Maryam Farooqui Moneycontrol News
Generally considered a dull period for Bollywood, the first five months have proved to be money-spinners this year.
The first half of a year is usually lean in terms of business for the film industry due to the exam season in school and broadcasting of Indian Premier League.
However, things were different this year and the winning streak that started with the release of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Padmaavat in January continued in the months that came by.
According to film trade analyst Joginder Tuteja, in flat five months Bollywood has witnessed nine box office hits which have in all collected around Rs 1,000 crore.
The first five months of the year also witnessed a lot of unexpected successes including movies like Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety, Hichki, Baaghi 2, Raid and Raazi. Out of these five films, three earned more than Rs 100 crore.
Sonu ke Titu ki Sweety sprung up a surprise after running on theatres for many weeks despite the film fielding no A-list stars. With a budget of Rs 40 crore, the film achieved a feat that not many small budget films are able to.
Bollywood’s hit formula of action thrillers once again received a huge welcome from the moviegoers. Tiger Shroff’s Baaghi 2, made at a budget of Rs 59 crore, raked in approximately Rs 160 crore.
Alia Bhatt’s Raazi, which hit theatres on May 11, became third women-centric film to enter the coveted Rs 100-crore club. Apart from Raid, starring Ajay Devgn, and Akshay Kumar’s Padman, Raazi was the second realistic drama this year that turned out to be a successful venture. Padman had clocked Rs 81.82 crore.
Other small films like Rani Mukherjee’s Hichki, Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor-starrer 102 Not Out and Parmanu starring John Abraham earned Rs Rs 46.21 crore, Rs 50.88 crore and Rs 37.46 crore, respectively. Parmanu is still running in theatres and made strong collections in its first week which ended in May.
Out of the nine films, two are still running on theatres that will keep the cash register ringing in June.
The scenario wasn’t the same last year when very few films were worth celebrating at the box office. And the industry expected Salman Khan-starrer Tubelight to break the trend. However, the film failed to do so due to its dismal performance.
On one hand Shah Rukh Khan's Raees and Akshay Kumar's Jolly LLB 2 broke the dry spell at the box office, they could not create the kind of buzz that could bring a turnaround at the box office. But that feat was achieved by the Telugu film Baahubali 2: The Conclusion.
Trade pundits also termed the first six months of 2017 as a tough period for the film industry.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
