Devdas and his Legion of Sadbois

Anushka Halve

1. Ranbir Kapoor in Rockstar, Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, and Tamasha

Ranbir Kapoor has played the sadboi over and over again, portraying men with achey-breaky hearts who have gone on to achieve cult status.

2. Salman Khan in Tere Naam

One of Salman Khan’s most iconic performances is as a sadboi. Radhe, a violent good Samaritan with a memorably bad haircut.

3. Aditya Roy Kapur Aashiqui 2

Aditya Roy Kapur’s most memorable performance is Sadboi Supreme Rahul Jayakar, a rockstar drowning in his drink.

4. Sanjay Dutt in Shabd

Sad doesn’t begin to describe the idea of Sanjay Dutt playing a Booker Prize-winning novelist, but then again, isn’t the point of fiction to imagine the impossible?

5. Dhanush in Raanjhanaa

Dhanush plays a persistent, bordering on problematic loverboy Kundan who falls deeply in one-sided love with Zoya (played by Sonam Kapoor). As Kundan experiences the highs and lows of love, the emotional rollercoaster transforms him from loverboy to sadboi.

Swipe up

Read more