It's Raining THRILLERS

AFTER A DRY SUMMER SPELL, A FLOOD OF FRESH FILMS SHOULD BRING RELIEF TO PARCHED AUDIENCES

- SUHANI SINGH

Bollywood has been feeling the heat this summer. Halfway into 2024 and it’s been a sluggish showing at the ticket windows so far, especially compared to the record-breaking last year, when not one but three films—Pathaan, Gadar 2 and Jawan—set a new benchmark, crossing the Rs 500 crore mark nationally. So sorry was the Hindi cinema output in April-May that low footfalls compelled cinema operators to cancel shows choosing instead to screen cricket matches or re-releasing older films (Rockstar, Lakshya, Swades) instead. “What we are witnessing right now in the Hindi film industry is not just a lack of box office success, but the lack of confidence in our own content,” says Akshaye Rathi, director, Aashirwad Theatres, citing the Lok Sabha election and IPL as factors contributing to the dry spell in revenues. “It’s not the audience that has failed us, it is some really mediocre content the industry has put out. It’s not been worthy of the time, money and effort they put in when they come to theatre.”

The highest earner of 2024 thus far, Fighter, collected Rs 200 crore in India, an underperformance given its budget (Rs 250 crore). Director Siddharth Anand’s aerial action thriller had fuelled considerable hype for being India’s very own starstudded (Deepika Padukone, Hrithik Roshan) Top Gun. The audience though thought little of it. Instead, the moneyspinners came from least expected quarters. Shaitaan, a home invasion horror centred around black magic starring Ajay Devgn and R. Madhavan, emerged as this year’s surprise hit along with promising runs for women-fronted starrers such as Article 370, Laapataa Ladies and Crew. Honour for the biggest sleeper hit though belonged to