Bollywood IS BACK!

AFTER A LONG POST-COVID WINTER, HINDI FILMS ARE HAVING THEIR MOMENT, WITH 2023 SET TO BECOME THEIR BEST YEAR EVER

- SUHANI SINGH

Jawan ₹563 crore

Pathaan ₹512 crore

Gadar 2 ₹514 crore

This time last year, Bollywood was going through an existential crisis of sorts. Obituaries were being written on the death of the Hindi cinema as dubbed versions of South Indian films breached what were traditionally Hindi film bastions. Mercifully, 2023 has been Bollywood's year of redemption. Of the total Indian box office revenue between January and September this year, Hindi films accounted for 42 per cent of the collections, according to Ormax Media's India Box Office report. The Indian film industry as a whole is projected to gross a record-breaking Rs 11,730 crore this year, banking on Tiger 3 and upcoming releases like Salaar and Dunki, surpassing 2019-20's high of Rs 10,948 crore. Forget the Rs 300 crore club, the bar for blockbuster success has been set even higher: Rs 500 crore. And not one, but three Hindi films in 2023-Pathaan, Gadar 2 and Jawan-are crowning members of that elite club already.