Saif Ali Khan, Ajay Devgn and Ram Charan: Actors who pulled off intense cop roles

Bollywood films have always had a fascination with cops. There have been some memorable films and franchises that have men in uniform at the centre of the action. Director Rohit Shetty has made an entire cinematic universe with them. We've also had some mean lady cops like Tabu in Drishyam and Shefali Shah in two series of Delhi Crime. Om Puri played an unforgettable angsty cop in Ardh Satya, too. But here's a select list of actors who've portrayed intense cops that have impressed cine buffs around the world.

Saif's come a long way from his Main Khiladi Tu Anari days, where he played a wannabe actor wanting to rub shoulders with the machismo of Akshay Kumar's cop character. Saif's turn as Sartaj, the deeply intense protagonist of Sacred Games was fierce and fantastic. He's returned to tackle a similarly maxed-out cop in Vikram Vedha, this time locking horns with Hrithik Roshan.

Ajay Devgn's portrayal of Singham is nearly as iconic as the character that inspired it, Suriya's Tamil namesake. But Ajay's Singham has been so iconic that he's spawned not just a franchise for himself, but for Ranveer Singh as Simba and Akshay Kumar as Sooryavanshi, too. Need we say, Rohit Shetty's Indian Police Force, which features Sidharth Malhotra and Shilpa Shetty could be another off-shoot of Singham's greatness.

Ram Charan is no stranger to playing intense cops. He filled some pretty big shoes a few years ago, when he starred in the remake of Zanjeer. But it's his performance in SS Rajamouli's RRR, which has catapulted him into the big league. The intensity was off the charts and everyone who's seen his introductory fight sequence from the film has only been singing hosannas.

Arguably the dark horse on this list, Manoj Bajpayee's career-defining performance as Inspector Samar Pratap Singh in Shool will forever be remembered for the raw, visceral intensity with which he burst onto the scene in the film's climax. If Om Puri's Ardh Satya was the gold standard for a cop's challenges in life, Manoj's turn as the honest cop pushed to the brink of chaos was a worthy nod.

We've mentioned that Tabu and Shefali Shah have played some of the most memorable female cops in recent times. But one performance that redefined women in uniform was Rani Mukerji in the Mardaani movies. She was in top form, playing a female cop that's probably tougher and more brash than her male counterparts. And the way she served justice to those who commit crimes against women, was pitch perfect.

He's the OG. Ever since 1973, every actor who's played a fierce and idealistic cop has always set sights on the benchmark established by Amitabh Bachchan in Zanjeer. His scenes with Pran in the police station and his ideals as an incorruptible force of justice have been the pillars of how cops have been portrayed in cinema, ever since.