The quarter to September saw the highest net box-office collection of Hindi films in India in any quarter over the past five years.

According to data compiled by ETIG, based on the data shared by Sacnilk Technologies on its website, the net box-office collection of Hindi films (both made in Hindi and dubbed in Hindi) in the country stood at Rs. 1,720.3 crore at the end of September quarter, surpassing net box-office collection of Rs. 1,579.1 crore in July-September 2019.

In the September quarter this year, the success of mass entertainers such as Gadar 2, Jawan, Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, OMG 2 and Dream Girl 2 at the box office contributed to the collections. Experts said these films worked as audiences flocked to theatres, something they had not been able to do amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

They said audiences are seeking “unadulterated” entertainment and that films such as Gadar 2, Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaini and Jawan contained elements that catered to the audiences who had been deprived of these familiar elements in Hindi films for a long time.

Analysts also said audiences lapped up those films in which extra efforts were made to improve and elevate the presentation of visuals, dialogues and action. Contemporary audiences slot films in two categories — those that are to be watched on streaming platforms and those in theatres, they said. Titles that do not conform to this trend do not receive any noticeable response from audiences, they said, even if they are well-made.

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Mumbai: The total box-office receipts for the first nine months of 2023 stand at Rs. 8,798 crore, Ormax Media said in its latest report.

The media research company added that 2023 is expected to be the highest grossing year ever, with a chance to cross the Rs. 12,000-crore threshold at the box office, thanks to the upcoming releases of Tiger 3, Salaar, and Dunki. Ormax stated that the gross box-office collection in the first nine months was 6% higher than the same period in 2022.

The gross box-office collection came in at Rs. 10,637 crore in 2022, according to an earlier joint report by GroupM-Ormax Media. Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan, which earned Rs. 733 crore, is currently the most successful film of the year, followed by Pathaan, which took in Rs. 646 crore. Gadar 2 was the only other movie to gross above Rs. 500 crore, according to the Ormax report, with receipts of Rs. 614 crore. Jailer and Adipurush have collected Rs. 397 crore and Rs. 331 crore, respectively.

Films released in September 2023 grossed Rs. 1,353 crore, making it the fourth month this year to cross the Rs. 1,000 crore mark at the box office. The month of August witnessed the highest box office collections during the year, with receipts of Rs. 1,610 crore.

In January and June, the gross box-office collections stood at Rs. 1,388 crore and Rs. 1,073 crore, respectively.