SRK and Salman have big budget films lined up in the second half of the year
It's been a low-key 2015 for the box office with just one blockbuster -
Tanu Weds Manu Returns - in the first six months.
For the films that did well,
Dum Laga Ke Haisha,
Piku and
Any Body Can Dance 2 (
ABCD 2), content was the mainstay.
Trade experts say that things are looking up in the second half of the year and hopes are high from Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan's films which are lined up for release in that period.
The initial months witnessed a slump in viewership as compared to last year, courtesy the cricket mania caused by the World Cup and the Indian Premier League. Films like Arjun Kapoor and Sonakshi Sinha's
Tevar, Amitabh Bachchan and Dhanush's
Shamitabh, Arjun Rampal and Jacqueline Fernandez's
Roy - though hyped - didn't work very well for the box office.
Akshay Kumar's
Baby, which earned close to Rs 90 crores, was the first hit of the year. Offbeat movies like
Badlapur,
Dum Laga Ke Haisha and
NH 10 garnered appreciation from critics as well as the audience, but didn't bring the box office numbers.
The box office graph soared upward from May.
"The first four months were very bad, barring one or two films here and there. If we compare the first four months of 2015 to last year, then this year was worse," trade analyst Taran Adarsh, told IANS.
"In May, we had
Gabbar Is Back,
Piku and
Tanu Weds Manu Returns. But
Bombay Velvet was a big debacle. There were three hits in May. Then in June,
ABCD 2 did really well. From May, the film industry has seen a better time," he added.
Among the male actors, Akshay Kumar shone with films like
Gabbar Is Back and
Baby to his credit. Among the actresses, Bollywood's
Queen Kangana Ranaut managed to strike gold with her double role in
Tanu Weds Manu Returns which has minted close to Rs 150 crores so far.
According to trade analyst Rajesh Thadani, the response has not been too great in terms of volume of big hits.
"We must now look forward to the second half as all the big films are going to come around this time only. Nothing much has really worked except for
Tanu Weds Manu Returns and one or two other small films, but the volume hasn't been as big as it was expected. So, it was quite a disappointing first half," he said.
Citing the example of
NH 10, Badlapur and
Dum Laga Ke Haisha, Rajesh Thadani said that content-based films worked well on the silver screen despite having no A-listers in the cast.
"If content was not the kind that these films had, they wouldn't have received any better response. The content definitely works, but then star power is also there," he added, referring to the success of
Baby and
Tanu Weds Manu Returns.
Stressing on the importance of good content, Devang Sampat, Business Head - Strategy, Cinepolis, told IANS, "The phase we are in, 'Content is the king' is not an understatement. Audience has finally warmed up to a storyline. Anything trash is not acceptable.
"This is good sign as everybody in the value chain then focuses on working on good scripts, budgets and star cast. Patrons are willing to experiment and explore the terrain of unusual story-telling and ideas."
However, with only one blockbuster in the first half, all eyes are now on the coming months, with big budget films like Salman Khan's
Bajrangi Bhaijaan and
Prem Ratan Dhan Payo; Shah Rukh Khan's
Dilwale; and Akshay's much awaited
Singh is Bliing up for release.
"There are better expectations from the second half as we have a few films which are expected to get a huge response. So, the year's tally can become better. Not only commercial cinema, but films with good content will also work in the second half," Mr Thadani said.
Mr Sampat added, "At least three of them - Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo and Dilwale - are definitely looking like Rs 250-crore projects at box office. The best is yet to come for this year."
A point echoed by Taran Adarsh, who said that this was an annual trend where the second half of the year dominated the box office with big releases on festivals like Eid, Christmas and Diwali often spelling profits for the film industry.