It seldom happens that a year has no big-ticket release from stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan and Deepika Padukone yet some films surprise you with their staggering box office business and blow away the critics with their content. It won't be wrong to say, 2019 turned out to be a total game-changer. War, Gully Boy to Mardaani 2, Mission Mangal, these films gave the trade a lot to cheer about apart from making a mark in the hearts and minds of the audience.
So as 2019 comes to a close, let’s take a look at the best films this year:
War
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The Siddharth Anand directorial starring Bollywood two hunks - Tiger Shroff and Hrithik Roshan - was certainly one of the most anticipated films of the year. The storyline, the high-octane action and the camaraderie between Hrithik and Tiger made this film a must-watch. The film minted a whopping 317.91 crore at the box office. In fact, it is now the third film produced by Yash Raj Films to cross Rs 300 crore in India after superstar Salman Khan's Tiger Zinda Hai (2017) and Sultan (2016).
Kabir Singh
Shahid Kapoor and Kiara Advani-starrer romantic drama, directed by Sandeep Vanga, is a remake of the filmmaker's Telugu superhit Arjun Reddy. Starring Shahid as a surgeon who spirals into self-destruction when his girlfriend Preeti leaves him, the film ruled the box office charts despite getting criticism for being ‘misogynistic’ and ‘regressive’. The film, another blockbuster, raked in Rs 278.24 crore.
Uri: The Surgical Strike
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Starring Vicky Kaushal and Yami Gautam, the dramatized account of the retaliation to Pakistan's Uri attack of 2016 was directed by Aditya Dhar. The film not only won the Best Film at 66th National Films Award but Vicky too took home the Best Actor award. The film collected Rs 245.36 crore.
Bharat
Featuring Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, the film released on the actor’s favourite five-day Eid weekend, showcasing bhai's 70-year long journey and showing him an aged avatar! The film managed to impress the audience and raked in Rs 211.07 crore, a risk which paid off well, considering that fans accepted their beloved star in a stark different look!
Mission Mangal
Directed by Jagan Shakti, Mission Mangal revolved around the story of India's Mangalyaan or the Mars Orbiter Mission. Helmed by Vidya Balan and Akshay Kumar, the film stars Sonakshi Sinha, Kirti Kulhari, Nithya Menen and H.G. Dattatreya in key roles. The inspiring film earned Rs 202.98 crore at the box-office.
Housefull 4
Housefull 4 featured Akshay Kumar, Riteish Deshmukh, Bobby Deol, Kriti Sanon, Pooja Hegde, and Kriti Kharbanda. The comedy caper has been the biggest Diwali weekend release this year. It opened during the festive weekend and collected Rs 194.60 crore in the domestic market.
Gully Boy
Zoya Akhtar took Bollywood by a storm as she directed a musical drama on the lives of Indian street rappers Divine and Naezy. Starring Ranveer Singh in the lead role alongside Alia Bhatt, the film came at a time when rap music has become a vital ingredient in every film’s music album. The film, which was India’s official entry to Oscars 2020, minted Rs 140. 25 crores.
Total Dhamaal
Ajay Devgn-starrer Total Dhamaal, is the third installment of the successful franchise Dhamaal, which originally starred Arshad Warsi, Jaaved Jaaferi and Riteish Deshmukh alongside Sanjay Dutt. Total Dhamaal also stars Madhuri Dixit Nene, Anil Kapoor and Boman Irani and the comedy film collected Rs 154.23 crore at the box office.
Chhichhore
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Nitesh Tiwari's film, starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor, follows the lives of seven friends from 1992 to the present day. The film, which managed to take everyone to their heydays, managed to earn Rs 153.09 crore at the box-office.
Super 30
The Hrithik Roshan-starrer Super 30, based on the life of mathematician Anand Kumar, was directed by Vikas Bahl. The film earned a place for itself in the hearts and minds of the audience with its storyline and Hrithik totally owned Anand’s role in the film. The film collected Rs 146.94 crore.
Kesari
Akshay Kumar's Kesari, a film based on one of the bravest battles ever fought: 21 courageous soldiers against 10,000 invaders, was directed by Anurag Singh and also starred Parineeti Chopra. Akshay took over the silver screen with a patriotic flavour yet again and the film raked in Rs 154.41 crore at the box office.
Saaho
Prabhas’ action drama Saaho was shot simultaneously in Telugu, Hindi and Tamil languages. The film also stars Shraddha Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh, and Jackie Shroff. With its high-action scenes and interesting plot, the film garnered Rs 142.95 crore at the box office.
Dream Girl
Dream Girl, a comedy-drama directed by Raaj Shaandilyaa, Ayushmann played the role of a man with the talent of impersonating a woman's voice. The film also features Nushrat Bharucha and Annu Kapoor. Ayushmann and his unconventional choice of roles once again worked in his favour and the film minted Rs 142.26 crore.
Bala
Ayushmann continued his winning streak with Bala, a film that focussed on a young man from Kanpur who suffers from premature baldness. The film used the popular social media platform of Tik Tok quite innovatively and it saw a lifetime earning of over Rs 116.80 crore to date.
De De Pyaar De
Produced by Luv Ranjan and directed by Akiv Ali, De De Pyaar De explored the relationship between an older man and a younger woman. Starring Ajay Devgn, Tabu and Rakul Preet Singh, the film minted Rs 103.64 at the box office. Thanks to Ajay’s impeccable comic timing and his chemistry with the two actresses.
Luka Chuppi
The film starring Kartik Aaryan and Kriti Sanon was another smalltown comedy that offered a fresh feisty take on a live-in relationship. The film saw the lifetime box office collection of Rs 94.75 crore.
Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi
Directed by Kangana Ranaut and Radha Krishna Jagarlamudi, the film captures the life story of Rani Laxmibai. It also starred Atul Kulkarni, Suresh Oberoi, Danny Denzongpa and Ankita Lokhande, garnering enough love from fans and critics. The film earned Rs 92.19 crore.
Badla
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Based on the Spanish film The Invisible Guest, the film starring Taapsee Pannu and Amitabh Bachchan received both critical and commercial success. Nonetheless, it was the fabulous performances from Taapsee, who plays a murder accused and Big B, who plays her lawyer, which made the film earn Rs 87.99 crore.
Batla House
The Nikkhil Advani directorial starred John as DCP Sanjeev Kumar Yadav, who headed the Batla House encounter that took place in New Delhi's Jamia Nagar in 2008. John was praised by the audience to show a character like Sanjeev in its full vigour in this Independence Day release. The film minted Rs 87.22 crore.
Pati Patni Aur Woh
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Mudassar Aziz's Pati Patni Aur Woh is a remake of BR Chopra's 1978 hit of the same name. The film stars Kartik Aaryan, Bhumi Pednekar, Ananya Panday and Aparshakti Khurana. The audience expected drama and super fun, and that’s what they got. Mudassar’s direction is commendable as he neither trivializes nor condemns infidelity. The film collected Rs 84.56 in the domestic market.
Student of The Year 2
Dharma Production’s Student of The Year 2, a sequel to the 2012 hit college caper, starred Tiger Shroff, and debutantes Ananya Pandey and Tara Sutaria. Although the film was panned by critics and audiences alike for the repeated elements, the box office business of the film stood at a decent Rs 69.11 crore.
Article 15
The film followed a police investigation that commences after three teenage girls go missing from a small village. It reminded us of Article 15 of the Constitution of India, which prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. With Ayushmann’s stellar performance once again, the film turned out to be a hit as it collected Rs 65.45 crore.
Tashkent Files
The low-budget film, The Tashkent Files, was declared a superhit despite earning just Rs 16.75 crore. Based on conspiracy thriller based on the death of former Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri, it was the biggest surprise of the year and was well-received by both the audience and the critics.
That apart, this year is closing with films like Mardaani 2, Good Newwz and Dabangg 3. Yash Raj Films' Mardaani 2 is a taut crime thriller that brings back Rani Mukerji as the fiery cop Shivani Roy, who is out tracking down a juvenile serial rapist-killer in the new film. The film has collected 40.20 so far, thanks to a good word-of-mouth. On the other hand, Good Newwz, starring Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kiara Advani and Diljit Dosanjh in the lead, follows the story two couples, both having the surname ‘Batra' opt for IVF assistance to have a child at a private clinic. After a sperm mix up, the four of them go on a hilarious roller-coaster ride. The film is super strong at Rs 64 crore. Last but not the least, Salman Khan's latest release Dabangg 3 has crossed Rs 100 crore at the box-office, making it the superstar's 15th film crossing the benchmark. The film, an out and out masala entertainer, sees Salman return as Chulbul Panday.
Special Mentions:
Marjaavaan
In the film, Sidharth Malhotra played a hotheaded young man who falls in love with a girl who cannot speak. The Milap Zaveri-directorial also features Tara Sutaria, Riteish Deshmukh and Rakul Preet Singh. The actor was praised for his larger-than-life hero avatar and the film minted Rs 47.78 crore.
Commando 3
After the protagonist's fight for love in the first film and his quest to expose India's black money trail in Commando 2, the third film saw Vidyut Jammwal as Captain Karanveer Singh Dogra protect the nation from a terror attack. Owing to a positive word of mouth among Bollywood action addicts, the film minted Rs 32.47 crore.
Thackeray
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Directed by Abhijit Panse, the film followed the life of Balasaheb Thackeray, the founder of the Indian political party Shiv Sena. Starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui in the titular role, the film saved the day by margins as it raked in 31.60 crores.
International Films
Joker
Filmmaker Todd Phillips' R-rated Joker joined the billion dollar club at the worldwide box-office. The superhero film starring Joaquin Phoenix managed to collect a total of Rs 63.37 crore at the Indian box office. Not to miss, the lead actor won applaud for transforming into the mentally unstable loner Arthur Fleck in the comic book drama.. The film is glorious, daring and explosive, which will make you uncomfortable yet accept a flawed Joke.
The Lion King
The film is director Jon Favreau's recreation of the 1994 Disney classic of the same name, and it brings back the adventures of Simba, the lion cub who is to succeed his father Mufasa as King of the Pride Lands. The photo-realistic and computer-generated animation worked well in the film’s favour and the Hindi version minted a total of Rs 150.09 crore.
Avengers: Endgame
In Avengers: Endgame, every Marvel superhero from Iron Man and Thor to Captain America and Black Widow, assembled one last time to save the world from the supervillain Thanos. Helmed by Russo Brothers, Joe and Anthony, dethroned Avatar to become the world's highest-grossing film of all time with earnings of Rs. 351.01 crore at the Indian ticket windows.
(Source: PeepingMoon)
