Queen, Gangster and more: Top five performances of birthday girl Kangana Ranaut

Right from her debut, Gangster to her latest flick, Rangoon, Kangana has mostly chosen films that were not run-of-the-mill and her performance made heads turn. In her short career span, she already has three National Awards and four Filmfare awards to her credit.

In her 11-year-old career in the film industry, Kangana Ranaut has created a unique space for herself in Bollywood and earned thousands of fans not just for her choice of films and performance but also her unapologetic attitude and the way she throws truth at the unsuspecting society.

Kangana Ranaut turns 30 on Thursday.

Right from her debut, Gangster to her latest flick, Rangoon, Kangana has mostly chosen films that were not run-of-the-mill and her performance made heads turn. In her short career span, she already has three National Awards and four Filmfare awards to her credit.

On her 30th birthday, we take a look at her best roles:

Gangster (2006)

Kangana was impressive as the alcoholic woman madly in love with a gangster. She even won the Filmfare Best Debut award for the role.

Fashion (2008)

Kangana bagged her first National Film Award for portraying the role of fallen top model who gives in to drugs and reminds the protagonist (Priyanka Chopra) of the frailty of success in the glamour industry.

Tanu Weds Manu and sequel (2011, 2015)

Aanand L Rai’s Tanu Weds Manu helped Kangana break the stereotype that she was being typecast into—one where she was only expected to play hysterical characters.

Fans found the carefree and self-indulging Tanu endearing, and lapped up the film, making it a surprise hit. Its sequel showcased a new side to Kangana’s skills—she played a double role where one of the characters was a Haryanavi village girl. Kangana won her third National Film Award for the best actress for Tanu Weds Manu Returns in 2016.

Queen (2014)

Vikas Bahl’s Queen not only re-affirmed Kangana’s acting prowess, it also marked a new milestone on the path of feminist cinema in India.

Rangoon (2017)

Vishal Bhardwaj’s latest romantic period, based in the 1920s, opened to mixed response and proved to be a dud at the box office. However, one aspect that was widely appreciated was Kangana’s performance as an action heroine who is engaged to a control freak but falls in love with a soldier.

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