Out With Nepo Jazz, In With New

Forget the Khans and Kapoors for a minute — Bollywood’s new kids are here to steal the show!

The six newcomers leading this week’s release, Pehla Pyaar Doosri Baar, are winning hearts with their fresh-as-dew act and old-school romantic tadka. Produced by Luv Ranjan, the film is a full-on Gen Z rollercoaster of love.

Meet the gang — Sparsh Walia, Alisha Chopra, Sakshi Vaidya, Kunal Vaid, Sargun Kaur Luthra and Tushar Chhibber.

Luv says new blood is the need of the hour. “There is no dearth of new talent. We auditioned hundreds before finding these six. Superstars will always be there, but if you are making a film on the young, you have to cast the young,” he says.

And it’s working! Last year, Saiyaara jodi Ahaan Pandey and Aneet Padda created dhamaal and are now the most sought-after stars in town

Karan Johar is also on a talent hunt spree. After auditioning over 500 hopefuls, Dharma is all set to launch two complete outsiders purely on raw screen presence.

“You can’t make Saiyaara with superstars and you can’t make Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham or Rocky Aur Rani with newcomers. Both need to co-exist,” says Karan.

Sriram Raghavan’s war epic Ikkis (2026) also placed its bet on fresh faces — Simar Bhatia and Agastya Nanda. “They were not cast for their pedigree. They suited the parts. I couldn’t cast Varun Dhawan as a 21-year-old soldier who dies in war. He was the original choice, but by the time we rolled, it was too late for him,” says Raghavan.

Imtiaz Ali did the same with Vedang Raina and Sharvari in Main Wapas Aunga. “I couldn’t cast known stars as young lovers. I needed Diljit for the older part,” says Imtiaz.

The trend continues — Bejoy Nambia’s Tu Yaa Main (Feb 2026) pairs Adarsh Gourav with Shanaya Kapoor in a crazy story of a rapper and a SoBo influencer trapped with a killer crocodile!

Even the biggie Border 2 (Jan 2026) with Sunny and Varun Dhawan introduces fresh face Medha Rana opposite Varun.

And Aanand L. Rai’s Nakhrewali is launching two absolute newcomers — Ansh Duggal and Pragati Srivastava. “The future is fresh talent. Not just actors, but directors too. These two are talent to watch,” says Rai.

So, Bollywood is finally opening its doors and the outsiders are barging in with a bang!

Imtiaz Ali did the same with Vedang Raina and Sharvari in Main Wapas Aunga. “I couldn’t cast known stars as young lovers. I needed Diljit for the older part,” says Imtiaz.

“You can’t make Saiyaara with superstars and you can’t make Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham or Rocky Aur Rani with newcomers. Both need to co-exist,” says Karan.