Indian cinema sees 3% decline in business in 2024; Hindi films' share decreases, Hollywood movies suffer worst

According to the report, Hindi cinema saw a decline in 2024, with collections dropping from ₹5,380 crore in 2023 to ₹4,679 crore.

2024 witnessed the release of numerous big-budget films, with some achieving phenomenal success at the box office while others fizzled out quickly. As per a recent report by Ormax Media, only three films managed to cross the ₹500 crore milestone, with Allu Arjun's Pushpa 2: The Rule emerging as the highest-grossing film of 2024.

The dubbed Hindi version of Pushpa 2 raked in ₹889 crore,

Box office report card

On Monday, Ormax Media released the Box Office Report: 2024. It stated that the Indian box office grossed ₹11,833 crore in 2024, becoming the second-best year of all time at the Indian box office, trailing behind the collections of 2023 ( ₹12,226 crore).

Despite a marginal 3% decline compared to the previous year, 2024 still stands as the second-highest-grossing year at the Indian box office, falling just short of the ₹12,000 crore milestone. It also marks the fourth year to surpass the ₹10,000 crore mark, following 2019, 2022 and 2023.

The report further shared that the Hindi cinema saw a decline in 2024, with collections dropping from ₹5,380 crore in 2023 to ₹4,679 crore, and its box office share reducing by 4% percentage points to 40%.

Allu Arjun and Rashmika Mandanna’s Pushpa 2: The Rule emerged as the highest-grossing film of 2024, with a gross box office of ₹1,403 crore. Its dubbed Hindi version raked in ₹889 crore, setting a new record as the highest-grossing film in Hindi of all time.

When it comes to crossing the ₹500 crore mark at the Indian box office, only Pushpa 2: The Rule, Kalki 2898 AD and Stree 2 managed to do so. Jr NTR’s Devara - Part 1, Kartik Aaryan’s Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 and Vijay’s The Greatest Of All Time were the other three films to gross above ₹300 crore.

Malayalam cinema, however, had a breakout year, doubling its share from 5% in 2023 to 10% in 2024. Gujarati cinema also saw impressive growth, with 66% increase in its gross box office figures.

Hindi films struggle

Hindi-language cinema faced a challenging year, contributing 40% of the total box office, down from a 44% share in 2023. Notably, 31% of Hindi cinema’s collections came from dubbed versions of South Indian films. Despite Pushpa 2: The Rule (Hindi) and Stree 2 becoming the highest-grossing films of all time at the Hindi box office, Hindi cinema's overall collections in 2024 declined by 13%, falling below the 2019 mark. Pushpa 2: The Rule (Hindi) and Stree 2 contributed ₹1587 crore to Hindi cinema’s total collections.

If only original Hindi language films are considered, the decline in box office was a steep 37%. That being said, the performance of dubbed titles, especially Pushpa 2: The Rule and Kalki 2898 AD, helped limit the overall decline. When it comes to footfalls, it plummeted by 16% in 2024.

Only six original Hindi language films were able to gross more than ₹100 crore this year, compared to 16 in 2023.

Hollywood sees a decline

While most other languages experienced a decline, Hollywood saw the steepest drop this year, shrinking by 17%. The share dropped to 8% from 9% in 2023, as its revenues declined by 17%, amounting to ₹941 crore with franchise films like Mufasa: The Lion King ( ₹178 crore), Deadpool & Wolverine ( ₹160 crore) and Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire ( ₹133 crore) topping the slate.

For the second consecutive year, no Hollywood film crossed the ₹200 crore mark in India, with only three films surpassing ₹100 crore.

Other films which performed well include Venom: The Last Dance, Kung Fu Panda 4, Despicable Me 4, Kingdom Of The Planet Of The Apes, Moana 2, Dune: Part Two, and Inside Out 2. All the films are part of franchises, which underscores Hollywood’s reliance on established brands for success in the Indian market.

With footfalls at just 3.8 crore, 2024 marked one of Hollywood’s weakest years in India in the last decade.