How Tiger Shroff has been punching out action franchises: From Heropanti to Baaghi

Tiger Shroff never does things halves — he knows how to keep his audience hooked to his flying punches and roundhouse kicks, and keeps them coming back for more. If it worked fabulously well, it will work again –and he’s clearly always right, as we can see from the success of Heropanti and the long line of Baaghis. There’s a War sequel in the works too—as the first film was just too consuming for it to not have a continuation. Give the fans what they need, more of Hrithik and Tiger battling it out in any part of the world. The story doesn’t matter.
Apart from establishing himself as one of the most bankable action stars in the country, Tiger seems to be taking on films that leave the masses wanting more. It’s alright if the story takes a backseat for a while, because Tiger knows how to (literally) hit it out of the park with his ripped muscles that the audience has grown to love.

There seems to be a continuation for his type of films, starting with the enormously successful Baaghi, back in 2016. The film has now spawned three sequels, with the fourth one in the works. Well, it isn’t quite a sequel per se—the story and characters in the film are not even remotely related to the previous film. Nevertheless, we just accept it under the name of Baaghi. The first film starred Shraddha Kapoor and was a resounding box office success, earning around Rs 125 crore. The second movie, featured Disha Patani, and was directed Ahmed Khan—who took Tiger under his wing for the rest of his films.
Baaghi 2 was a remake of the 2016 Telugu film Kshanam, and actually had a strong storyline (before the director tapped into Tiger’s action avatar). A woman struggles to tell the truth about her kidnapped daughter, while everyone around her feigns ignorance and tricks her into thinking that she is crazy. The romance, possibly because of Tiger and Disha’s real-life chemry, was far more engaging, even if it didn’t have a happy ending.

But then Tiger did what he was best at—beat up an entire army single-handedly in a forest, and survived with a few scratches. That’s the Tiger we know and love, and possibly we don’t want him in any other avatar. It works, somehow, for his fans. Baaghi 3, starred Shraddha Kapoor again, and this time Tiger takes on Syrian militants single-handedly. Directed Ahmed Khan, Tiger’s punches in the film are just what the doctor ordered.
Ahmed Khan and Tiger Shroff have worked together in several films now, and the filmmaker knows how to bring out the massy appeal in the star. He knows the definition of Bollywood masala—the classic non- cerebral, massively entertaining, whle-inducing elements that will keep the audience cheering till the end. The duo can create magic, clearly.
During the promotions of Heropanti 2, Ahmed was in awe of how Tiger ‘submits’ to his avatars. The director said, “Working with Tiger Shroff always feels like coming home. The way he submits to the story is commendable. He’s the biggest and the youngest action hero the industry has currently. The way he maneuvers complex action sequences and makes them look super effortless, speaks volumes of his constant dedication because this guy really puts his 200% into his work. Besides being such an easy going actor to work with, he is the most massy actor in the young lot and that’s another reason it’s always a rewarding experience working with him.”

As Ahmed Khan had noted during Baaghi 2 promotions, Tiger Shroff is always ready—ready for everything. “I see Tiger Shroff right now as a hero. Because you ask him to dance, he is ready. Tell him to do action, he does it out of his limits. For a bare body shot, he is ready in five minutes because he is always fit. I asked him for a haircut, and he was ready. He is an actor who is a complete hero. Whether it is songs, action, acting or anything, he is ready. I think Tiger Shroff is complete in terms of everything.”
The word Heropanti aptly describes Tiger, and it seems fit that he chose the film. The film’s sequel releases today and promises to be another out-and-out masala entertainer with Nawazuddin Siddiqui added to the mix. We won’t be surprised if Heropanti 3 is announced soon—-because that’s what Tiger does. He creates his own franchises.