Sanju’s Blockbuster Run Sums Up Bollywood’s Splendid First Half Of 2018

Bollywood is having a phenomenal year, where it's witnessing not only blockbusters like Padmaavat and Sanju, but also successes like Hichki & 102 Not Out.

By: Tatsam Mukherjee |
July 3, 2018 2:06 pm

In spite of the polarising reactions to the film, it cannot be denied that Rajkumar Hirani’s Sanju is a HUGE hit. One of the biggest in the history of Bollywood. The film that ended with a score of Rs 120.95 crore in its very first weekend beating Baahubali 2 to set a new record for Indian films, has already clocked Rs 145 crore on Day 4. These are phenomenal numbers for a Hindi film, and Hirani’s box office gold status is shining even brighter after Sanju.

Let’s hope we’re not jinxing it by saying it out loud, but Bollywood is having a splendid 2018. We already have a bunch of blockbusters, headlined by Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat. Even though Salman ‘Bhai’ Khan’s Race 3 has been unanimously panned and become a laughing stock, has still broken the 100-crore mark inside the opening weekend.

Compare this to the same time from last year (till June 30, 2017) – Bollywood had produced only 4 films with box office collections exceeding Rs 150 crore. They were Raees (Rs 308.8 crore), Jolly LLB 2 (Rs 307.29 crore), Badrinath Ki Dulhaniya (Rs 200 crore) and Hrithik Roshan-starrer Kaabil (Rs 176 crore). Even though a majority of the films might reflect better health today, the truth is things were dire on the half-year mark, last year.

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The worldwide collections for films like Secret Superstar (Rs 975 crore) and Hindi Medium (Rs 334 crore) spiked more than 10 times, thanks to Bollywood films finally making inroads in China and Taiwan. But that took place in 2018.

And looking at the current lineup, we surely have more than one film that will do the exponential business, once they open up for business in China.

There are a few surprises in this list like Alia Bhatt-starrer Raazi. The film has shattered all records for the much abused ‘female-centric’ films. The previous records held by Kangana Ranaut’s Tanu Weds Manu Returns (150.77 crore), Queen (Rs 108 crore) and Vidya Balan’s The Dirty Picture (117 crore) have been all but, obliterated by Meghana Gulzar’s film. Even Shashanka Ghosh’s Veere Di Wedding has gone proved the ‘trade experts’ wrong, by crossing the 50 crore-mark within the opening weekend.

The old horses Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgn stayed on solid ground, both delivering hits in the form of Rajkumar Gupta’s Raid (Rs 142.81 crore) and R Balki’s Pad Man (121 crore).

2018 has also been a successful year till now, because of the mid-sized films like Hichki (Rs 76.5 crore) and October (Rs 54 crore). These films might not have gone on to become blockbusters, but they’ve more than recovered the money on their 20-crore budget respectively. Even films like Parmanu: The Story Of Pokhran has grossed Rs 84.70 crore. While Amitabh Bachchan & Rishi Kapoor’s melodramatic 102 Not Out has made nearly Rs 78.59 crore, a massive payout on the film’s 10-crore budget.

And while you might be excited about where the year is headed, let’s not forget that Raju Hirani’s Sanju is set to release right before the film’s half-year. Here’s a filmmaker, whose last two releases have made and estimated Rs 850 crore and Rs 450 crore, worldwide. And considering the interest around the Ranbir Kapoor-starrer already, Bollywood will conclude the first half of 2018 with a bang!

(*All figures have been quoted from Bollywood Hungama and Box Office India)