: Flop]
Just like Kareena, many expected Ranbir to be launched by the R.K. banner. This never happened, though Sanjay Leela Bhansali rose to the occasion and decided to create the biggest ever launch pad for a Bollywood debutant. A much hyped affair, Saawariya was in news right through its making. However, poor content coupled with competition with 'Om Shanti Om' resulted in crashing the film.

Sonam Kapoor [Father: Anil Kapoor, Debut as a lead: Saawariya with Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Verdict: Flop]
Though Anil Kapoor had produced a few films under his banner and uncle Boney Kapoor was an established producer too, Sonam Kapoor was actually launched through Sanjay Leela Bhansali. It was a dreamy launch no doubt with some dream sets being created. However, the results were hardly in line with what Sonam would have expected in her first ever tryst with the tinsel world.

Arjun Kapoor [Father: Boney Kapoor, Debut as a lead: Ishaqzaade with Aditya Chopra, Verdict: Hit]
Till date Arjun Kapoor maintains that he didn't want to be a burden on his father when it came to his Bollywood launch. Well, he actually got the best of the lot, what with Yash Raj Films putting their money and roping him in for a three film contract. Ishaqzaade was an unconventional debut as Arjun started his career with grey shades. However, this rustic adaptation of 'Romeo & Juliet' was well accepted by audience.

Varun Dhawan [Father: David Dhawan, Debut as a lead: Student of the Year with Karan Johar, Verdict: Hit]
With 40 films behind him, one would have expected David Dhawan to create a launch pad for son Varun Dhawan. That never happened, though Karan Johar saw the spark in Varun and roped him in for Student of the Year. The actor was clearly a star in the making and took complete advantage of the platform provided to him. The way he delivered got him his second film Main Tera Hero where he worked with David.

Alia Bhatt [Father: Mahesh Bhatt, Debut as a lead: Student of the Year with Karan Johar, Verdict: Hit]
Bhatt family has been known for backing new talent like no other filmmaking house. However when it came to their own house, daughter Alia Bhatt decided to do something different from the kind of outings Vishesh Films had to offer. A film with Karan Johar seemed like a much better preposition and the kind of moolah Student of the Year earned was big enough for Alia to enter big league with her very first film.

Sonakshi Sinha [Father: Shatrughan Sinha, Debut as a lead: Dabangg with Arbaaz Khan, Verdict: Blockbuster]
Though her family hadn't produced too many films, Sonakshi had seen the making of Mera Dil Leke Dekho quite closely. If hardly anyone has heard about the movie is any indication, one can pretty much understand why Sonakshi waited and debuted with Arbaaz Khan produced Dabangg instead. The film was a complete package affair for Sonakshi and her pairing with Salman is now pretty much for the keeps.

Tiger Shroff [Father: Jackie Shroff, Debut as a lead: Heropanti with Sajid Nadiadwala, Verdict: Hit]
His parents had turned producers with films like Grahan and Boom which were no great shakes at the box office. Given his standing in the industry, Jackie Shroff could well have produced a film for Tiger Shroff. However, the family decided to trust Sajid Nadiadwala instead and allowed him complete control over the state of affairs. His debut outing Heropanti was promoted well and turned out to be a good Hit.

Article written by staff at Bollywood Hungama. Read more