Year end special: Bang, bang performances of the year (see pics)

New Delhi: If Bollywood enraptured viewers by its offerings, actors too impressed by donning diverse roles - from ostentatious to serious to comic.

They took various roles and enhanced the movie viewing experience. If first-rate actors like Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan rocked the box office, others too stole the show with their meticulous acting skills.

 IANS lists the top male performers of the year:

1. Shahid Kapoor: His role in "Haider" can be described as the best performance of his career. Shot in the Kashmir valley, the quintessential Vishal Bhardwaj directorial was an adaptation of Shakespeare's "Hamlet".

Apart from doing good business at the box office, the film was well received by critics, who were enamoured by Shahid's work.

2. Randeep Hooda: Imtiaz Ali's "Highway" featured the off-beat pair of Alia Bhatt and Randeep Hooda. This however did not stop the film from making an impact on the audience.

Mostly shot in the scenic locales of northern India, it presented Hooda as a goon who kidnaps the protagonist, and he breezed through his role. A classic example of Stockholm Syndrome, the film gathered much critical acclaim following its release in February.

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Apart from "Highway", Hooda also appeared in a pivotal role in Salman Khan starrer "Kick" and he lived up to the expectation of his fans in the commercial drama.

3. Nawazuddin Siddiqui: After giving extraordinary performances in the past years, Nawaz yet again exhibited his talent in "Kick", a masala movie, and then wowed with his performance in indie movie "Liar's Dice", which was India's official Oscar entry for the best foreign language film category.

4. Rajkummar Rao: He played Vijay in "Queen" and Deepak Singh in "CityLights" and proved his versatility through the lucid roles.

The former was a women centric drama and Rajkummar created the perfect contrast for the protagonist. "CityLights", directed by Hansal Mehta, saw him in the much central and serious role.

Centered on urban-rural migration, the film, an adaptation of a British movie "Metro Manila", saw the actor giving his best.