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Box Office race begins
Saibal Chatterjee wonders which film of 2006 will be the year's biggest hit.
The hypnotic spell cast by Rang De Basanti on the hearts and minds of moviegoers in India hasn't quite faded away yet. But as we approach the halfway mark of 2006, it is probably time to ask the question: which will be the biggest hit of the year? Or have we already seen the year's most resounding commercial success?
It's a year of biggies, and it might, therefore, be unwise to jump to quick conclusions. One or more of the several potential blockbusters that are set for release or are nearing completion have the firepower to upstage Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's box office humdinger. If that were to happen, RDB wouldn't pale one bit, but Bollywood would have much to cheer about.
At least four films that are lined up for release seem to possess the power to pull off the feat - Kunal Kohli's Aamir Khan-Kajol starrer Fanaa, the Hrithik Roshan vehicle Krrish, Farhan Akhtar's reworking of Don with Shahrukh Khan and Karan Johar's Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna. With a quartet of releases of such immense promise coming up in the next few months, is it surprising that Bollywood is in a buoyant mood?
Add to the above list films like Dhoom 2 from the Yashraj Films stable and J.P. Dutta's Umrao Jaan, starring Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai, and you have a scenario where Bollywood can't ask for more. There is no doubt that the next six months or so are going to be exceptionally action-packed for the Mumbai movie industry.
While Fanaa, a love story cast in an unusual mould, and Umrao Jaan, a music and dance-driven period drama, belong to the off-mainstream category in that they largely seek to abjure the established Bollywood blockbusters norms, the other big films in the fray are of a more popular variety and might stand a better chance of inveigling the masses.
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| Rakesh Roshan's Krrish is in the running for the biggest hit of the year, along with Rang De Basanti and the to-be-released Fanaa, Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, Don and Umrao Jaan |
Rakesh Roshan's Krrish, a sequel to Koi Mil Gaya, has the makings of another superhit. The film's comic-book aura, the presence of the charismatic Hrithik Roshan in the cast, and his new romantic pairing with Priyanka Chopra have given Krrish its initial hype. Industry observers are confident that the film will live up to the high expectations that are being pinned on it and pull in the crowds.
Pretty much the same is being said about Dhoom 2, yet another sequel of a successful film of the recent past. Like Krrish, Dhoom 2 will have Hrithik attempting an array of unusual stunts. The film also has Abhishek and Aishwarya in the cast. And with the marketing muscle of Yashraj Films backing it, this is one film that has everything going for it.
But all said and done, irrespective of how they fare at the box office, Don and Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna will the biggest films of the year, not the least because they are driven by Shahrukh Khan, a megastar who has rarely failed at the box office in recent years. Popular interest in the two films will be pretty high: while in Don, Shahrukh reprises a role made famous by Amitabh Bachchan, he faces off with the Big B in Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.
Since most success stories in Bollywood tend to ride on star power, Don and KANK will start off with a huge advantage. That brings us back to the old question: will any of these films be able to put Rang De Basanti in the shade? The thing about RDB is that it is not merely a super-duper hit; it has shown the sheer collective influence a well-made, honest entertainer can exercise on people who watch it. On that count, RDB is unlikely to be pushed this year. Yes, in terms of box office collections, it might be left behind a tad by the upcoming big-stakes releases.
