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A few days ago, I was running late for Kangana Ranaut's Queen and hurried to find my seat in the movie hall. The film hadn't begun yet, since the trailer for Bewakoofiyaan seemed to be playing. Thirty seconds later I realised that I was in the wrong multiplex screen - the Sonam Kapoor film was actually playing to an almost-empty hall, less than a week after its release. As I exited the theatre, I realised this was another Sonam film I had left midway. Her only film I have sat through is Delhi 6: that's because I dozed off soon after the film started.
Delhi 6, directed by Rakeysh Om Prakash Mehra, tanked but critics complimented Kapoor, the short role notwithstanding. Rajeev Masand called her "a firecracker performer, instinctive and uninhibited in what isn't even a conventional female lead", while Anupama Chopra said: "The lovely Sonam imbues her [the character] with grace and attitude". Shubra Gupta, writing for The Indian Express, complained that Kapoor wasn't on screen as much as she would have liked her to be. "You wish Mehra hadn't shortchanged the refreshingly natural Sonam, who is all girl: she deserved much more screen time".
Her next big film was I Hate Luv Stories with Imran Khan (parachuted into stardom by his uncle, Aamir Khan). From the trailers, it looked like an extra-sweet, brain-dead rom-com from Karan Johar's Dharma Productions. The film bombed. Critics' adulation for Kapoor began to wane. For her portrayal of a girly, love-struck character, all Masand said was she looked "pretty". Gupta found she looked "stiff and rehearsed". After such reviews, I didn't want to spend money watching it.
With Aisha, Kapoor upped her style quotient several notches, portraying a bratty Delhi girl. Pre-release publicity said Kapoor was just being herself in the film. But even that performance wasn't convincing. I only watched the movie when it aired on television later, particularly since the reviews were so scathing. Masand seemed to be running out of patience. "She plays the airhead convincingly and pulls off the flighty princess part, but flounders when it comes to drumming up tears, anger or hurt," he said. "Sonam manages to look like a million bucks... but is more flat and precious than lovable," Gupta added. She won the 2011 Golden Kela award, the Bollywood version of the Raspberry Awards, or Razzies, for her role in this film.
Kapoor went on to give two stylish duds: Thank You and Players. She looked great, acted badly. Finally, it was her role opposite Shahid Kapur in Mausam that promised some emotive talent. But critics seriously questioned her acting abilities. Masand blamed it on the "corny lines that she was saddled with", while Gupta called her "lifeless". And like I Hate Luv Stories, the standard complaint was that there was no chemistry between the lead actors. I couldn't gather the courage to watch it on DVD.
Kapoor recovered some ground in Raanjhanaa, though most critics gave more credit to Dhanush, the male lead. Chopra's review entirely spoke of Dhanush and the plotline, without a single mention of Kapoor. Masand gave her some credit for being able to portray the character "smoothly". Gupta was scathing: "Her limitations as an actor are evident when she has to get serious." Kapoor in Raanjhanaa was nominated yet again in the worst actress category for the 2013 Golden Kela award. Kapoor's role in Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, Mehra's imperfect biopic of Milkha Singh, was too insignificant to notice.
Having watched about 30 seconds of Bewakoofiyaan, Gupta's review struck a chord with me: "Sonam is one of the few Bollywood denizens who wears her clothes beautifully, and doesn't let them wear her... But acting is a whole different thing." Being a style diva is fine, but will someone tell her that films are also about acting?
