Sikhs in the City!

While the film hasn't really worked any wonders at the box office, Bollywood actor Ranbir KapoorRanbir Kapoor has still managed to garner a lot of praise for his portrayal of a Sikh character in director Shimit Amin and writer Jaideep Sahani's Hindi film Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year, which was released last Friday.

Sikhism, a relatively new religion that sprung out of India in the 1500s, consists of 25 million followers worldwide -- out of which about 83 percent live in India. The more conservative male practitioners are easily identifiable since they are turbaned and keep their hair and beards uncut.

Kapoor isn't the first actor to have donned the role of a Sikh man on-screen, though. While very few Hindi films featured Sikh characters in prominent roles prior to 2000, over the past few years lead roles have been etched out for male Sikh characters, popularly referred to as Sardarjis. Some speculate the election of Manmohan SinghManmohan Singh, a Sikh, as Prime Minister in 2004 and again in 2009 might have inspired this trend.

Well, let's take a trip through B-town memory lane and see which Bollywood actors, besides Ranbir "Rocket Singh" Kapoor, have sported a Sardarji avatar.

Saif Ali KhanSaif Ali Khan portrayed the role of Veer Singh's younger version in Imtiaz AliImtiaz Ali's blockbuster romantic comedy, Love Aaj Kal (2009). Khan could have benefited from a few Punjabi diction classes, though, as his dialogue delivery didn't do much justice to a Sikh character. On the other hand, Bollywood veteran Rishi KapoorRishi Kapoor, who was roped in to play the older version of Singh, gave a very natural performance. Actor Rajendranath Zutshi, also shown as a Sikh, had a very brief role in the film as Singh's love interest, Harleen Kaur's (Giselle Monteiro) over-protective father. Zutshi already appeared as a Sikh in Gulzar's Maachis (1996), a film which explores Hindu-Sikh tension following Indira GandhiIndira Gandhi's assassination.

Actress Rani MukherjeeRani Mukherjee, who once upon a time reigned in Bollywood, attempted to come off as a Sikh boy in Anurag Singh's disastrous Dil Bole Hadippa! (2009), a film about a girl with a passion for cricket (the sport not the insect) who masquerades as a male so she can get selected in the men's cricket team because her village doesn't have a cricket team for women.

Jackie ShroffJackie Shroff and Sohail KhanSohail Khan posed as Sikh farmers in Puneet Sira's Kisaan (2009). The film, set in Punjab, explores the plight of farmers.

Award winning actor Paresh RawalParesh Rawal was seen as a quick-tempered Sikh father in Dibakar Banerjee's off-beat film, Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!. The film also starred an actual Sikh boy, Manjot Singh-Singh brilliant performance in the film landed him a Filmfare award, India's equivalent of an Oscar.

Bollywood's stunt king, Akshay Kumar appeared as a Sikh in the poorly made yet super hit film Singh Is Kinng (2008), directed by Anees Bazmee. The comic film revolves around a happy-go-lucky man from Punjab who goes all the way to Australia to convince the Sikh underworld don to say bye-bye to his evil ways and return his village. Actors Sonu Sood, Javed Jaffrey, Om Puri, Yashpal Sharma, Manoj Pahwa, Kamal Chopra and Sudhanshu Pandey also portrayed Sikh characters, although their beards were trimmed to the extreme and their turbans were far from authentic.

Kunaal Kapoor took on the role of a Sikh husband in his sixth film, Siddharth Anand's Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008). Kapoor won a lot of praise for both his performance and his handsome appearance even in a turban and beard.

Superstar Salman Khan appeared as a Sikh army officer in Samir Karnik's Heroes (2008). His accented dialogue delivery attracted a lot of laughs, and the film didn't do well at the box-office. Heroes also stars Sunny Deol, son of Bollywood veteran Dharmendra, as a handicapped Sikh army officer. Deol earlier appeared as a Sikh character in Rahul Rawail's Jo Bole So Nihaal (2005), Anil Sharma's Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001), and J.P. Dutta's Border (1997).

Child actor Rachit Sidana had a substantial role as a mischievous Sikh kid in Kunal Kohli's Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (2008), inspired by Mary Poppins. Child actor Parzan Dastur also appeared as a young Sikh boy in Karan Johar's romantic melodrama Kuch Kuch Hotaa Hai (1998).

In 2008, Raj Babbar appeared as a Sikh father in Satish Kaushik's Karzzzz, a pathetic remake of the Bollywood classic Karz. Babbar's role in the remake was more of an irritating caricature. Babbar appeared as a Sikh freedom fighter in 2000, in Chitraarth's Shaheed Uddham Singh: Alias Ram Mohammad Singh Azad.

Jab We Met (2007), another Imtiaz Ali film, also features many Sikh characters, including Pawan Malhotra and Dara Singh. However, the female protagonist, Geet (Kareena Kapoor), despite being characterized as belonging to a conservative Sikh family, had trimmed hair, while the rest of her relatives (with the exception of her sister Roop) did not.

Ritesh Deshmukh, son of Maharashtra's ex-Chief Minister, Vilasrao Deshmukh, sported a Sardarji getup in the song "Mast Kalandar" in Sajid Khan's Heyy Babby (2007), a Bollywood adaptation of Three Men and a Baby (1987).

Other actors who dressed up as Sikhs just for a song-and-dance number include Slumdog Millionaire actor Anil Kapoor in David Dhawan's Biwi No. 1 (1999) and Sunil Shetty in Mukesh Duggal's Gopi Kishan (1994).

From dialogue delivery to body language to physical appearance, Boman Irani offered a very believable performance of a Sikh man in Rajkumar Hirani's Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006), which explores Mahatma Gandhi's ideals in modern day India.

Award winning actor Sanjay Dutt featured in Raman Kumar's Sarhad Paar (2006) as a Sikh army man who returns back to his family after being held captive in Pakistan.

Kabir Bedi appeared as a Sikh in Farah Khan's Main Hoon Naa (2004). Khan happens to be one of the very few Bollywood female directors who has delivered box office hits.

Bollywood living legend Amitabh Bachchan, who has acted in over 175 films thus far, including Balki's Paa (2009), where he plays the role of a young child with progeria, has appeared as a Sikh in Anil Sharma's Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo (2004) and in Mehul Kumar's Kohram (1999).

Amrish Puri, best known for his performance of villainous roles, appeared as a Sikh character in Taarzan: The Wonder Car (2004) and Out of Control (2003). Both films disappeared from the public's memory quickly.

National Award winning actor Ajay Devgan offered a sensitive performance of the Sikh freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in Rajkumar Santoshi's The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002). The film featured music by Oscar winning composer, A.R. Rahman.

Sunny Deol's younger brother, Bobby Deol, also appeared as Bhagat Singh in Guddu Dhanoa's 23rd March 1931: Shaheed (2002), but neither Deol nor the film received much appreciation compared to The Legend of Bhagat Singh.

Anupam Kher, who has appeared in over 290 films and TV shows, has a brief role as a Sikh man in Aditya Chopra's Mohabbatein (2000), which also stars beauty queen Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

Bollywood comedian Johnny Lever did an imitation of Sikh musical pop star Daler Mehdni in Sandesh Kohli's comic film Anari No. 1 (1999). Mehndi is known for popularizing Punjabi beats among non-Punjabi Indian communities.

Kunaal Kapoor (not related to Bachna Ae Haseeno's Kunaal Kapoor), appeared as a Sikh boy in Govind Nihalani's coming of age story, Vijeta (1982).

Dharmendra, Sunny and Bobby Deol's father, appeared as a Sikh in Pramod Chakravorty's Dream Girl (1977) and as a Sikh bandit in the first half of Dulal Guha's Pratigya (1975).

Prithviraj Kapoor, a very critically acclaimed actor in Bollywood cinema whose career spans five decades, appeared as a Sikh in Ram Maheshwari's Nanak Naam Jahaz Hai (1969), which explored Sikh culture and values.

Even though many Bollywood actors have sported a traditional Sikh look on-screen, there aren't any real-life Sardarjis who have managed to break-into Bollywood as lead actors while keeping their Sikh identity intact. Yes, turbaned, bearded Sikh actors Jaspal Bhatti, Gurpreet Ghuggi, and Gurpal Singh (Sankat City) do appear on-screen from time to time, but their roles are always comical and brief. Will Bollywood's current fetish for Sikh characters lead to the welcoming of real-life Sardarji's on-screen? Time will tell.