Being an actor takes work, as behind all the glitter and glamour, one has to put a lot of hard work into their craft. While some film roles can get mentally exhausting, a few can also be physically challenging. There have been multiple actors who have taken on this challenge in recent years and triumphed.
From losing all their body fat to gaining some extra kilos in a matter of days, these stars have gone to extremes to suit their roles in movies. Here are nine Bollywood actors who underwent extreme body transformations for their characters.
1. Kartik Aaryan in Chandu Champion
Kartik Aaryan grabbed eyeballs for his unbelievable transformation while playing Paralympic gold medalist Murlikant Petkar in Kabir Khan’s Chandu Champion. The actor built a lean and ripped body for his role, reducing his body fat percentage from 39% to only 7% within a year, which Kabir Khan revealed he achieved naturally without using steroids. “It’s almost next to impossible task that Kartik has managed to pull off. We snatched away all his favorite dishes,” the director said at the film trailer launch event.
2. Randeep Hooda in Sarbjit and Swatantrya Veer Savarkar
Randeep Hooda showcased his dedication toward his craft when he drastically lost weight not once but twice in his career. In 2016, he shed almost 28 kgs in 20 days to play the titular part in Sarbjit and shocked everyone with his look as the man was kept in Pakistan jail for years after mistakenly crossing the border. Once again, the actor took on the challenging task of losing 30 kilos for his lead role in Swatantrya Veer Savarkar and played the part to perfection.
3. Bhumi Pednekar in Dum Laga Ke Haisha
For her debut in Yash Raj Films’ Dum Laga Ke Haisha, Bhumi Pednekar gained 27 kgs and weighed 92 kgs by the end of the film’s shoot. The actress then took it upon herself to lose all the extra weight and lost 27 kgs before commencing the shoot of her second film, Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. Reflecting on her journey, Bhumi said she had two major body transformations within 2.5 years, where she gained and lost weight drastically.
4. Rajkummar Rao in Trapped and Bose
For his role as a man who is locked in a house without food and water in Trapped, Rajkummar Rao shed 7 kgs in just 22 days. He reportedly only ate a carrot and had a cup of coffee daily to appear malnourished. The actor then once again took on the task of transforming his body when he played Subhash Chandra Bose in the web series Bose: Dead/Alive and gained 11 kgs within a month.
5. Priyanka Chopra in Mary Kom
In 2014, Priyanka Chopra stepped into the shoes of boxing legend Mary Kom for her biopic. The actress had to get into the boxer’s physique and shocked everyone by flaunting her muscles in the movie. Her trainer later revealed that Priyanka always attended every workout while prepping for a role. She followed a diet that real boxers followed and completely strayed away from junk food.
6. Aamir Khan in Dangal
Mr. Perfectionist played the challenging role of Mahavir Singh Phogat in the 2016 blockbuster Dangal and put on 25 kgs to portray the wrestler with a protruding belly. He then lost all the extra kilos and built a toned body, as he had to play a younger version of the wrestler with a rugged physique in a few film sequences. Aamir revealed that he chose to shoot the scenes involving the younger version at the end of the filming schedule to have a reason and motivation to get back in shape.
7. Bobby Deol in Animal
While Bobby Deol did not get much screen time in Animal, he did grab all the limelight with his fantastic expressions and fabulous body. The actor trained rigorously for four months and reduced his body fat to 12% for the role of Abrar. Apart from weight training, Bobby made it a routine to have intense cardio sessions twice daily to achieve Abrar’s physique. Meanwhile, he followed a strict diet plan and abstained from sweets despite having a sweet tooth.
8. Vidya Balan in The Dirty Picture
For her stunning role as Reshma, aka Silk, in the 2011 hit The Dirty Picture, Vidya Balan had to put on 12 kgs. The actress revealed that while initially apprehensive about gaining weight, she went on with it to do justice to the character. Her hard work paid off as the actress astonished everyone with her performance and transformation and bagged all the Best Actress awards that year.
9. Shahid Kapoor in Kaminey and Kabir Singh
Shahid Kapoor made headlines in 2009 when he got rid of his chocolate boy image, donning six-pack abs for Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kaminey. The actor then had another transformation for his 2019 blockbuster Kabir Singh. As Shahid portrayed his character’s journey from a college student to a man struggling with alcoholism, he had to put on 8 kgs and later lose 14 kgs for the film in a span of a few months.
