We need more than double the number of successful films next year than what Bollywood delivered this year. Although everyone and their cousins know that 2022 has been a poor year for the Hindi film industry, how bad it has actually turned out to be can truly be assessed at the time of stock-taking which is at the end of the year.
As the year draws to a close, it turns out that only 14 films worked at the Hindi box-office. The 14 successful films of 2022 are: Gangubai Kathiawadi, The Kashmir Files, RRR (dubbed), K.G.F. Chaper 2 (dubbed), Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness (dubbed), Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, Karthikeya 2 (dubbed), Brahmastra: Part One – Shiva, Kantara (dubbed), Drishyam 2, Avatar: The Way Of Water (dubbed), Top Gun: Maverick (dubbed), Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (dubbed) and Thor: Love And Thunder (dubbed). As the list reveals, only five of the aforementioned fourteen films are made in Hindi, the others being dubbed versions of either regional Indian films or Hollywood films. Interestingly, seven of the said 14 films are sequels of earlier hits. The sequels are K.G.F. Chaper 2, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, Karthikeya 2, Drishyam 2, Avatar: The Way Of Life, Top Gun: Maverick and Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. Again, out of this list of seven sequels, only two are Hindi films!
So which are the films which can get the industry back on track in 2023? Let’s take a look:
Pathaan: The account of hits in the new year is expected to open with Pathaan. The film has had more than its share of controversies, and the trade is hoping that those “ban-the-film” and “Saffron-is-our-holy-colour” comments will only go on to spur the audience to come to the cinemas to watch the film. Shah Rukh Khan is coming to the cinema screens after exactly four years, one month and four days. So that should be another reason for his fans to throng the cinemas. The Khan, I’m sure, must be wondering why the controversy has arisen now when the Rang de tu mohe gerua song was picturised on him and Kajol in Dilwale seven years ago. Maybe, those now crying that Deepika Padukone’s saffron swimming costume in Pathaan is hurting Hindu sentiments don’t know that gerua is another word for orange/saffron.
Shehzada: Current heartthrob Kartik Aaryan, who delivered his career’s biggest hit this difficult year, will come with Shehzada in February ’23. That it is the remake of another heartthrob, Allu Arjun’s Telugu super-hit, Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo, boosts the confidence in the film even more.
Maidaan: Ajay Devgan may well follow up the runaway success of this year’sDrishyam 2 with Maidaan next year. The biopic of football coach Syed Abdul Rahim is slated for release on 17th February, 2023.
Selfiee: Selfies are in vogue and an extra ‘e’ might only add to the ‘e’xcitement. Akshay Kumar and Emraan Hashmi join forces in this remake of Malayalam super-hit Driving License. Raj Mehta’s Jugjugg Jeeyo may not have created magic at the ticket-windows in 2022 but we can’t forget that it was the same Raj Mehta who delivered a big hit in his maiden venture, Good Newwz. Selfiee is slated for release on 24th February.
Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar: The title itself brings a smile to the face, right? When you are told, it’s directed by Luv Ranjan, the smile broadens because he’s one of the best contemporary filmmakers for relationship dramas. As if Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor weren’t enough, Ranjan has thrown in another Kapoor — Boney — to play an important role in the film which also stars Dimple Kapadia. This one is likely to hit the screens on 8th March, ’23.
Bholaa: The teaser of the Ajay Devgan directorial venture has created ripples in trade circles, never mind if his earlier directed films haven’t managed to make the cut. Ajay himself plays the prisoner who is finally going home after 10 years of imprisonment, to meet his daughter in this remake of Tamil hit Kaithi. Bholaa will release on 30th March which is a Thursday.
Bawaal: Nitesh Tiwari teams up with the writers of his blockbuster Dangal, viz. Piyush Gupta, Shreyas Jain and Nikhil Mehrotra. That should be enough to inspire confidence in this one, besides the fact that Tiwari’s last film was the successful Chhichhore. Bawaal will reach the cinemas a week after Bholaa — on 7th April, 2023.
Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan: The original title (Bhaijaan) may have found more favour than this one, but the fact remains that it’s the same film with the same Salman Khan playing the lead role. Farhad Samji directs the film which has been announced as the Eid (21st April) release.
Ponniyin Selvan 2 (dubbed): The first part (Ponniyin Selvan – I) may not have worked in Hindi half as much as it did in the original language (Tamil) but that cannot be used as the yardstick for the sequel because many among those who saw the first part, came out of the cinemas singing its praises. The problem was, the number of people who saw the first part wasn’t huge enough. The Mani Ratnam film has been announced for release on 28th April, 2023.
Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani: Under-production reports of Karan Johar’s star-studded family drama are excellent. Karan is among the few producer-directors who hasn’t stopped working extremely hard on the music of his films. It is said, this love story also has great music, by Pritam Chakraborty. The star cast, of course, is formidable. Don’t believe me? Judge for yourself then: Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi. Date of release: 28th April.
Jawan: Hotshot Tamil film director Atlee will debut in Hindi cinema with none other than Shah Rukh Khan as his lead main in Jawan. What adds to the excitement is that SRK plays a double role in this action thriller scheduled for release on 2nd June, 2023.
Adipurush: Never mind the controversy and the criticism that followed the release of the teaser of Om Raut’s Adipurush, the craze for the film is likely to be immense as its release date (16th June) approaches. The controversy arose because of the look of Saif Ali Khan’s character — Raavan — in the film. The criticism was for the tacky visual effects and computer graphics. T-Series and Raut lost no time in postponing the film’s release by five months. Hopefully, they will address the sore points in these five months.
Fukrey 3: The third in the hit Fukrey series, this is said to be be bigger and more ambitious than Fukrey and Fukrey Returns. Pankaj Tripathi’s character has been given greater prominence in this film, now that he is a star in his own right. Mrigdeep Singh Lamba directs Fukrey 3, again for Excel Entertainment. It is expected to hit the screens in mid-2023.
Satyaprem Ki Katha: The hit pair of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 — Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani — will be seen again in Satyaprem Ki Katha which was originally titled Satyanarayan Ki Katha.
Dream Girl 2: Had it not been for the COVID-19 lockdown, this Dream Girl sequel would’ve, perhaps, released a couple of years ago. But better late than never. Raaj Shaandilyaa directs Ananya Panday this time with Dream Girl hero Ayushmann Khurrana. There’s no reason to doubt that Raaj will once again tickle the ribs in the sequel slated for release on 7th July.
Yodha: Also scheduled to hit the screens in July ’23 is Karan Johar’s Yodha. Sidharth Malhotra may be the only saleable name in the star cast but Johar is no less a star. The action thriller is directed by Sagar Ambre and Pushkar Ojha.
Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One (dubbed): This will be the seventh instalment in the Mission: Impossible film series and the sequel to Mission: Impossible – Fallout. The brand of Tom Cruise’s action spy film is enough to generate heat when it comes to the cinemas on 14th July next year.
Animal: Sandeep Reddy Vanga returns after Arjun Reddy (Telugu) and its Hindi remake, Kabir Singh. His gangster drama stars Ranbir Kapoor, Rashmika Mandana, Parineeti Chopra and Anil Kapoor. This one will be the Independence Day week release.
Salaar (dubbed): Hombale Films’ most ambitious project so far, Salaar, will hit the screens in September next year. Vijay Kiragandur and Chaluve Gowda’s production house delivered two blockbusters this year — K.G.F. Chapter 2 and Kantara. Isn’t that enough to start an adrenaline rush for Salaar, starring Prabhas, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Shruti Haasan and Meenakshi Chaudhary, and written and directed by Prashanth Neel?
Tiger 3: Third in the Tiger series, this one also stars Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif. Emraan Hashmi is the new addition to the cast as he was not part of Ek Tha Tiger or Tiger Zinda Hai. While the first was directed by Kabir Khan, and the second by Ali Abbas Zafar, the third in the franchise is being directed by Maneesh Sharma. This will be a Diwali release.
Shahid-Kriti starrer: Although Kriti Sanon will be seen in several films next year, this untitled film produced by Maddock Films may be the only Shahid Kapoor starrer for 2023. The rom-com is directed by writer-turned-director Amit Joshi.
Pushpa: The Rule – Part 2 (dubbed): Allu Arjun became a star in the Hindi-speaking states of India with Pushpa: The Rise Part 1, so there’s no reason to doubt the potential of its sequel. The Telugu film is likely to hit the screens on 17th December, 2023.
Dunki: Rajkumar Hirani is directing Shah Rukh Khan for the first time in Dunki, slated for release on 22nd December, ’23. This would be SRK’s third release next year. Hirani will return to the screens after more than half a decade. His last film, Sanju, had released in June 2018.
Bade Miyan Chote Miyan: Ali Abbas Zafar will come with the remake of the Amitabh-Govinda starrer of the same name a quarter century after the original had released. The October 1998 film was directed by David Dhawan. The 23rd December 2023 remake stars Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff. Although the release date of this film coincides with that announced for Dunki, you can be sure that the two films will not release in the same week.
Sam Bahadur: Vicky Kaushal plays Sam Manekshaw, who was the Indian Army’s chief of the army staff in the 1971 Indo-Pak war. Manekshaw was also the first Indian army officer to be made Field Marshal.
Capsule Gill: Based on the true-life story of additional chief mining engineer Jaswant Singh Gill who helped rescue people stranded in a flooded coal mine in Raniganj (West Bengal), this one stars Akshay Kumar and is directed by Tinu Suresh Desai.
Soorarai Pottru remake: The Hindi remake of Tamil film Soorarai Pottru stars AKshay Kumar. The original, based on the novel Simply Fly: A Deccan Odyssey, starred Suriya and was directed by Sudha Kongara.
Merry Christmas: Don’t be misled by the title. It will come much before Christmas next year. The film’s biggest selling point is that it is directed by Sriram Raghavan who became hot property after the runaway success of Andhadhun (2018). It stars Vijay Sethupathi, Katrina Kaif and Vinay Pathak.
OMG 2: Touted as the spiritual sequel to Oh My God (2012), the film is directed by Amit Rai. It stars Akshay Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi and Yami Gautam.
Ganapath: Tiger Shroff’s Ganapath was to have released this year but it stands postponed to 2023 now. The exact release date is not known. Vikas Bahl directs the film produced by Vashu Bhagnani. Did you say, ‘V’ for Vikas, ‘V’ for Vashu, and ‘V’ for Victory?
Of course, the above list does not profess to be the list of films which are the only ones expected to work. There could be several more because, as you know, there are surprise hits every year. A small film here or an unexpected sleeper hit there only keeps the excitement of this business going! Vishal Bhardwaj’s Kuttey, starring Naseeruddin Shah, Tabu, Arjun Kapoor and Konkona Sen Sharma; Aniruddha Roy Choudhury’s Lost, starring Yami Gautam, Pankaj Kapur and Rahul Khanna; and Anubhav Sinha’s Bheed, starring Rajkumar Rao, Bhumi Pednekar, Dia Mirza, Pankaj Kapur and Ashutosh Rana, could be some of the sleeper successes of 2023.
So, let’s all hope that the industry gets its booster dose for more blockbusters in the new year.
