How India's most expensive film became biggest box office bomb: Had 3 superstars, earned just ₹8 cr, left maker bankrupt

With three superstars from three industry, this pan-India film was India's most expensive made at that time. Yet, it earned just ₹8 crore.

The term pan-India may be a recent invention to describe films with national appeal, but these films have existed before the term was coined. While many such films worked at the box office, a few crash-landed too. Among those was a 1991 film that had three of the biggest stars of the era, was made in four languages, and bombed so badly that the maker was left bankrupt.

Rajinikanth, Ravinchandran, Juhi Chawla, and Nagarjuna on the sets of Shanti Kranti.

How India's most expensive film bombed at the box office

In 1988, Kannada actor and filmmaker V. Ravichandran embarked on an ambitious mission - to make a film for all languages and audiences. Titled Shanti Kranti, the film was simultaneously made in Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, and Hindi. Ravichandran wrote, produced, and directed the film himself. The Kannada version starred him in the lead, while the Telugu version featured Nagarjuna. Rajinikanth was cast to lead the Tamil and Hindi versions. Juhi Chawla, Khushbu, and Anant Nag played the other key roles in all four versions. The film was mounted on a massive budget of ₹10 crore, which made it the most expensive Indian film at the time, breaking Ajooba's record of ₹8 crore.

Ravichandran and Juhi Chawla on the Kannada version poster of Shanti Kranti.

Shanti Kranti was released in September 1991 in Kannada and Telugu, with the other two versions hitting the screens two weeks later. And it was a monumental disaster. Despite the presence of three huge stars - Rajini, Nagarjuna, and Juhi - the film failed to get a decent opening in any language. The production budget had ballooned to a point where no box office returns could cover it. In the end, Shanti Kranti earned ₹8 crore from all four versions, which was not even enough to recover its budget. The added marketing costs meant that it was India's biggest box office bomb at the time.

Shanti Kranti's impact on Ravichandran

Ravichandran had put his life savings into making Shanti Kranti. The filmmaker had even borrowed a 50-acre plot of empty land to shoot the climax, in addition to spending big on VFX and large sets. He estimated that the project caused him a loss of ₹10 crore in 1989-90 and more upon release. Ravichandran later said that the film put him in such financial distress that he was bankrupt, and "forced him to rely on remakes of hit Tamil and Telugu films". These B-grade remakes later resurrected his career in the 90s.