Remaking hit South Indian films seems to be a sure shot at success for Bollywood filmmakers. While this has been true for a while, the upcoming slate of remakes of several Telugu, Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam films is proof that Hindi filmmakers are not hesitant to find inspiration from their brethren in the south.

Recently, Salman Khan bought the Hindi remake rights of Thalapathy Vijay’s Tamil film, Master. Reportedly, he will also star in it. While Hrithik Roshan and Saif Ali Khan are all set to star in the Hindi remake of the Tamil film Vikram Vedha.

Ranveer Singh and director S Shankar are teaming up for the Hindi remake of the 2005 Tamil blockbuster, Anniyan. Aditya Roy Kapur will step into the shoes of Arun Vijay for the Hindi remake of the Tamil film Thadam. Janhvi Kapoor will be seen in the Hindi remake of the Malayalam thriller, Helen. Ajay Devgn has confirmed he will do the Hindi remake of the Tamil film, Kaithi. And Akshay Kumar will star with Rakul Preet Singh in the Hindi remake of Tamil thriller Ratsasan.

So, what attracts Bollywood to remakes, despite knowing many in the audience would have seen the original? “Makers and actors are drawn to South Indian hits because stories that have already struck a chord with the audience are a safe bet,” shares producer Anand Pandit. However, he adds this trend is not new, as South Indian films were remade in Hindi from the ’50s. “A film like Azaad (1955) that established the late Dilip Kumar saab as a comic legend, was a remake of Tamil film Malaikkallan. In fact, Dilip saab starred in many remakes of South Indian films such as Ram Aur Shyam (1967) and Aadmi (1968). In the ’80s too, Jeetendra ji starred in many hit South Indian remakes,” Pandit observes.

In fact, many feel these films offer something fresh. “Some Malayalam films are world class,” says actor Aakanksha Singh, who has starred in Tamil, Telugu and Kannda films.

Besides, many of these films are in the action genre, which is a big draw for Bollywood. Shailesh Kapoor, Ormax Media, points out that all southern remakes Salman Khan starred in, be it Ready (2011) or Wanted (2009), were in the action or action-comedy genre. “There’s a lot of audience interest in the kind of action that southern films have, which is very distinct and superior,” he explains.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh feels the appetite for such films was built because of the dubbed versions of southern language movies on satellite TV over the years. “I don’t think Bollywood lacks originality and that’s why it’s heading south for inspiration. I think if good content is made in any other language, it’s absolutely fine to adapt it to suit the Hindi-speaking audience,” he says.