Nationalistic films big hit in a mixed year for Hindi cinema

Mumbai, Dec 25 (PTI) Bookended by two nationalistic hits in "Chhava" and "Dhurandhar", the Hindi film industry had a mixed year where star-driven vehicles like "Sikandar", starring Salman Khan, and Hrithik Roshan-fronted "War 2" fizzled out at the box office, while romantic drama "Saiyaara" resonated with viewers.

"Chhaava", based on the life of Maratha ruler Sambhaji, became the first major hit of the year with the Vicky Kaushal-starrer earning over Rs. 600 crore at the box office to emerge as one of the highest grossing movies of the year. The Laxman Utekar-directed movie released on February 14 and featured Akshaye Khanna and Vineet Kumar Singh in pivotal roles.   Khanna, whose performance as Rahman Dakait and his dance in "Dhurandhar" have become a viral sensation on social media, was not the only common thread between two of the biggest movies. Both, one set in the distant past and another around the Kandahar hijack and the Mumbai terror attacks in 2008, are known for their nationalistic theme.

"Dhurandhar", released on December 5, has amassed over Rs 600 crore at the box office to become one of the top 10 highest earning Indian movies, as per the data by box office tracking website Sacnilk.

The success of these movies has contributed in making 2025 a successful year in terms of box office despite the patchy performance of some major movies and highly anticipated sequels.

Bihar-based exhibitor Vishek Chauhan described the box office situation as “flood and famine”.

"It's not been a great year but a decent year. There have been few good takeaways, some negatives and positives. But overall, I would call it a very mixed bag and a surprising year, which also kind of reflected the changing palettes of the consumers. It was like a flood-famine situation, either there used to be a flood or there used to be a famine at the box office,” Chauhan told PTI.

He further said films like “Chhaava” and “Dhurandhar” proved that box office success does not depend merely on the Khan trio of Bollywood and top stars like Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn.

“Nobody expected the films ('Chhaava' and 'Dhurandhar') to do the kind of numbers they did. They were high-end to mid-budget films led by the younger stars, not the A-pedigree that we have like the Khans, Kumars and the Devgns. So, the surprise package is that there were films headlined by Vicky Kaushal, Ranveer Singh, and Ahan Pandey that did well. It's very refreshing from the audience point of view, I think Bollywood has turned a page.” Kamal Gianchandani, CEO, PVR INOX Pictures too said the business has witnessed a rise of 10 per cent from 2024 with some high and low points.

“The business this year has risen by 10 per cent from the previous year. A lot of people thought big ticket and spectacle films would work at the box office but romantic films made a comeback. Although, a lot of films with big stars, and in a lot of cases sequels, didn’t work except ‘Sitaare Zameen Par’,” Gianchandani told PTI, giving the example of "Saiyaara" and the re-release of "Sanam Teri Kasam".

Devang Sampat, managing director, Cinépolis India, said 2025 was a good year as "Dhurandhar" is on course to become the highest-grossing Hindi film of the year, tracking over Rs 600 crore.

"But the real story of 2025 is not any single film. It is the depth and diversity that sustained the box office across the year. Like, Hindi cinema saw uneven results, with some high-profile titles unable to sustain momentum beyond opening weekend, films such as ‘Saiyaara’, ‘Raid 2’ and ‘Mahavatar Narsimha’ proved that strong storytelling builds audiences over time,” he said.

Director Mohit Suri’s “Saiyaara” came out in July and, with its soulful music and narrative, captivated the hearts of audiences, especially youngsters. The film featuring newcomers Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda earned over Rs 329 crore in India.

Some of the films like John Abraham’s political thriller “The Diplomat”, Ajay Devgn and Riteish Deshmukh’s “Raid 2”, Aamir Khan’s “Sitaare Zameen Par”, and Akshay Kumar and Arshad Warsi’s “Jolly LLB 3”, did decent business.

Trade expert Taran Adarsh said films like “Chhaava”, “Saiyaara” and “Dhurandhar” set new box-office records for the industry.

"There were some surprises which caught the industry off guard, like ‘Chhaava’, ‘Saiyaara’, and ‘Dhurandhar’. Love stories made a comeback with the success of ‘Saiyaara’, ‘Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat’, ‘Tere Ishq Mein’, and the re-release of ‘Sanam Teri Kasam’. There were some films that misfired like ‘War 2’ and a few others. One thought it would rewrite the box office record but it was a disaster,” Adarsh told PTI.

Some of the most anticipated movies primarily franchise movies such as “Emergency”, which starred Kangana Ranuat as former prime minister Indira Gandhi, Akshay Kumar’s war-drama “Sky Force”, Shahid Kapoor’s action-thriller “Deva”, Salman Khan’s “Sikandar”, Sunny Deol-led actioner “Jaat”, Akshay Kumar’s “Kesari Chapter 2”, multi starrer “Housefull 5”, Anurag Basu’s “Metro…In Dino”, Hrithik Roshan and NTR Jr’s “War 2”, Ajay Devgn’s “De De Pyaar De 2” and “Son of Sardaar 2”, Tiger Shroff’s “Baaghi 4”, did poor to average business.

Raj Bansal, a well-known film distributor and director of Entertainment Paradise in Jaipur, believes romantic films were the flavour of the season.

"The beginning of the year was good thanks to ‘Chhaava’ and ended on a high note with ‘Dhurandhar’, which could be Hindi cinema’s biggest hit. Romantic films have worked well this year including ‘Sanam Teri Kasam’ re-release, ‘Saiyaara’, and ‘Ek Deewane ki Deewaniyat’ did a good business,” Bansal told PTI.

According to the distributor, in 2025, top stars like Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan, and Ranbir Kapoor did not have any releases.   Films such as director Neeraj Ghaywan’s Oscar nominated movie, “Homebound”, filmmaker Reema Kagti’s “Superboys of Malegaon”, Manoj Bajpayee-led “Jugnuma” garnered critical acclaim but failed to leave a mark at the box office.

Bansal believes ticket pricing could be a factor behind the low turn out of audiences in theatres for independent films.

"During COVID-19, independent films got support from OTT platforms, they garnered appreciation. Today, small films have two options, either take the OTT route, or release it in theatres. These films are not being accepted in theatres and are watched on OTT in the comfort of home.

"I feel pricing is another issue, like there should be different pricing for big and star-studded films, and independent films should be priced a little less. Price plays an important factor.” Amrita Pandey, CEO Junglee Pictures, said they are thrilled with the response their films like Yami Gautam’s “Haq”, Malayalam film, “Ronth” received in theatres.

"It has been a compelling year one that reaffirmed our commitment to bold, content-first storytelling. From the critical acclaim of our Malayalam debut ‘Ronth’ to the thought-provoking ‘Haq’. While 2025 was about exploring strong stories and fearless themes, 2026 will be a year of scale and impact.

"We are especially excited about ‘Daayra’, directed by Meghna Gulzar with Kareena Kapoor Khan and Prithviraj Sukumaran,” Panday told PTI. PTI KKP BK MAH MAH