“The biggest business becomes bigger not by money, but by a big idea!” Shahid Kapoor said this powerful line about starting a business in his movie Badmaash Company. Memorization? Hindi cinema boasts of many such characters who have inspired us with their entrepreneurial journey. While some became iconic, some of them are cherished till today. We’ve picked some of the best Netflix movie characters to get great business ideas from.
We have seen characters from Guru like Gurukant Desai, Laxmikant Padman and many more. If you want to pursue entrepreneurship in your career, this is definitely for you.
5 Top Netflix Movie Characters That Will Help You Start Dreaming Big:
1. Guru to Abhishek Bachchan
Directed by Mani Ratnam, Guru starred Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai in the lead roles. Mithun Chakraborty was also in an important role in the film. The 2007 drama film was based on the life of late industrialist Dhirubhai Ambani, the founder of Reliance. Abhishek played the role of Gurukant Desai in this film directed by Ratnam. Born and brought up in Gujarat, Gurukant dreams of achieving big things in life.
Abhishek as Gurukant remains an inspiration for many aspiring entrepreneurs. Guru was focused on his goal from the beginning and was clear about his dreams. Aishwarya was cast in the role of his wife Sujata Desai.
2. Srikanth to Rajkumar Rao
Starring Rajkummar Rao and Alaya F, Srikanth was released earlier this year. This biographical film was based on the life of Bolant Industries founder Shrikant Bolla. Rajkumar played the lead role of Srikanth, who was born visually impaired in Sitarampuram village of Machilipatnam, Andhra Pradesh. Srikant Bolla gained recognition in 2012 after founding his company, Bolant Industries, and providing employment to workers with disabilities.
In the film, Srikanth is rejected from the Indian Institute of Technology and is later selected as the first international visually impaired student to study at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the United States. Rajkumar as Srikanth was masterful in his performance and inspired the audience to believe in themselves and start their entrepreneurship journey.
3. Rocket Singh: Ranbir Kapoor from Salesman of the Year
“Even Spiderman has to take risks…I am still a salesman!” In this way Ranbir Kapoor inspired the audience to take risks in their life. We are talking about Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year. Directed by Shimit Amin, the 2009 film starred Ranbir as Harpreet Singh Bedi, a B.Com graduate who aspires to pursue a career in the sales industry. Harpreet gets a job as a salesman in a struggling corporate sales company.
Ranbir as Harpreet realizes that traditional sales methods are not doing any wonders, so he starts focusing on building customer relationships in real life. His unconventional approach makes him a star among his colleagues. Watch Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year to know what happens next.
4. Akshay Kumar from Padman
PadMan, directed by R Balki, featured Akshay Kumar in the lead role. In the film, Akshay played the character of Laxmikant Chauhan, who makes sanitary pads for women in rural areas. His character was based on Arunachalam Muruganantham, an entrepreneur from Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, who became famous for inventing low-cost sanitary pads.
Radhika Apte played the role of his on-screen wife, Gayatri, in the 2018 film. After his newlywed wife, Gayatri, struggles with her periods, he sets out on a mission to create sanitary pads that are light on the pocket. Overcoming all odds, Akshay’s character, Lakshmi advocates female hygiene and fights against the social stigma that comes with menstruation in India. His journey as ‘Padman’ inspires generations to fight against the taboo of periods and inspires people to come up with business ideas for women’s welfare.
Sonam Kapoor also played an important role in Padman. Co-produced by actress-turned-writer Twinkle Khanna, the social-comedy drama was released in 2018. Khanna has written about his journey to Arunachalam in his book, The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad, which is a collection of four stories.
5. Pratibha Ranta from Missing Ladies
Directed by Kiran Rao, Missing Ladies stars Sparsh Srivastava, Nitanshi Goyal and Pratibha Ranta in lead roles. The 2023 film tells the story of two brides who take turns while traveling on a train. Pratibha plays the role of Jaya Tripathi Singh
Who calls herself Pushpa Rani in this. Her character reflects how she was able to adapt herself to the situation.
Pratibha’s character Jaya aspires to take up organic farming in Dehradun, however, her parents marry her off to an abusive husband. Her role is an inspiration for many rural women who want to start their own business in agriculture. Pratibha as Jaya is determined for her career and experiences self-reliance through her journey.
Are you looking for a start-up idea or planning to start a business, then watch the above movies first. They are available on Netflix.
Also read: 6 Netflix movies whose lead characters proved that unconventional jobs are cool too
