What’s the common thread running through Pathaan, Jawan, Tiger 3, Gadar 2 and Animal? Apart from being money-minting machines reviving Bollywood from its slumber this year, the films also became vehicles of resurgence of the ‘angry strongman’.

According to trade expert and producer Girish Johar, this reliance on hypermasculinity — and the films’ subsequent successes — are testaments to the audience’s shifting preferences: “Action, blood and larger-than-life — these are the things that people want to watch on the big screen. From alpha males to aggressive male leads, the year proved that audiences are enjoying hypermasculine [content]. ”

Labelling 2023 as the year of “resurgence of the alpha male”, trade expert Atul Mohan concurs and says, “There was a phase when people were leaning towards the boy-next-door image. That has changed now. 2023 showed that the audience still likes to watch such (hypermasculine) content. Cinema was and will always be larger than life.”

For producer Ramesh Taurani, the year has only reaffirmed the popularity of such characters and tropes. “Alpha males have always existed in Bollywood, and it was proved once again this year. India has always been a hero worship place,” Taurani says.

One thing is for certain — whether it was Shah Rukh Khan in Pathaan, out there to foil a terrorist threat, or Sunny Deol in Gadar 2, taking on the enemy to protect his family, these heroes and films woke Bollywood up from its pandemic-induced nap. But, this revival may be coming at a cost, cautions image guru Dilip Cherian.

“For years, there was this attempt to normalize and promote equality and respect for women. This resurgence of hypermasculinity in cinema sets us back. We are creating new stereotypes and formulae, as these offerings have become superhits. This could also encourage certain behaviours in young boys. What I find the most dangerous is that girls might think such behaviour is okay. It is manufactured misogyny. Can it be controlled? It depends on the audiences,” he says.

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