Mumbai: 2023 was a year of big news events for India as well as for the world. This year, India entered the elite space club with the success of its Moon mission and grabbed the international spotlight by successfully organising the G20 summit. It also marks an extraordinary year for the Hindi film industry. It was a year of some small films doing well against make-believe blockbusters. A notable trend has emerged— claiming collection figures that a film did not gross. Also, the industry experienced more flops than hits. The year 2023 has become a great comeback year for King Khan, who delivered back-to-back hits and compelled the audience to hit the theatres.
IMDb has released the list of the top-grossing Hindi films of 2023. No one could shake the throne of Shah Rukh Khan with Jawan and Pathan ranking at the very top.
Jawan
Famous South Cinema director Atlee’s action thriller film Jawan tops the list. Produced by Gauri Khan and Gaurav Verma under Red Chillies Entertainment, the film stars Shah Rukh Khan in a dual role as a father and son who team up to rectify corruption in society. Nayanthara, Vijay Sethupathi, Deepika Padukone (billed as a special appearance), Priyamani, and Sanya Malhotra appear in supporting roles. A high-octane action thriller made at a budget of around Rs 300 crore, Jawan made a total of Rs 640.8 crore in its domestic net collections and Rs 1,152 crore in terms of its worldwide gross collections.
Pathaan
Second on the list is Pathaan. Compiled by Siddharth Anand. The film features Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia, and Ashutosh Rana in prominent roles. The main character in the film is an Indian spy who races against time to track down a ruthless mercenary with a devious plan to attack India. Bankrolled at a budget of around Rs 250 crore, Pathaan earned Rs 543.4 crore in its net domestic box office collections and grossed Rs 1,050.8 crore worldwide.
Animal
A father, who is often away due to work, is unable to comprehend the intensity of his son’s love. Ironically, this fervent love and admiration for his father and family creates conflict between the father and son. The film was produced by Bhushan Kumar, Pranay Reddy Vanga, Krishan Kumar, and Murad Khetani under T-Series Films, Bhadrakali Pictures and Cine1 Studios. The star cast includes Ranbir Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Bobby Deol, Rashmika Mandanna, and Tripti Dimri. Made at a budget of approximately Rs 150 crore, the film has made a total of Rs 518.34 crore in domestic box office collections and has raked in Rs 862.1 crore worldwide so far.
Gadar 2
Even before its release, there was a lot of craze among the audience for Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel starrer film Gadar 2. The film was a smash hit at the box office. The action drama film is directed and produced by Anil Sharma. It is the sequel to Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001) and stars Sunny Deol, Ameesha Patel, and Utkarsh Sharma – who reprise their roles from the previous film. During the India-Pakistan War of 1971, Tara Singh returns to Pakistan to rescue his imprisoned son Charanjit Singh (Jeete). Gadar 2 was theatrically released August 11, 2023 and became a commercial success, grossing over Rs 691.08 crore (US$87 million) worldwide against a production budget of Rs 60 crore (US$7.5 million).
Tiger 3
This action-thriller film was directed by Maneesh Sharma and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films. It starred Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif and Emraan Hashmi and was a sequel to Tiger Zinda Hai (2017). In the film, Tiger and Zoya are forced to go on a suicide mission to clear their names after being framed as traitors. Made with an estimated budget of Rs 300 crore, the film grossed Rs 284.2 crore in India and Rs 466 crore worldwide.
Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani
The audience had showered immense love on the film Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani directed by Karan Johar. In this film, Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt are seen as the lead couple from different cultural and social backgrounds. While Ranveer played the role of Rocky in the film, Alia was seen in the role of Rani. The film also has veteran actors like Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi. Made on a production budget of Rs 160 crore, it has grossed over Rs 355 crore worldwide during its lifetime run.
Dunki
Directed by Rajkumar Hirani, the film stars Shah Rukh Khan, Taapsee Pannu, Vicky Kaushal (special appearance), and Boman Irani. It was produced under the banners of Red Chillies Entertainment, Jio Studios, and Rajkumar Hirani Films. The film is about four friends who dreamt of going to England for a better life, but the problem is that neither they had a visa nor a ticket. They finally opted for the Dunki route, in which migrants cross a country’s borders through a back-door route with multiple stops in other countries. The film has not matched up to the hype that comes with a SRK or Hirani film but did decent business. Made at a budget of Rs 130 crore, the domestic net box office collection stands at 167.47 crore and the film minted Rs 323.77 crore worldwide at the time of filling the copy.
Adipurush
An Indian mythological action film based on the Hindu epic Ramayana is helmed by Om Raut. The film features Prabhas, Saif Ali Khan, Kriti Sanon, Sunny Singh, and Devdutta Nage. The film was mauled with controversy due to its portrayal of pivotal characters and boorish dialogue. Made at a budget of around Rs 450 crore, the film raked in Rs 288.15 crore in India and Rs 393 crore worldwide.
The Kerala Story
Directed by Sudipto Sen, the movie created buzz post-release. The film features Adah Sharma, Yogita Bihani, Sonia Balani, Siddhi Idnani, Devadarshini, and Vijay Krishna in lead roles. The film tells the story of a group of women from Kerala who are forced to convert to Islam and manipulated to join the Islamic State. Made at a budget of Rs 25 crore, the film earned Rs 240.6 crore at the India box office and grossed Rs 301 crore worldwide.
OMG 2
Akshay Kumar and Pankaj Tripathi starrer social drama film has had to face many problems since the release of the teaser. Finally, this film was released on screen when it got an A certificate. Actually, through this film, the makers highlighted the importance of ‘Adult Education’ in schools. Let us tell you, while Pankaj Tripathi has played the role of a devotee of Mahadev in the film, Akshay Kumar has been seen as the ‘messenger of Shiva’. The film also features Yami Gautam, Pawan Malhotra, Arun Govil, and Govind Namdeo in prominent roles. It was inevitable that the name of this film would appear on the IMDb list. Made at a budget of roughly Rs 65 crore, the film raked in Rs 150 crore at the Indian box office and Rs 220 crore worldwide.
Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar
Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor’s Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar, released on the occasion of Holi 2023, did great business at the box office. This romantic comedy film, directed by Luv Ranjan, received mixed reviews from critics and grossed over Rs 220.10 crore worldwide. The film raked in Rs 146 crore at the Indian box office. The budget of the film was roughly Rs 100 crore. The film stars Ranbir Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Anubhav Singh Bassi, Dimple Kapadia, Boney Kapoor, Hasleen Kaur and Monica Chaudhary in significant roles.
Sam Bahadur
Directed by Meghna Gulzar, the film clashed with Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal which stars Ranbir Kapoor. The film features Vicky Kaushal, Sanya Malhotra, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Neeraj Kabi and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub in prominent roles. It revolves around the life of India’s first Field Marshal Sam Manekshaw. According to Sacnilk, the film has minted Rs 76.6 crore in India and Rs 105 crore globally. However, the budget of the film was Rs 55 crore.
