The year of dark horses

The year 2019 was a wake-up call for the Bollywood filmmakers as it was proven that content is indeed king. The trend of content-driven and low-budget films minting money at the box office showed that over-hyping the film is no longer a viable marketing tactic as the content-hungry audience is looking for more.

For instance, films such as Article 15, Badla, Commando 3, Chhichhore, Luka Chuppi, The Tashkent Files and Uri: The Surgical Strike among others were not the films that were being punted on to make it to the big league of hits, sleeper hits, semi-hits or all-time blockbusters this year.

But then they did make it to the finish line quietly like the proverbial tortoise. Neither did the makers of these films spend millions on the publicity, nor did they create a brouhaha before the release.

Take a look at this low-profile action film called Commando 3. The film has Vidyut Jammwal as the hero who is known only for flexing his muscles and doing high-octane action sequences. “The promotion was rather low for the film but it made over Rs 33 crore which is creditable when other films were not getting patronage a month after Diwali,” explains a trade source.

Chhichhore, starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor, was also not expected to strike it hot. Sushant’s earlier film Son Chiriya had failed and there was no real buzz before the film released owing to its low-key promotions. And yet, the film grossed over Rs 150 crore to become Sushant’s biggest hit — bigger than MS Dhoni despite being made on a low budget.

Actor such as Ayushmann Khurrana moved away from his social-comedy genre to do a film with a deep-rooted social message - Article 15. Even though critics wrote it off, comparing it to a bigger version of a TV crime show, the hard-hitting, low budget social crime-drama by Anubhav Sinha  replete with some terrific performances and writing made over Rs 70 crore.

The Amitabh Bachchan-Taapsee Pannu thriller Badla was not supposed to be a big hit according to predictions of trade pundits. “But the film was well made and collected Rs 87 crores at the Box Office. Sujoy Ghosh surprised us yet again after Kahaani,” says a trade analyst.

Ditto with Kartik Aryan and Kriti Sanon’s Luka Chuppi which made a little less than Rs 100 crore.

But the one that shocked everyone was Uri: The Surgical Strike which went on to garner Rs 245 crore from its theatrical run for debutant director Aditya Dhar. Many trade pundits predicted that it may not even touch the Rs 100 crore mark, just like the lead actor Vicky Kaushal’s earlier film Raazi. But it went on to be an all-time blockbuster in Hindi cinema.
 

The year 2019 was a wake-up call for the Bollywood filmmakers as it was proven that content is indeed king. The trend of content-driven and low-budget films minting money at the box office showed that over-hyping the film is no longer a viable marketing tactic as the content-hungry audience is looking for more.

For instance, films such as Article 15, Badla, Commando 3, Chhichhore, Luka Chuppi, The Tashkent Files and Uri: The Surgical Strike among others were not the films that were being punted on to make it to the big league of hits, sleeper hits, semi-hits or all-time blockbusters this year.

But then they did make it to the finish line quietly like the proverbial tortoise. Neither did the makers of these films spend millions on the publicity, nor did they create a brouhaha before the release.

Take a look at this low-profile action film called Commando 3. The film has Vidyut Jammwal as the hero who is known only for flexing his muscles and doing high-octane action sequences. “The promotion was rather low for the film but it made over Rs 33 crore which is creditable when other films were not getting patronage a month after Diwali,” explains a trade source.

Chhichhore, starring Sushant Singh Rajput and Shraddha Kapoor, was also not expected to strike it hot. Sushant’s earlier film Son Chiriya had failed and there was no real buzz before the film released owing to its low-key promotions. And yet, the film grossed over Rs 150 crore to become Sushant’s biggest hit — bigger than MS Dhoni despite being made on a low budget.

Actor such as Ayushmann Khurrana moved away from his social-comedy genre to do a film with a deep-rooted social message - Article 15. Even though critics wrote it off, comparing it to a bigger version of a TV crime show, the hard-hitting, low budget social crime-drama by Anubhav Sinha  replete with some terrific performances and writing made over Rs 70 crore.

The Amitabh Bachchan-Taapsee Pannu thriller Badla was not supposed to be a big hit according to predictions of trade pundits. “But the film was well made and collected Rs 87 crores at the Box Office. Sujoy Ghosh surprised us yet again after Kahaani,” says a trade analyst.

Ditto with Kartik Aryan and Kriti Sanon’s Luka Chuppi which made a little less than Rs 100 crore.

But the one that shocked everyone was Uri: The Surgical Strike which went on to garner Rs 245 crore from its theatrical run for debutant director Aditya Dhar. Many trade pundits predicted that it may not even touch the Rs 100 crore mark, just like the lead actor Vicky Kaushal’s earlier film Raazi. But it went on to be an all-time blockbuster in Hindi cinema.
—Sanskriti Media