2026 has had some mega disasters as well as mega blockbusters.
We have seen huge records being created by a film or two while many more have struggled at the box office.
Only three films have crossed over to the Rs 100 Crore (Rs 1 billion) Club so far.
The half yearly Bollywood box office report:
Key Points
- Dhurandhar: The Revenge tops the list.
- Border 2 comes second, but the margin is HUGE!
- Quite a few surprise hits dominate the list.
Dhurandhar: The Revenge
Box office collection: Rs 1,108.09 crore (Rs 11.08 billion)
Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar: The Revenge is the biggest blockbuster ever, doing even better than the first part.
While the first Dhurandhar missed out on the Rs 1,000 Crore (Rs 10 billion) Club, the second movie demolished all box office records.
The Aditya Dhar directorial, co-starring Arjun Rampal, R Madhavan, Sanjay Dutt, Sara Arjun and Rakesh Bedi, has etched its place in cinema history.
Border 2
Box office collection: Rs 341.70 crore (Rs 3.42 billion)
With Border 2‘s superhit status, Sunny Deol proved that Gadar 2 wasn’t a one-off case and his comeback is indeed real, since audiences want to see more of him.
The war film, also starring Diljit Dosanjh, Varun Dhawan and Ahan Shetty, earned over Rs 300 crore (Rs 3 billion). Director Anurag Singh made sure the film induced nostalgia among audiences as well.
Welcome To The Jungle
Box office collection: Rs 65 crore+ (still playing) (Rs 650 million+)
In its opening weekend itself, Welcome To The Jungle gave clear indications that it is a hit in the making.
While it opened well, its sustained growth over the weekend established that audiences enjoyed this kind of entertainment.
This is Akshay Kumar’s second hit in the year so far. Directed by Ahmed Khan, there are many stars in this film including Suniel Shetty, Jackie Shroff, Raveena Tandon, Disha Patani, Paresh Rawal and Johny Lever.
Bhooth Bangla
Box office collection: Rs 168.26 crore (Rs 1.68 million)
When it was announced that Akshay Kumar and Priyadarshan would be coming together with a horror comedy, it generated a lot of pre-release buzz around it. After all, they have done some memorable work together.
Bhooth Bangla took a good start, and from the second week onwards, ensured that it went past the Rs 150 crore (Rs 1.5 billion) mark comfortably, and then some more.
Cocktail 2
Box office collection: Rs 72.11 crore+ (still playing) (Rs 721.1 million)
Homi Adajania’s Cocktail 2 looks cool, has a very good looking cast and some chartbuster music too, and that enticed the youth right away.
The film has taken a good start and is still playing in theatres. It should eventually score over Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion).
Main Vaapas Aaunga
Box office collection: Rs 47 crore+ (still playing) (Rs 470 million)
The biggest surprise of the year, Main Vaapas Aaunga had a disastrous opening. But something magical happened mid-week.
Social media gave this more visibility than the traditional marketing campaign, and more and more audiences started catching it in theatres.
Imtiaz Ali’s new film is now a success and should find itself in the Rs 65 crore to Rs 75 crore (Rs 650 million to Rs 750 million) lifetime collections.
Mardaani 3
Box office collection: Rs 52.99 crore (Rs 529.9 million)
Mardaani 3 did even better than the first two instalments of the franchise.
The Rani Mukerji starrer arrived with barely any promotion or marketing and yet, recorded a fair opening. Footfalls picked up even more, thanks to positive word-of-mouth. After a decent first week, it eventually scored a half century.
The Kerala Story 2
Box office collection: Rs 40.60 crore (Rs 406 million)
The Kerala Story 2 was a repeat of everything that was seen in The Kerala Story. That’s why the box office results were far less than its predecessor that made more than Rs 200 crore (Rs 2 billion). Still, since it was a low budget film, it earned hit status.
The fact that it crossed Rs 40 crore (Rs 400 million) is good enough for a film of this scale, theme and budget.
Raja Shivaji (Hindi)
Box office collection: Rs 23 crore (Rs 230 million)
Riteish Deshmukh scored a success with Raja Shivaji, which was also produced and directed by him.
While the original Marathi version is a record-breaker and amongst the top three films of all time in the language, the film’s Hindi version scored well enough to cross the Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million) mark.
Co-starring Vidya Balan, Genelia Deshmukh, Abhishek Bachchan, Fardeen Khan, Sanjay Dutt and a cameo from Salman Khan, this well-made historical action drama worked well with audiences.
Haunted 3D: Echoes Of The Past
Box office collection: Rs 17.75 crore (Rs 177.5 million)
This one came out of nowhere and managed to earn enough to emerge successful.
Second in the Haunted franchise, this film was made in 3D with Director Vikram Bhatt roping in his original lead Mahaakshay Chakraborty again.
With newcomer Chetna Pande as the leading lady, this VFX and AI laden horror film was made at a low budget and that ensured recovery from the theatrical release itself and the other avenues (OTT, satellite, music) being added bonus.
Note: All collections as per various box office sources
Photographs curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff