Singer Arijit Singh created history on Friday becoming the first Indian artist to headline a stadium concert in the UK. Performing at the iconic Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London, the singer drew in thousands of fans, who sang along as he delivered a two-hour-long set featuring some of his most popular tracks, including Saiyaara, Jhoome Jo Pathaan, Rasiya, Ami Je Tomar and Sapphire.

Fans flooded social media with videos and pictures from the night, hailing Arijit as “The King of Asia.” But the historic night ended on a dramatic note. Just as Arijit was singing Deva Deva from Brahmastra, the power was cut at exactly 10.30pm, as stadium authorities enforced the strict local curfew.

Videos showed a darkened stage, fireworks going off, and the crowd shouting in disbelief as the singer was unable to bid goodbye. Some also pointed out that Arijit’s late arrival may have contributed to the shortened set.

“Noise pollution is taken seriously in the UK... Rules are rules. I wish this had happened in India, too,” a fan posted.

Gulmohar (2023) reminded us how much we had missed seeing Sharmila Tagore on screen. Over a year later, the veteran actor has faced the camera again for Outhouse, teaming up with her Mississippi Masala (1991) co-star Dr Mohan Agashe. In Sunil Sukthankar’s directorial venture, Tagore plays a successful illustrator, who develops an unlikely friendship with an elderly neighbour while babysitting her grandson over a weekend. It was the director’s sensitive gaze towards the plight of senior citizens that drew her to Outhouse.

“The film brings forth the different needs of old age, and how the intergenerational gaps can be filled by communicating, with some humour and understanding,” starts Tagore.

The film, which hit the screens yesterday, marks Agashe’s last collaboration with writer Sumitra Bhave, who passed away in 2021. Having worked together in notable Marathi films, including Kaasav (2017) and Dithee (2019), the senior actor wanted Bhave to explore how the lives of elderly people are impacted by the breakdown of traditional family dynamics and a change in the caregiving system. But Agashe had a caveat—it should not be a tear-jerker.

Remembering Bhave, he says, “After I read the script, Sumitra asked me, ‘Do you think Sharmila would act in this?’ I told Sumitra that I would ask her. Fortunately, Sharmila liked the script.”

At a time of big-scale entertainers, the slice-of-life film comes as a fresh breath of air. Tagore believes it is a much-needed departure from the actioners that are currently dominating the box office.

“A lot of violent films have done well. I don’t mind violent films. If it has a theme or there is a reason for that violence, I’m open to seeing it. I can’t stomach films that are violent for the sake of violence. At the moment, films are going through a rough time. The actors are charging so much money. From what I hear, bigger films like Kalki 2898 AD and Brahmāstra: Part One—Shiva [2022] attract the audience. But personally, I like smaller movies like Laapataa Ladies,” she smiles.

Agashe echoes her sentiment, adding that “the world of movies is becoming a bit toxic”. “There is a lot of violence and sex in today’s films. When it hits a certain threshold of toxicity, it needs a good detox. I preferred this film because there is no sex, violence, killings or religious propaganda. It’s about the pure friendship between a child and a puppy, and the lives of two elderly singles.”

Khan has time and again said that Swades is his favourite film in his filmography, but interestingly, he never saw the final product. In a tweet, the actor had said, “Making Swades was such an emotionally overwhelming experience that I never saw the finished product. Didn’t want the feeling to end.” 

Though the film didn’t work commercially, Khan had a gut feeling about it. “I told Ashutosh Gowariker that it won’t work commercially. The film was nobly intended,” he had told Zoom in an interview, adding, “I always say it’s not the manzil but the journey that matters... Swades will always be one of my most special films.”

Swades was inspired by a 90s’ TV show, Love Stories, which had Gowariker act in it. The anthology included an episode titled Vapasi, in which Gowariker played Mohan, an NRI who returns to India for his Kaveri amma, and falls in love with a woman named Geeta. Kaveri amma’s role was played by late actor Kishori Ballal in both the iterations.

Debuting opposite Khan is a dream come true for any actor, and Gayatri Joshi, who played Geeta in Swades, got to experience it. But strangely, it remained the only film in her filmography. A beauty pageant winner who represented India at Miss International in 2000, Joshi tied the knot with businessman Vikas Oberoi and bid adieu to her acting career, barely weeks after the film’s release.

Whoever has seen Swades will never forget the iconic ‘Bijli’ dialogue and the woman who said it. On the film’s 17th anniversary, Gowariker took to social media to reveal how she was chosen from 30 women who auditioned for the character of Dadi Setu. “All had to look up at the camera and say one word – BIJLI! The woman who said it with the most emotion got the part. She was 102.”

Gowariker’s last release before Swades was the 2001 film Lagaan, which was a huge success and even got nominated at the Oscars. So, the expectations were high post that, but Gowariker revealed to The Hollywood Reporter recently that he deliberately went against the expectations: “Swades was not the film people thought I was going to make after Lagaan. People thought my next film would be about football or some such sport. If Lagaan was a drum, Swades was a flute. It was a completely inward journey. If Lagaan was about patriotism, this was about nationalism, which is something that is not external. It’s not drum beating, it’s not jingoism. It’s all internal. You have to feel it.”

- Actor Hrithik Roshan was first offered the role of Mohan Bhargava, and while it finally went to Khan, Roshan and Gowariker went on to work together in Jodhaa Akbar (2008) and Mohenjo Daro (2016).

- Swades was the first Indian film to be shot inside the NASA headquarters and the NASA Research Center in Florida (US).

- Khan reprised Mohan’s role in filmmaker Ayan Mukerji’s Brahmastra: Part One Shiva (2022). Interestingly, Mukerji had worked as an assistant director on Swades. In yet another reference to the 2004 film, Jawan (2023) saw Khan’s character Azad being raised by Kaveri Amma, played by actor Ridhi Dogra.

- Made on a budget of just Rs. 20 crore, Swades failed to recover it and earned just ₹Rs. 16 crore nett in India.

- The film went on to win two National Film Awards — Mahesh Aney won Best Cinematography, while Udit Narayan bagged Best Male Playback Singer award for Yeh Taara Woh Taara.

Billionaire vaccine maker Adar Adar Poonawalla, CEO of the Serum Institute of India, is picking up a 50% stake in Dharma Productions and Dharmatic Entertainment, for Rs 1000 crore, valuing Karan Johar’s film and television production and distribution flagship at Rs 2000 crore, further underpinning the ongoing flurry of consolidation in the entertainment industry.

ET broke the story online on Monday morning, ahead of a formal announcement.

Poonawalla’s is making this investment in his private capacity through Serene Productions. Dharma will retain the residual stake with Johar continuing to remain as the creative spearhead of the company, as Executive Chairman. Apoorva Mehta remains the Chief Executive Officer.

Dharma is owned 90.7% by Karan Johar and 9.24% by his mother, Hiroo.

“I do foresee consolidation in this industry. Internationally, we've seen a lot of consolidation due to new content creation methods and distribution channels,” Poonawalla told ET. “With the evolving landscape of content production and distribution, I see significant potential for such partnerships both internationally and nationally.”

The key factor that led to stitching together this alliance is Johar retaining creative control while partnering with a deep pocket family he is familiar with. The Poonawalla investment will help the production house with enough financial muscle to navigate the fast-changing demands of digitally savvy consumers who are often digital natives. The investment will also boost Dharma’s efforts to double down on content for new platforms and formats while continuing to deliver interesting stories for a global audience.

“This partnership will help us create more verticals within the organization and allow us to take creative chances. This gives us the bandwidth to expand Dharmatic Entertainment and create much more in the digital domain,” added Johar. “It also allows us to capture a lot of value in the value chain which comes with owning IP and catalogue – we have already been doing that and hope to double down on it with this capital.”

Film production is a volatile business with earnings linked to box office successes of films. Major Hindi film production houses, including Dharma, have been cautious in greenlighting new projects due to the unpredictable nature of the box office, which also impacts the value of streaming and satellite rights, ET had reported on October 14.

Johar said, the company’s attempts will be to increase the value and create more content. “We aim to produce a higher volume of films with this partnership compared to what we're currently doing. With shrinking audiences and an overreliance on streaming rights, Johar feels a strategic business shift is already underway. “Mid-budget films are the backbone of the film industry's economics, and we need to explore this segment further, alongside our tentpole productions, to create a more diverse and sustainable portfolio of films,” he said.

The industry is experiencing major upheavals due to shifting consumer preferences, influenced by exposure to global content and the increasing dominance of on-demand consumption in urban areas. Additionally, the economic model is strained, with star salaries often consuming up to 70% of a film’s budget. Consolidation on the demand side, with the emergence of large broadcasters, streaming platforms, and multiplexes, is also putting pressure on content companies like Dharma. Satellite rights, once a steady revenue stream, have plummeted to historic lows, and the value of streaming deals, which was funding movie costs in many cases, is being corrected, further straining the economics of the film business.

In the theatrical space, multiplexes now dictate a film’s success, contributing an estimated 60–70% of Hindi films' box office revenue, while single-screen theaters continue to struggle. Post-COVID, many viewers prefer to wait 8–10 weeks to watch films on OTT platforms, leading to reduced footfall in cinemas.

Some industry players are already contemplating profit share model or box office linked payouts to offset rising star costs. “It's essential not to overload our above-the-line costs. While we respect actors' talent and craft and want to pay what's fair, all artists must understand the current challenges in the entertainment industry. There's enough potential in big films for everyone to gain,” said Johar.

Dharma has been actively seeking investments for a while and had engaged in talks with several large conglomerates and industrialists like Sanjiv Goenka’s Saregama, a company they already have business ties to become part of a cash-rich conglomerate. Some discussions with Reliance Industries and Jio Cinema also did take place.

Raine Group was the advisor to the deal.

Dharma Productions posted a nearly fourfold surge in revenue to Rs 1,040 crore in FY23, from Rs 276 crore the previous year. Net profit, however, fell 59% to Rs 11 crore due to a 4.5-times rise in expenses at Rs 1,028 crore, according to the company's latest available financial data accessed from Tofler. In FY23, the company earned Rs 656 crore from distribution rights, Rs 140 crore from digital, Rs 83 crore from satellite rights, and Rs 75 crore from music. This compares with earnings of with earnings of Rs 19 crore, Rs 167 crore, Rs 34 crore, and Rs 21 crore from these streams, respectively, in FY22.

Founded by Johar’s father Yash Johar in 1976, with its first venture starring Amitabh Bachchan in a film called Dostana, Dharma has been led by Johar and his team since his father passed away. Johar directed his first movie at 25, ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’, and has gone on to produce close to 50 Bollywood including hits like 'Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, 2 States, Kapoor & Sons and Dear Zindagi’. Seen as a launch pad for several young actors, many from well-known film families like Allia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Janhvi Kapoor, Ishaan Khatter and Ananya Pandey among others. In 2018, the company launched Dharmatic Entertainment to diversify and create original content for global streaming platforms and has worked with global OTT platforms like Netflix and Amazon Prime to create and produce shows like “The Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives”, “Call Me Bae”. From blockbuster films Johar was also among the first of his peers to migrate to multi-media himself, becoming a chat show host for the popular Koffee with Karan show.

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Serum Institute of India CEO Adar Poonawalla-led Serene Productions on Monday said it will pick up a 50 per cent stake in Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Dharmatic Entertainment for Rs 1,000 crore.

The past few months had witnessed speculation in the entertainment industry that Karan Johar was planning to sell a stake of Dharma Productions. Saregama and Reliance were said to be frontrunners.

With this deal, Poonawalla—the CEO of Serum Institute of India (SII), and Chairman of Poonawalla Fincorp—is foraying into entertainment through his Serene Productions.

The deal, which sees Karan retaining his position as the Executive Chairman and Apoorva Mehta as the CEO, is being viewed as a win-win for both parties. In terms of numbers prima facie, this deal values Dharma— which includes its digital arm, Dharmatic Entertainment—at Rs 2,000 crore. Sources say it is an optimistic valuation.

An insider says, “Karan has got a good valuation. Technically, Dharma’s revenue fell by 50 per cent in the last financial year. In 2022-2023, its revenue was said to be at Rs 1,000 crore. Brahmāstra: Part One—Shiva [2022] was a major contributor to the profit. However, in 2023-24, even though the company witnessed a spike in its digital and music earnings, its total revenue had a 50 per cent drop as it did not have a blockbuster. But Adar has invested in the company, looking at its equity and Karan’s creative might. A part of the Rs 1,000-crore investment will be directed to the original investors—Karan and his mother Hiroo Johar—while the remaining will be allocated towards production.” 

For Poonawalla, who has long been friends with Karan, it is a strategic investment as it gives him a significant stake in the media industry. Another source breaks it down, “For Adar Poonawalla, it’s a great diversification after dominating the pharmaceutical and financial sectors. This move will bring corporate culture into the corridors of Dharma. All the heavy lifting that Karan and Apoorva had been doing, in terms of cost management, will now be delegated.”

As is the norm with such deals, the company is expected to undergo restructuring. “Some of Adar’s people will take key positions at Dharma, and there will be a lot of lay-offs,” says  another source. 

It is understood that the roles will be clearly divided in the 50-50 partnership. Decades after his filmmaker-father Yash Johar founded Dharma in 1976, Karan took the company to new heights with his vision. He not only helmed many blockbusters—from Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) to Student Of The Year (2012)—but also backed many directors, becoming something of Bollywood’s big daddy.

“Now, Karan will spearhead the company’s creative operations and lead it from the front. Adar wants to stay away from the creative aspect. So, everything related to films will be handled by Karan, including the star fees and the budget on which a film is to be mounted. Adar will look at the operational aspects, probably telling him how much money can be spent on the workforce, how much bonus to be given, and so on.” 

The equal partnership that Poonawalla’s deal afforded was one of the reasons why Karan inked the deal. In contrast, Saregama, owned by Sanjeev Goenka, and Reliance Industries were reportedly in the bidding war to buy a majority stake in Dharma.

A source reveals, “Saregama was willing to acquire the stake for Rs. 800 crore. Adar outbid both the players. But another crucial reason is that neither of those giants would have gone into a 50-50 partnership. It has been seen historically that Reliance eventually acquires the companies it buys stakes in.” The partnership is being viewed as a huge boost for the Hindi film industry, which has been struggling since theatres reopened after the pandemic-induced shutdown.  

- Adar Poonawalla is the CEO of Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine-producing company in terms of volume, which produced Covishield in India. He is also the Chairman of Poonawalla Fincorp. 

- The Rs 1,000-crore investment in Dharma Productions marks the pharma tycoon’s foray into the entertainment industry with Serene Productions. 

- In the 50-50 partnership, Karan Johar will retain his Executive Chairman position and spearhead the creative operations. Apoorva Mehta will continue as the CEO.

- Part of the investment will be directed to the original investors—Karan and his mother Hiroo Johar—while the remaining will be allocated towards production.

- Saregama and Reliance Industries were said to be in the bidding war to buy a majority stake in Dharma.

New Delhi: Southern cinema grabbed centerstage winning a clutch of major awards in the 70th National Film Awards. The best feature film award went to the Malayalam movie “Aattam: The Play”, while Rishabh Shetty received the best actor award for the Kannada hit “Kantara.” Best actress prize was shared by Nithya Menen for the Tamil film “Thiruchitrambalam” and Manasi Parekh for the Gujarati movie “Kutch Express”.

Sooraj R Barjatya (Hum Aapke Hain Koun) seized the best director award for “Uunchai”, marking Bollywood’s presence among the top categories. Nina Gupta received the best supporting award for the same film while Pavan Malhotra, known for his riveting performances in films such as Salim Langde Pe Mat Ro and Bagh Bahadur, earned the supporting actor award for Haryanvi film, Fouja.

The jury members presented the list of winners for 2022 to Union I&B minister Ashwini Vaishnaw on Friday.

Malayalam cinema led the charge, winning eight awards, including for best child actor, best screenplay, and best editing. Overall, 20 south Indian films bagged awards a cross various categories in the feature film segment. In the feature film category, out of the 24 awards, excluding the sub-category of best feature film in each language, 20 awards were shared by Malayalam, Haryanvi, Kannada, Gujarati, Tamil, and Bengali movies. Only six awards were bagged by three Hindi films, with two being shared with other regional language movies.

“Fouja” won two other awards: best debut film by a director for Pramod Kumar and best lyrics by Naushad Sadar Khan.

The award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment also went to a non-Bollywood film, the Kannada blockbuster “Kantara”, which explores the intricate connection between humanity and nature through its folklore-based storytelling. Rishabh Shetty played the dual roles of a father and son in this film.

The top honour, the best feature film “Aattam: The Play”, directed by Anand Ekarshi, revolves around a theatre troupe and the changing dynamics after its only woman member alleges she has been groped by one of the men.

The best female playback singer award went to Padma Shri awardee “Bombay” Jayashri Ramnath, a champion of Indian Carnatic music, for the track “Chaayum Veyil” from the Malayalam film “Saudi Vellaka CC 225/2009” (Saudi Baby Coconut CC.225/2009), which also won the best Malayalam film award.

A R Rahman won the National Film Award for best music director (background music) for his work in Mani Ratnam's ‘Ponniyin Selvan-Part 1’, which was also named the best Tamil film. Pritam got the award for best music director (songs) for ‘Brahmastra-Part 1’.

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Mumbai: Dharma Productions, promoted by film producer Karan Johar, reported a nearly four-fold increase in revenue to Rs. 1040 crore for the fiscal year ending March 2023, compared to Rs. 276 crore in the previous fiscal.

The company’s revenue growth was driven by Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt’s Brahmastra: Part One: Shiva. The film collected Rs. 418 crore in worldwide gross box office collections. Apart from Brahmastra, the company also released Govinda Naam Mera and Selfiee, featuring Vicky Kaushal and Akshay Kumar, respectively, during the fiscal.

The company’s net profit decreased by 59% to Rs. 11 crore due to a 4.5-times increase in expenses to Rs. 1,028 crore. Karan Johar owns a 90.7% stake in the company, while his mother, Hiroo Johar, owns 9.24%.

Business intelligence platform Tofler has obtained the financials from the company’s regulatory filings.

In FY23, Dharma’s income from distribution, digital, satellite, and music rights stood at Rs. 656 crore, Rs. 140 crore, Rs. 83 crore, and Rs. 75 crore, respectively. In the year-ago period, the four revenue streams contributed Rs. 19 crore, Rs. 167 crore, Rs. 34 crore, and Rs. 21 crore, respectively, to the company’s top line.

In 2020, Dharma received a show cause notice from the GST department seeking an explanation as to why GST amounting to Rs. 117 crore, including interest and penalty, for the period July 2017 to August 2020 should not be levied due to GST rate differential on certain taxable services.

Email sent to Dharma Productions CEO Apoorva Mehta didn't elicit any response till press time.

Gulf saw a huge year in 2023 as the Shah Rukh Khan starrers dominated with two films going over $10 million. As the overseas market came back to life from the mid 90's, it has been about three markets (USA/Canada, United Kingdom and Gulf). Initially the domination was from the United Kingdom and then towards the end of the 2000's, it became the the USA/Canada market.

Today, Gulf holds the highest total ever for the first time as no film from USA/Canada or United Kingdom has done as much as JAWAN has in Gulf. It is the highest ever total from an overseas circuit for a Hindi film. There is the the opening up of the Saudi market post the pandemic which helps the numbers but the issue has been that UAE is not what it used to be pre pandemic barring a few exceptions.

The top three films are all Shah Rukh Khan starrers and only he can do these numbers of JAWAN and PATHAAN while for others, $10 million would still be a huge target and maybe it can be down on a Eid release. It is basically Gulf and United Kingdom which sets Shah Rukh Khan apart from the others in Overseas as $15 million in Gulf and £4 million in United Kingdom is what only he can do when the film is right.

DUNKI sitting in third place pretty much sums up the star power in Gulf. You could also lock a $5 million total in Pakistan for the likes of JAWAN and PATHAAN but that is different story altogether and not likely to happen in the near future.

The top grossers post pandemic in Gulf are as follows. These numbers are for Hindi films only and likes of JAWAN and ANIMAL have it a little coming in regional also though its minimal.

1. Jawan - $17,700,000

2. Pathaan - $14,200,000

3. Dunki - $6,320,000

4. Animal - $5,200,000

5. Tiger 3 - $4,800,000

6. Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani - $4,230,000

7. Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan - $2,600,000

8. KGF - Chapter 2 - $2,1,70,000

9. Brahmastra - $2,100,000

10. Drishyam 2 - $1,930,000

Yes, 2023 has turned out to be a great year for Hindi films, with multiple hits coming in. But a crucial aspect related to films also underwent a sea change — we saw biggies turning to the south states for mega events, some deciding not to promote their film at all (we are looking at you, Shah Rukh, for Pathaan), and some (again, SRK) heavily promoting the film abroad. But the most significant evolution observed was the industry’s pivot towards engaging with the lucrative Southern markets. 

Considering the tough competition regional language films give to Hindi films, it was only a natural step for us to explore the South markets. Makers of Shah Rukh’s Jawan realized that for a film to be called pan-Indian, it definitely needs to be accepted in those states. And hence, they organized a live show at Sai Ram Engineering College in Chennai, with the entire cast in attendance.

Varun Gupta, the founder of Max Marketing and the brain behind the promotions of almost all big films in the northern belt, including Animal and Adipurush, explains, “Actors like SRK and Ranbir (Kapoor) need no introduction, but they need to grow an audience base in the South. The idea with Animal was that the Hindi-speaking audience loves Ranbir; they would love to watch him in a never-before-seen avatar. But audiences in different languages might not have seen all their films.”

A monumental shift was witnessed with the film Animal introducing an unprecedented pre-teaser marketing strategy previously unseen in Hindi cinema. The film gained support from renowned personalities like (filmmaker) S S Rajamouli and (actor) Mahesh Babu, indicating a collective industry effort towards extending its influence beyond conventional boundaries.

But Gupta feels not every film needs to practice this: “For me, as a marketing person, my job is limited till the opening weekend; I need to market the film in a way that people come in the first three days; after that, the content has to work. I am very proud that despite Adipurush not doing well ultimately, it still opened at around Rs. 37 crore.”

G Srinivas Rao, Managing Director of Shreyas Media (which is responsible for almost all promotions done in the Southern states), echoes Gupta’s sentiments, emphasizing the immense untapped potential of the Southern markets for Hindi filmmakers. He highlights the impact of localized promotions, citing instances like Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva (2022), which ventured into Vizag, Andhra Pradesh with large-scale events, targeting diverse audience segments.

Producer Ramesh Taurani, whose film Merry Christmas is set for release, also has plans for an event in Chennai. “We have made two films: one in Hindi, and the same in Tamil. In the both versions, only (actors) Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi are the same; the rest of the cast is from the respective film industries. We have a big event planned for the first week of January,” he tells us.

It can’t be easy creating Brahmastra’s elaborate world. But since Ranbir Kapoor’s Brahmastra: Part One—Shiva (2022) already laid the foundation, the makers can use it for world-building and directly dive into the writing of Brahmastra: Part Two—Dev.

Sources say that writer-director Ayan Mukerji is planning to kick off the scripting of the fantasy drama by early next year, even as the cast has yet to be finalised. Rumours are rife that Deepika Padukone will play the female lead while Ranveer Singh is being tipped to portray Dev.

Mukerji will have to juggle it with spy thriller War 2, which stars Hrithik Roshan, Kiara Advani and Jr NTR. A source tells us, “The writers for Brahmastra 2 will be locked by January. Ayan is currently busy with War 2, which is being shot in Mumbai. But he wants the scripting of Brahmastra 2 to go on simultaneously.”

This time around, we hear the director is envisioning a tragic love story. The source adds, “The focal point will be Dev and Amrita’s love story, their ideological differences and their great war that ends the film. Ayan is seeing it in an almost operatic manner.”

From Naagin to Brahmastra, Mouni Roy has shone in fantasy offerings. But now, the actor is trading the fantasy world for one that is driven by love, fidelity and temptations. Roy will be seen as the Queen of Hearts on her first digital reality show, Temptation Island. The Jio Cinema show is an adaptation of its international version of the same name. In conversation with mid-day, the actor talks about relationships, marriage and how her non-judgmental nature makes her perfect to play an advisor on the show.

Edited excerpts from the interview.

I have a good understanding of people’s emotions and relationships. Since I was a little girl, my friends or relatives would always seek my advice. They probably thought I had an unbiased opinion. Even now, I get late-night calls from my friends when they need my perspective. I have seen the international format of the show. It’s a social experiment to see how [couples] deal with [temptation]. When I was asked to be the Queen Of Hearts, I had no reason to [turn it down]. I was initially nervous. But now that I have shot for two weeks, I’ve found my feet.

[Tempters] are a format of the show. Most couples who come to the show are in some sort of [conflict]; either the relationship is not going anywhere or they’ve been together for 11 years and don’t know if they wish to be together or not. On the show, you get to see if the relationship is strong enough. I believe when the relationship is strong, there is no space for a third person.

That choice lies with the people participating. When Jio Cinema [bought the rights] to the format, there were so many couples who wanted to [participate]. That itself shows their preference.

Relationships are complicated. I am non-judgmental, that is why I find myself being a good fit in the mix. Everyone comes from a different background, their upbringing is different, so I can’t be talking to everyone uniformly. My first day of shooting was nerve-wracking because I didn’t know them at all. I handled it well eventually.

The show cannot be scripted. You don’t know how they will behave or what they will say.

I think I am one [laughs]. My friends have made me one over the years.

When I was younger, I used to be very emotional. With a lot of meditation and self-work, I’ve reached a place where if there is a problem, I try to find a solution. Of course, I have arguments with my husband, but we talk it out. I think after marriage, something changes; you know you have to be with this person for the rest of your life, so there is no point fighting. It’s easy to move on after a fight [once you are married]. If you hold on to it, I have realised that you hurt yourself more than the other person.

I cannot be part of the show because I am married. It’s a prerequisite for the participants to be dating.

It gave me a lot of respect. People knew that I could act, but when they saw me play Junoon, they appreciated it. My character wasn’t shouting or screaming, I was wearing an outlandish garb and I was a bit nervous because my dialogues were in shudh Hindi. So, I didn’t know how people would react. The audience’s acceptance and love overwhelmed me.

Brahmāstra 2 is happening, with Ranbir Kapoor, the lead star of the film, himself having confirmed it.

Dispelling all rumours about what’s happening with the film, Kapoor, asked about the sequel to the fantasy drama, said in a video interaction with fans, “So, Brahmāstra 2 is heavy into writing. We are working on it all the time. It was just last week that Ayan (Mukerji, director of Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva) narrated the film to me. Ayan has gone 10 times bigger than part one [in terms of] his idea, his thought, the characters. He is working on War 2 right now, so the plan is to finish that by mid-next year and we start shooting hopefully by the end of next year or beginning of next to next year. ”

The first film in the Āstraverse had received praise for its VFX and music, but there was criticism around the writing and the lead pair’s chemistry, too, which Kapoor acknowledged. “We’ve really understood the criticism we got for the film. What worked and what didn’t. So, we want to put everything into consideration. From the dialogues to people saying that Shiva and Isha’s chemistry was somewhere missing, there was a lot of criticism that was constructive. So, we are taking that in our stride and trying to go beyond that,” said the 41-year-old.

While shooting for Brahmastra: Part One—Shiva (2022), actor Lehar Khan’s unfulfilled wish to share screen space with Shah Rukh Khan, who had a cameo in the film, bothered her. Little did she know that her wish would come true in her next project. Fairly new to the industry, the actor has been cast as a warrior in Atlee’s Jawan.

“I was directly called for a meeting with Atlee sir. We met briefly, and then, I gave an audition. The moment I was informed of my selection, I screamed, ‘I am going to work with SRK,’” she laughs.

Her first scene with the superstar in the actioner—which also stars Nayanthara and Vijay Sethupathi—was even better than she had imagined. Lehar says she was taken by Shah Rukh’s ability to make people feel special. “[In the scene], I was holding a lot of props. So, he sweetly held my props before the shot, and fixed my collar as it was looking uneven.”

It’s evident that his dedication to work serves as an inspiring lesson to newcomers, as Lehar says, “Shah Rukh sir doesn’t waste a single take, rehearsing until he delivers a flawless act in one go. He was the source of energy for us while shooting the song, Zinda Banda. The zeal and charisma he brings on set channelized us all. I remember, in one of the shots, I was watching him and forgetting my steps. Then I reminded myself, ‘Who’s going to watch me? Just look at him.’”

The pandemic has been over for more than one and a half years and we have seen just five Hindi films cross the 300 crore mark worldwide. Two of these are THE KASHMIR FILES and THE KERALA STORY which have have not done the business due to the films being cinema but other reasons.

The have been seven films reaching the 300 crore mark from the South which is actually a benchmark for most of the films for South barring the likes of RRR and KGF - CHAPTER 2 which have a wider market due to the scale and branding be it director for the former or the franchise for the latter. For Hindi cinema the benchmark should actually be 500 crore now which only PATHAAN has crossed and by leaps and bounds.

Tamil cinema has got a big boost in overseas business due to heavy migration from Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu over the past few years. The numbers of big films from the Tamil film industry in the overseas market are really pushing this industry in terms of worldwide numbers. Tamil cinema had a 300 crore miss by a small margin with VARISU which hit 208 crore (GBOC) in India and 85 crore Overseas for a worldwide total of 293 crore. Hindi cinema also had a very near miss with SOORYAVANSHI which got 299 crore as India contributed 237 crore (GBOC) and Overseas was 62 crore.

The total of 12 films have crossed the 300 crore worldwide mark across India post the pandemic. The difference is that many Hindi films crossed 300 crore before the pandemic and only five have managed post the pandemic. While in South seven have reached post pandemic when before the pandemic there was only ENTHIRAN, KABALI, BAAHUBALI: THE BEGINNING, BAAHUBALI 2: THE CONCLUSION and 2.0.

The films to have crossed 300 crore post pandemic worldwide from different industries is below.

The Kashmir Files

Brahmastra

Drishyam 2

Pathaan

The Kerala Story (Expected)

Pushpa: The Rise - Part 01

RRR

Vikram

Ponniyin Selvan - Part 1

Ponniyin Selvan - Part 2

KGF - Chapter 2

Kantara

Gurfateh Pirzada has waited for the current phase of his career for a long time, as work is now coming his way. His web projects Guilty (2022) and Class helped him get noticed. In fact, even Brahmastra Part One: Shiva (2022)worked for him.

“I was 21 when I auditioned for Brahmastra. We started shooting in 2017, when I was 22, and now I am 27. Basically, the wait for me has been incredibly long, as was everyone’s connected with the film. My role was much bigger, but obviously on the editing table, it gets chopped because of time constraint,” shares the actor.

Ask what kept him going in all those years, when he didn’t have work in hand and Gurfateh says, “A lot of things kept me afloat. My family and my sister, Mehreen Pirzada, who also started acting. Luckily, she started getting acknowledged and work started coming her way very early in her career. She gave me the freedom to wait it out and take my time, and not rush into things. It’s harder for a guy than a girl. If there are 10 opportunities for a girl, there is one for a guy. How often do you hear of male actors being launched or a new actor coming? But things are changing now.”

Sharing how his family supported him and respected his dream of being an actor, Gurfateh adds, “My family gave me the freedom to take my time. It obviously wasn’t easy. I was doing theatre and honing my craft every day. I know opportunities take time and I wanted to be ready (in terms of preparation) when they came.”

Recently, it was reported that all is not well between producer Karan Johar and director Ayan Mukerji. A report by Bollywood Hungama claimed that Mukerji has decided to make Brahmastra parts 2 and 3 under another banner and not collaborate with Johar, leading to speculations.

However, we have learnt that it isn’t true! A source close to both parties told us, “It is a gossip-mongering piece that is trying to create a rift between the two. They still have the same bond as they have had until now. Ayan has given Karan a big hit, and the latter has been a big supporter of him, right from launching him as a director with Wake Up Sid (2009). Brahmastra was a big film, made possible only by the complete faith the two showed in each other.”

It claimed that Mukerji also didn’t tag Johar in his recent post announcing the dates for the sequels, which was true when we checked. The report also stated that the IP rights to Brahmastra lie with Mukerji, which is why he can approach other producers. We reached out to both for a comment, but they were not available.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi recently tweeted about Snehdeep Singh Kalsi’s rendition of Kesariya (Brahmastra Part One: Shiva, 2022) in five languages: Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, Hindi and Telugu. 

And the 31-year-old sales professional from Mumbai was delighted to receive this unexpected honour: “I never expected this to happen!” The PM praised Kalsi’s rendition of the song as a great manifestation of the spirit of “Ek Bharat Shreshtha Bharat”. 

Kalsi, who was brought up in Gujarat, lived in Bengaluru for six years before moving to Mumbai. During this period, he was exposed to other languages. “My friends from different regions sang songs in their native languages, and I’d ask them to explain the meaning of the lyrics,” says Kalsi, adding that they often told him that the songs would sound great in his voice, which fuelled his desire to experiment.

“I wanted to do a cover of Kesariya, which was released in multiple languages. But agar main sirf ek language mein karta, toh mere baaki language wale friends bura maan jaate. So I did a mashup.”

His follower count is, of course, going up after the PM’s tweet. “On March 11, it was 2,900, and today it is 15,000!” ends Kalsi.

Her Tamil hit Arabic Kuthu went viral last year, and Jonita Gandhi believes the song has broken the language barrier. The singer tells us about what the song has done for her and how the pandemic has helped indie music. Excerpts:

Arabic Kuthu is my highest streamed song. I think it must also be the most-viewed song of mine on YouTube. It has helped put a face to my voice even with those who already knew me as a singer. It’s a hit in all my shows. Another big thing is that it transcended the language barrier. People in the north do know about the song. So, I think it did make a big difference, and I’m grateful to Anirudh (Ravichander, music composer and co-singer) for trusting me with this one.

We’ve realised that we can do things remotely and still have a solid song. These days, when I’m travelling for shows, I take my portable recording setup along. When I sang for Brahmãstra: Part One – Shiva, I was in the middle of the A R Rahman tour in the USA; I recorded that from my hotel room. Independent music is also growing now. A lot of films were stalled during the pandemic. So, that was also an opening for indie music to shine. There’s more love and appreciation coming now towards artistes for their indie music, not just film music.

The year 2022 was bad year for original Hindi content but it was helped out by dubbed South films which mean business was only 30% down on 2019. Hollywood releases saw good numbers for the big films with regular content pretty much like the Hindi films and putting in lower numbers than regular content in 2019. AVATAR: THE WAY OF WATER broke the record of AVENGERS: ENDGAME but it was down to the South circuits smashing records by distances while the business in many areas was good and not outstanding. 

There were three films that crossed the 200 crore nett mark - THE KASHMIR FILES, DRISHYAM 2 and BRAHMASTRA. THE KASHMIR FILES number was not not organic with sponsored shows by political parties, corporates and individuals. But here even if 100 crore nett was organic, it is still an insane number for the film.

DRISHYAM 2 was the film of the year as far as original Hindi content is concerned and the face of it the film can be called an OTT film but the film was based around human relationships of a family and had brand value. The earlier DRISHYAM had worked on satellite and Maharashtra. DRISHYAM 2 went mad in Mahasrashtra recording numbers second to only KGF - CHAPTER 2 post pandemic and than includes all Hollywood releases as well.

KGF - CHAPTER 2 was the film of the year if we look at all the films. The film set the box office on fire from day one and there was no stopping the film as it racked up initial records at almost every centre in the Hindi circuits. This film, like BAAHUBALI, had seen insane results on satellite which meant huge reach of the film. RRR (South) BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2 which came in the first half of the year were also BLOCKBUSTER films.

KANTARA (South) also deserves a mention as it did huge business in Maharashtra as the regionality and story had takers there but if the film somehow managed respectable numbers in a Bengal or Punjab it was due to how the rural milieu was presented so well in the film which Hindi cinema is unable to do today. These areas would hardly care about the story or the myths of the film.

There are flop theatrical films put in the list before but as its one disaster after another one the flop tag is probably not as bad as it was before. The classifications of 2022 is as follows.

KGF - Chapter 2 (South)

Avatar: The Way Of Water (Hollywood)

The Kashmir Files

RRR (South)

Drishyam 2

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2

Kantara (South)

Brahmastra

Doctor Strange In The Multiverse Of Madness (Hollywood)

Gangubai Kathiawadi

Thor: Love And Thunder (Hollywood)

Jurassic World: Dominion (Hollywood)

JugJugg Jeeyo

Black Panther

Black Adam (Hollywood)

Karthikeya 2 (South)

The Batman (Hollywood)

Top Gun: Maverick (Hollywood)

Ek Villain Returns

Uunchai

Rocketry - The Nambi Effect 

Vikram Vedha

Ram Setu

Bhediya

Badhaai Ho

Major (South)

Vikram (South)

THE KASHMIR FILES remained the biggest grosser of the year as far as outright Hindi films go though if the film did not get sponsored screenings, the business would have been less than the likes of DRISHYAM 2, BRAHMASTRA and BHOOL BHULAIYAA 2. It is impossible to tell what is the actual organic collection of the film but the facts say it is the highest grosser of the year. However, if all things were equal it would had been DRISHYAM 2 as the top outright Hindi film of the year.

The total collections of the top 25 films amounted to 1859 crore and there will probably be another 5 crore nett to come from the films still running. So lets say a total of 1865 crore nett from the top 25 films. The same in 2019 was 3500 crore with the top ten films alone easily covering the 1865 crore of 2022. This 47% down from 2019; its a huge drop and the figures show the dire situation. Its a horrible scene outside the top five grossers.

Basically business has gone back ten years as in 2012 the top twenty five films picked up around 1950 crore while in 2011 it was 1500 crore. The overall picture is not too bad as there was KGF - CHAPTER 2 (Hindi) and RRR (Hindi) but this will not happen every year. If same time next year, we are up 50% it would be a good result and anything more will be a bonus. Obviously you want to see the major 25 films put up 3000 or 3500 crore like in 2019 but it may take longer to get there.

The top twenty five grossers of 2022 are as follows.

1. The Kashmir Files - 2,46,91,00,000

2. Drishyam 2 - 2,32,00,00,000 (52 days; Still Running)

3. Brahmastra - 2,30,23,00,000

4. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 - 1,81,65,00,000

5. Gangubai Kathiawadi - 1,26,32,00,000

6. Vikram Vedha - 79,53,00,000

7. JugJugg Jeeyo - 78,53,00,000

8. Ram Setu - 72,72,00,000

9. Samrat Prithviraj - 68,06,00,000

10. Bhediya - 60,25,00,000 (45 Days; Still Running)

11. Laal Singh Chaddha - 59,58,50,000

12. Bachchhan Paandey - 49,00,00,000

13. Raksha Bandhan - 45,23,00,000

14. Shamshera - 41,05,00,000

15. Ek Villain Returns - 39,74,25,000

16. Cirkus - 35,75,00,000 (18 days; Still Running)

17. Runway 34 - 33,51,50,000

18. Thank God - 32,98,50,000

19. Uunchai - 28,65,00,000 (59 Days; Still Running)

20. Heropanti 2  - 24,91,00,000

21. Doctor G - 24,33,50,000

22. Jersey - 20,46,50,000

23. Badhaai Ho - 18,97,00,000

24. Jayeshbhai Jordaar - 16,59,25,000

25. Jhund - 14,30,50,000

The year gone by witnessed a return to cinema after being hit by the pandemic for two years and it turned out to be a reasonable year helped out by the dubbed/bilingual South films. The collections of the 55 odd films to collect 1 crore nett or over at the box office including the ones from the South will be around 2875 crore.

The tally in 2019 for 65 films which hit 1 crore nett or more was 4175 crore so its a drop of 31% which is pretty good coming out of a pandemic. The issue here is that around 900 crore nett has come from dubbed/bilingual films so without this the number goes below 2000 crore and it is a 50% drop. The box office in 2017 and 2018 was also aided by South films (BAAHUBALI 2: THE CONCLUSION, 2.0) but not to this extent.

2017 and 2018 saw one huge South release in each year while in 2022 there were two (RRR, KGF - CHAPTER 2) and also a surprise SUPER HIT film with KANTARA. It remains to be seen how the South contribution goes in 2023 but the 2000 crore contributed by original Hindi content must go up and it will looking at the line up for 2023.

In 2019, there was over 4000 crore nett (not including SAAHO) which came from original Hindi content and it is about getting back to these levels or at least close. This figure may well happen in 2023 but probably with support of South as content of original Hindi  medium/smaller films is unlikely to be such that it can get numbers. But this should change post 2023 as the smaller/medium films started now should be dictated by what the audience wants post pandemic. In 2022, most of these films were similar to pre pandemic while 2023 is also likely to see some backlog of those pre pandemic films.

It is an important year always but there will be extra pressure on 2023 as the line up is strong and so, performance is a must. Irrespective of performance, there were only two genuine big films in 2022 - LAAL SINGH CHADDHA and BRAHMASTRA - but 2023 will see five or six and that itself should make a huge difference.