When Emraan Hashmi returns as Shivam Pandit in Awarapan 2, the nostalgia will obviously be strong. But it is also worth remembering the actor who has emerged in the 19 years since Awarapan,  an actor who has consistently proved that there is much more to his craft than the image he started with.

Emraan’s evolution has been gradual, but unmistakable. He has gone from playing intense romantic heroes to characters that demand restraint, vulnerability and emotional complexity.

His performance in Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai showed that he could hold his own in a gangster drama, while The Dirty Picture proved that he could disappear into a supporting character and still leave a lasting impression. In Shanghai, he went in the opposite direction, playing a morally conflicted bureaucrat with an understated performance that relied more on observation than theatrics.

Then came Hamari Adhuri Kahani, where Emraan brought a quiet vulnerability to a man caught between love and circumstance. It was a reminder that his strength has always been his ability to make emotional characters feel lived-in rather than performed.

But Haq feels like one of the strongest examples of how far he has come. Even with a romantic angle, the character carries authority, conflict and emotional weight. Emraan does not oversell it. He lets the character’s silences and reactions do the work, and that restraint is what makes the performance effective. That, perhaps, is what makes his return as Shivam so interesting. This is not the same actor audiences saw in 2007. He has spent nearly two decades experimenting with characters, genres and shades of performance.

From Awarapan to Haq, his biggest achievement has been becoming an actor of craft without ever losing the intensity that made audiences notice him in the first place. Now, as Awarapan 2, directed by Nitin Kakkar, arrives in theatres on Friday, all eyes are on Emraan’s return as Shivam Pandit and the excitement around the film suggests audiences are more than ready to welcome him back.