Emraan Hashmi Opens Up: How He Shed the ‘Serial Kisser’ Image to Reinvent His Career
Emraan Hashmi says he fully juiced his serial kisser image before reinventing himself.
Even after years in Bollywood, Emraan Hashmi is still associated with the “serial kisser” tag, a label that emerged during his early films where his on-screen chemistry and bold scenes drew massive attention. Movies like Murder catapulted him into fame, while thrillers that followed reinforced his “bad boy romantic hero” image.
Emraan acknowledges that the label and image initially benefited his career, bringing commercial success and media coverage. “They were commercial successes, and I was also raking in that image. We were playing up to it through the marketing. The press was in on it,” he said in an interview with the Hindustan Times.
He explained that his decision to step away from this persona came after a decade of doing similar roles. “After a decade of doing it, I realised that the audience changes… Every character, every mould reaches saturation. I juiced it to the hilt. It was very important to switch,” Emraan said, emphasizing the need for reinvention to stay relevant to newer audiences.
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Despite moving on, Emraan admits that the media and public continue to reference his past roles, reflecting India’s fascination with strong cinematic images. “Even at a press conference recently, the question about the kiss still popped up… That’s India. They are still obsessed with it,” he noted.
To break free from typecasting, Emraan stresses the importance of taking daring and versatile roles. “You have to play on the front foot and do something to show your versatility,” he said. His recent project, Netflix’s Taskaree, sees him in a different avatar as a customs officer, marking a significant shift from his earlier romantic-thriller persona.
Looking ahead, Emraan remains committed to diversifying his roles, aiming to redefine his career and appeal to a wider, contemporary audience while leaving behind the image that once defined him.
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