Is B-Town's younger generation getting honoured with Madame Tussauds statues too early and too fast?

Having one’s waxwork at Madame Tussauds, needless to say, is akin to being in the hall of fame. For Bollywood, it started with the megastar Amitabh Bachchan, who was immortalised with a statue in 2000 in London. The list of celebs from the film industry gradually got longer, with a new name joining the ranks every few years. Of late, though, the list of stars getting the waxed tribute is becoming longer and includes younger actors, who haven’t had to wait as long as their seniors in standing tall at the coveted museum. Here’s a look at how things have played out over the years. 

THE FIRST TRIUMVIRATE

After Big B became the first-ever celebrity from Bollywood, and living Asian, to be immortalised with a statue, it was another four years before another B-Town name found itself in the prestigious list of personalities. And that was his now-bahu Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in 2004. She was also the first heroine from the industry to find a place there. Thereafter, it was only in 2007 that superstar Shah Rukh Khan debuted there as a sculpture.

THE LIST GREW LONGER

The wait to have another name wasn’t too long this time, as Salman Khan joined his colleagues in 2008. Another addition took three years again with Hrithik Roshan unveiling his statue in 2011. The same year, Kareena Kapoor Khan became the second actress from the industry to have a figure there, too. Madhuri Dixit-Nene made it to the list in 2012. Katrina Kaif completed the hat-trick of female stars but it took her three years to arrive there in 2015.

A LONG WAIT

While these actors’ statues debuted in the city of Big Ben, since 2017 (two years after the last one of Katrina), the frequency of installation has shot up. Anil Kapoor got one in Singapore in 2017. Interestingly, actors have had to wait for decades before they raised the curtain on their wax doppelgangers. Anil, for instance, took approximately 35 years after his breakthrough film Woh Saat Din (1983) and almost 10 years since his Oscar-winning movie Slumdog Millionaire (2008) — the statue has his pose from the Kaun Banega Crorepati sequence in it. Or Bachchan, who had been active as a film star for over 30 years. Kajol has had a glorious 26-year-old journey so far and got the wax dedication only in May this year. Others before her, too — whether SRK, Salman, Ash, Kat or Madhuri — debuted in the figurine form after they became iconic names and enjoyed superstardom.

THE NEWER LOT GETS IMMORTALISED

While the Bollywood biggies have had to wait in the wings to debut at Tussauds, that doesn’t seem to be the case for the younger gen. This year began with Varun Dhawan’s signature step from Saturday Saturday from Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania being waxed in Hong Kong. Not only did the Judwaa 2 star become the youngest actor to have a sculpture at the museum’s branch but also the second from Bollywood after AB himself at the location. Varun only has six years of experience as the lead hero. Barely half-a-year later has also come the announcement of Anushka Sharma’s impending sculpture in Singapore that will be the maiden interactive one from Bollywood — after Oprah Winfrey, Cristiano Ronaldo and Lewis Hamilton. The actress and producer will complete 10 years in the industry in December this year. Recently also came the news of Deepika Padukone getting a figurine in London and later in Delhi. Also, she is the first Indian celebrity whose statue will rub shoulders with those of A-listers in the main area (not the Bollywood section), such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie and Helen Mirren. She is senior to Varun but the Piku girl also has just about 11 years to her credit as a Bollywood actress. The latest joinee is DP’s Padmaavat co-star Shahid Kapoor, who made his Bollywood debut in 2003, and is the senior most contender among the newer lot. Believably, his statue will be unveiled next month before Deepika’s, which will come in January next year.

WAXED TOO SOON?

Even if the popularity of these stars cannot be undermined, they still have a long way to go to reach the iconic stature and achievements that the actors so far at the museum have. Or even that of Karan Johar, whose waxwork was announced this year in April. After all, he entered the industry as a director 20 years ago with Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. The collective years of experience of the young stars is equivalent to AB’s and Anil’s individually before they were commemorated at Tussauds. As the number of popular stars increases, it’s only a matter of time before the likes of Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt and their contemporaries will have statues of their own.

WHERE THE WAXWORKS ARE...

Amitabh Bachchan: London and Delhi

Aishwarya Rai Bachchan: London, New York and Delhi

Shah Rukh Khan: London and Delhi

Salman Khan: London, New York and Delhi

Hrithik Roshan: London and Delhi

Kareena Kapoor Khan: London, Singapore and Delhi

Madhuri Dixit-Nene: London 

Katrina Kaif: London and Delhi

Anil Kapoor: Singapore and Delhi

Kajol: Singapore

Varun Dhawan: Hong Kong

Ranbir Kapoor: Delhi

Madhubala: Delhi

COMING UP

Deepika Padukone: London and Delhi

Shahid Kapoor: To be announced

Karan Johar: London

Anushka Sharma: Singapore

Sunny Leone: Delhi