Not exciting enough

Most first-half Bollywood releases of 2007 did not live up to expectations.

A good year for a film industry evokes apprehension from those who are part of that industry. Will the next year be as good, is a popular thought, a thought that haunted many a producer and director in Bollywood in 2006. This year shows reason for these fears. It's not been as good.

Now that's a singularly dismissive sentence, but it's not been as bad as it sounds for the statement is relative to last year's performance. And last year, for Bollywood, was a stupendous year. Think about it.

From the upbeat Rang De Basanti in January 2006 to the successful Bhagam Bhag at the fag end of the year, it was a salvo of hits from the biggest movie industry in the world (in terms of sheer output). Fanaa, Phir Hera Pheri, Krrish, Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, Lage Raho Munnabhai, Don, Dhoom 2 ... it was a riot. Audiences were delirious with pleasure and producers, directors and actors seemed to have that Cheshire grin with a 'we-told-you-it-would-be-good-but we-can't believe-it-either' look.

Half of 2007 is now over and try as it might, brand Bollywood could not hold a candle to last year's success. But it has had its share of successes in these past six months. We will endeavour to see how,
and why.

The year started in a manner quite like 2006 with Mani Ratnam's January release, Guru. It was an inspiring film, becoming the year's first hit. Abhishek Bachchan's performance wowed audiences, making Guru the highest grossing film in India collecting Rs420 million. It also did very well overseas, including the UAE.

The first flop
Salam-E-Ishq compared to Guru in terms of the budget, the cast, the soundtrack and high productions. It could not compare in terms of returns. The film – Nikhil Advani's next directorial venture after Kal Ho Naa Ho – collapsed like a pack of cards. Because what was forgotten in that rush of marketing strategies, high production values and a huge budget, was the screenplay, an integral part of any hit film.

Salam-E-Ishq did not have it. The film did collect a decent Rs240 million, but was not sufficient to justify its big budget. The producers were saved from embarassment with some decent collections from the US and UK markets.

Madhur Bhandarkar's Traffic Signal reached out to a select audience with its story of the begging industry in Mumbai. It netted Rs86 million, a sizeable amount for a small budget film but underperformed when compared to the ace director's earlier hits such as Chandni Bar and Page 3. It was heartening for the much-delayed Black Friday to finally release in India. The film on the Mumbai bomb blast case and its suspects was controversial because of the sensitivity of the issue and was eagerly awaited despite being available as an illegal download on the internet from 2006. It was highly appreciated.

It's sad that the film did not release in the UAE due to its sensitive content and political overtones as Black Friday was a brilliant film, stripped of the sheen, gloss and commercial aspects that typify Bollywood films.

Elusive hits
The much-hyped Vinod Chopra-directed Eklavya – The Royal Guard delivered a turkey at the box office. Chopra giving a Rolls Royce to Amitabh Bachchan in appreciation for his performance in the film was perceived by the media as more of a publicity stunt than a show of magnanimity.

In fact, Amitabh's next release Nishabd saw him deliver a far superior performance than in Eklavya. It's a different story that Nishabd did not click at the box office, adding to director Ram Gopal Varma's list of miseries.

Farhan Akhtar's Honeymoon Travels Ltd. was a welcome break, despite being another film with multiple stories interwoven in one big story. It did an average business of Rs118 million, but the elusive hit continued to evade Bollywood.

A series of flops followed in the form of Nehlle Pe Dehlla, Red, Sarhad Paar, Hattrick, and Just Married. It took Akshay Kumar's entertaining Namastey London to break the jinx. The film, shot mostly in the UK, grossed Rs370 million and is 2007's biggest Bollywood hit in the UK so far. The film was the lifeline of cinemas in the UAE for more than a month as Bollywood continued with the flop parade. Suneel Darshan's Shakalaka Boom Boom took a beating even in Darshan's safe hunting grounds such as the UK and North Indian pockets such as Delhi and Chandigarh.

The film's failure continued Bobby Deol's poor run at the box. Big brother Sunny couldn't flex his muscle at the box office earlier with
Big Brother.

Aishwarya Rai's Provoked came, screened and left without making a whimper, despite her good performance. It seems audiences were more interested in seeing her happy with her real-life hubby (the film was released during all the hype surrounding the Bachchan-Rai wedding) than watching her sad marital reel saga.

Surprise, surprise!
Making films with novel themes and multiple-story narrations has been Bollywood's mantra in 2007. It's disappointing that this has not worked to effect, receiving only a lukewarm response. But there are exceptions.

The biggest surprise of the year was Bheja Fry, a small film with no stars and zero publicity. It is the year's biggest hit mainly due to its shoestring budget of Rs6 million and a box office collection of around Rs80 million, proving that the film's script is the biggest star. It definitely made made funnyman Vinay Pathak (part of the lead cast) one.
What was good news for Bollywood's fans in the UAE was that Bheja Fry released here. Similar films with shoestring budgets usually don't find takers here.

Yashraj's Ta Ra Rum Pum starring Saif Ali Khan and Rani Mukherjee was supposed to make a flying start, but its lukewarm response came as a jolt to many. The film wasn't promoted well, which is a surprise as Yash Raj Films is a master of the game when it comes to promoting their fare.
Luckily, the film caught on with family audiences and managed gross more than Rs380 million putting it in the big league.

Here comes Spider-Man
The webbed wonder was a slap in the face for Bollywood loyalists. Hollywood's Spider-Man 3, the biggest grosser among the three Spider-Man films, made a big impact on Indian audiences due to a very smart move on the part of its producers who dubbed the film in as many Indian languages as they could (read The Hollywood Menace, e+, 21/6). The strategy drew audiences to the film like proverbial bees gathering around a honey pot. The result? Spider-Man 3 recorded one of the best box office openings to emerge as the only all India super-hit in the first half of 2007 (Guru did well, but in pockets).

Spider-Man 3 broke all previous Hollywood flick records in India and took the box office by storm grossing Rs195 million in the first week and looks to do over Rs350 million.

Losing steam
Subhash Ghai seems to have lost it by making a film like Good Boy Bad Boy. The film Kya Love Story Hai only added to audiences' woes. Vikram Bhatt and Aftab Shivdasani managed a rare feat by delivering two flops within two months with Red and Life Mein Kabhi Kabhi. Last year's Ankahee makes it a forgettable hattrick.

Respite came in the form of Anurag Basu's Life In A ... Metro, which was very well received and the audience connected to the film with its varous storylines mirroring real life. The film's small budget helped the film attain a hit status instantly and has grossed Rs150 million so far.

Big cast, big hit
The next big thing came in the form of Sanjay Gupta's all-star action thriller Shootout At Lokhandwala, which enjoyed one of the best openings this year. Sanjay Dutt won all-round applause for his performance and Vivek Oberoi got a fresh lease of life. The film made Rs270 million in its first 2 weeks and is all set to cross the Rs350 million mark.

The Amitabh-Tabu starrer Cheeni Kum, which released alongside Shootout At Lokhandwala, surprisingly held its ground very well and the film was highly appreciated for its mature handling of light-hearted romance.

Fool 'N' Final, with hordes of stars was nothing but a clear example of the saying too many c(r)ooks spoil the broth (the film was about a diamond heist by multiple teams of thieves) with the film managing a decent opening because of the hype, but failing badly in the following weeks. The Train, despite having Mithoon's rocking music and Hashmi's trademark smooches, failed to elicit audience interest.

All hopes were pinned on Yash Raj's Jhoom Barabar Jhoom. It was a disappointment when the film received a negative response. Going by recent collections, the film may end up being a rare Yash Raj failure. At last count the film has managed to collect Rs192 million in its first week. Second-week collections have shown a drop of more than 60 per cent and near empty halls do not augur well for the film.

Ending with a bang
The first half of 2007 closed on an interesting note with the triple A clash – Himesh Reshammiya's acting debut Aap Kaa Surroor, Mahesh Bhatt's big budget Awarapan and the Dharmendra-Sunny-Bobby starrer Apne. It needs to be seen which of these films turn out to be a winner.

The second-half of 2007 should get more exciting with releases such as Naqaab, Partner, Cash, Hey Baby, Chak De India, Ram Gopal Varma's Sholay, Bhool Bhulaiyya, Goal, Jodha Akbar, Om Shanti Om, and Saanwariya.

- Lists in info boxes are in descending order of preference

Musical chartbusters

Namstey London
Metro
The Train
Jhoom Baraabar Jhoom
Awarapan /Aap Kaa Surroor
- The soundtracks of Guru, Anwar and Salam-E-Ishq were hits, but not considered in this list as the OST was released last year

Total disasters

Shakalaka Boom Boom
Eklavya – The Royal Guard
Nehlle Pe Dehlla
Salaam-E-Ishq
Jhoom Barabar Jhoom

Hits of the year

Guru Rs420 million
Ta Ra Rum Pum Rs380 million
Namastey London Rs370 million
Shootout At Lokhandwala Rs360 million
Metro Rs 160 million
Cheeni Kum Rs140 million
Bheja Fry Rs80 million

Best actress

Tabu (Cheeni Kum)
Shilpa Shetty (Metro)
Aishwarya Rai (Guru, below)
Konkana Sen Sharma (Metro)
Rani Mukherjee (Ta Ra Rum Pum)

Best actor

Amitabh Bachchan- Cheeni Kum & Nishabd
Abhishek Bachchan- Guru
Sanjay Dutt- Shootout At Lokhandwala
Vinay Pathak Bheja Fry
Saif Ali Khan Eklavya

Best film

Black Friday
Guru
Bheja Fry
Cheeni Kum
Life In A ... Metro