Bollywood's biggest upsets so far

The second half of 2009 is perhaps the most cramped and worst period in the history of Bollywood. The feud between the film producers
and multiplexes owners made the first half of the year dull, and thus pushed all the films to the second half. But the worst news for Bollywood is the failure of big banner films.



Filmmakers claim that their films had good opening and did good business but the truth turned out to be different. Films from Billu to 8x10 Tasveer to Chandni Chowk To China to Blue to What's Your Raashee? failed terribly at the box-office.


Chandni Chowk To China: It was said to be largely an autobiographical film; a complete Akshay Kumar flick with lots of comedy, emotion and action. Deepika Padukone's character was also talked about like never before. But unfortunately, director Nikhil Advani failed to give a well-knitted story, and thus a big disappointment at the box-office.

Billu: This film failed in spite of the extended appearance from Shahrukh Khan. Produced by Gauri Khan and directed by Priyadarshan, it featured Irrfan Khan and Lara Dutta in the lead roles. It flopped in spite of releasing on February 13, Valentine's Day eve.

Delhi 6: The hype around the film was good. People talked a lot about the new pair Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor. But director Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra of Rang De Basanti fame made a mess of himself with a poor story.

8x10 Tasveer: This action thriller starring Akshay Kumar and Ayesha Takia was a big disappointment. 8x10 Tasveer makers Percept Picture Company faced a loss of over Rs.40 crore.

Dil Bole Hadippa: It was supposed to be the comeback film of Rani Mukherjee (as claimed by the media) though she had gone nowhere. The hype around the film was great and Rani's Sardar avatar was talked about like there was no other plot worth discussing. Even Shahid Kapoor, who was fresh from the success of Kaminey, failed to save the film. The film went down the drains and so too Rani.

What’s Your Raashee?: So what if it's a Ashutosh Gowariker's film? The director boasted that Priyanka Chopra would bag many awards for her role in the film but he went into hiding after the disappointing opening of the film. Priyanka's pairing with her supposed-to-be boyfriend Harman Baweja failed again after Love Story 2050.

Blue: Hype may help in making a good opening but it just make a film a hit. Blue is a big flop in spite of its makers claiming that it witnessed a good opening. This film starring Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Zayed Khan, Lara Dutta and Katrina Kaif promised breath-taking underwater stunts but it failed to convince the film lovers.

London Dreams: This Bollywood musical starring Salman Khan, Ajay Devgn and Asin Thottumkal of Ghajini fame failed to live up to the expectations. So much was talked about the film including the chemistry between Salman and Asin but everything was a farce. Vipul Shah failed to pull the the film lovers to the theatres.

Aladin: The film failed in spite of the presence of superstar Amitabh Bachchan in the role of a genie. It also featured Riteish Deshmukh and Sri Lankan beauty Jacqueline Fernandez in the lead roles. This film on kids also targeted the adults but it failed to please any section of the audience.

Many big films failed to live up to the expectations this year. Besides poor script and screenplay, there are other factors too. The ongoing economic recession could be one of the reasons for the bad run of Bollywood this year. Filmmakers were skeptical about investing huge amount on their projects. Likewise, the film buffs could be selective and check their purse before watching a film.


The long feud between the film producers and multiplexes owners over the sharing of revenues was the main cause of the chaos in the film industry in the latter half of 2009. The strike pushed all the films that were supposed to be released in the first half of the year to the second half and thus cramped the release dates. We have been witnessing a big film or two or more being released almost every Friday. This means lesser screening time and more choice for the viewers. This way, films have been eating into each other's revenues.


Another reason for the failure of films is the swine flu scare. At least a few films were badly affected by the flu as the film viewers kept away from theatres. Ban of film screening in a few states and the directive of the government to keep away from public places, to prevent the flu from spreading, affected the collections at the box-office.

There are more big films like Kurbaan, Paa, 3 Idiots and others set for release this year. Will these films brighten up Bollywood? Keep your fingers crossed!