What Hrithik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan and Anil Kapoor could not do this year – get the audiences to the theatres – Munni and Sheela did. What established and hit filmmakers like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Ashutosh Gowariker, Anil Sharma, Anees Bazmee, and Mani Ratnam failed to do, a rank newcomer like Abhinav Kashyap did with his maiden film, Dabangg– smashed old box-office records and created new ones. But that’s as far as year 2010 is concerned.
What does the new year have in store for the public? One can safely predict, a lot of surprises; probably, an equal number of shocks, if not more. Yet, notwithstanding the speculative nature of the industry, there are some films which give one the feeling that they will be eagerly awaited when they become due for release, no matter what. It could be because of the people facing the cameras in those films or the people behind the cameras or merely due to the topics they tackle. So, which are those movies which will have the audience’s adrenaline flowing in 2011?
Ra.One: Nobody knows for sure, the relevance of the title (does it stand for Random Access – Version 1.0?), but that doesn’t stop this Shah Rukh starrer from becoming one of the hottest films of the new year. Kareena Kapoor teams up with the superstar in the super-hero adventure fare.
7 Khoon Maaf: Vishal Bhardwaj’s films may often not make money at the box-office but his sheer genius as a filmmaker is enough to get one section of the audience (read, the classes) all excited. Yes, if it is Vishal, saat flops maaf. The February release is already the talk of the industry, the elite and the city-based folk. It is an adaptation of Ruskin Bond’s Susanna’s Seven Husbands, about a woman who kills her seven spouses.
No One Killed Jessica: If this one is able to create even a fourth of the hysteria that the Jessica Lal murder case in Delhi, on which it is based, created in India, it will be enough to set the cash registers ringing. If that happens, it could also give the fading career of Rani Mukerji a boost. She plays an investigative journalist modelled on real-life journalist Barkha Dutt. Vidya Balan plays Jessica’s sister, Sabrina Lal, in the UTV production.
Ready: Anees Bazmee’s record of hits and successes (No Entry, Welcome, Singh Is Kinng) may have been spoilt by No Problembut that wouldn’t spell any problem for his Ready. Call it the Salman effect or whatever but the public is more than ready for Ready, never mind if he is paired with Asin over again, after the nightmare called London Dreams.
Thank You: Yet another Anees Bazmee film, this one stars Akshay Kumar, Bobby Deol, Sonam Kapoor, Sunil Shetty, Celina Jaitley, and Irrfan Khan with Vidya Balan in a special appearance. It is making brisk progress so that it can be readied for release before the new year ends.
Aarakshan: Ajay Devgan may not be a part of Aarakshan but Amitabh Bachchan, Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone still make this film, based on the reservation issue in India, an exciting proposal. Prakash Jha directs the issue-based project.
Dirty Picture: Don’t screw your nose, for, this is just a tentative title. Milan Luthria and Ekta Kapoor join forces once again after their recent hit, Once Upon A Time In Mumbaai, for a film inspired by the life of South’s sexy siren, Silk Smitha. Vidya Balan’s character is inspired by the late sex bomb who committed suicide. Insiders reveal that the lead man could be one of the two heroes of OUATIM viz. Ajay Devgan and Emraan Hashmi.
Don 2: A sequel is always exciting – provided, of course, it is made after the first part proves itself at the ticket windows and not shot simultaneously with the first part (like Rakht Charitra 2 was). And, therefore, Shah Rukh Khan’s Don 2is bound to generate more heat before release than even Dondid.
Click next for Rockstar, Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara, Mausam and more…
Rockstar: That’s what Ranbir Kapoor is. And that’s the title of his new film with Imtiaz Ali at the helm of affairs. Why, then, will it not rock at the box-office?
Student Of The Year: Karan Johar will introduce two new boys – Varun Dhawan (younger son of David Dhawan) and Siddharth Malhotra – in this young film which he himself will direct. The film will go on the floors in June, 2011.
Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji: Neither an expose nor a satire, genres for which Madhur Bhandarkar is well-known, this one is a slice-of-life entertainer about three guys and how they react when three girls enter their lives. Madhur swears, film toh achchha hai ji.
Mausam: Pankaj Kapur, the actor for all seasons, has gone behind the camera for the first time. He is directing his son, Shahid Kapoor, and Sonam Kapoor in the film. Shahid reportedly plays an Air Force officer and sports a moustache in the film.
Mere Brother Ki Dulhan: Katrina Kaif, Imran Khan and Ali Zafar (of Tere Bin Laden) star in this Yash Chopra production being directed by debut-making Ali Abbas Zafar. And no, actor Ali Zafar and director Ali Abbas Zafar are not brothers in real life.
Short Term Shaadi: This is the tentative title for a film which Karan Johar is producing with Kareena Kapoor and Imran Khan.
Rascals: David Dhawan, the original master of comedies, will be back after a long break. With Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgan and Arjun Rampal this time. Kangana Ranaut plays the leading lady of the three rascals, sorry, heroes. Sanjay Dutt is producing this film under his own banner.
Desi Boyz: David Dhawan’s son, Rohit Dhawan, is making his foray into direction with this film starring Akshay Kumar and John Abraham. The two handsome hunks were last seen together in the comedy, Garam Masala. Deepika Padukone is their desi girl.
Yamla Pagla Deewana: If the three rough-and-tough Deols could make you cry in Apne, making you laugh in their second outing together should be a left-hand task for the father-sons trio. The first trailer of Samir Karnik’s film has been so well-received that the film was picked up by distributors immediately – and at fancy prices.
Dhobi Ghat: It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that just the name Aamir Khan today spells magic at the turnstiles. And this one is not only produced by the ace Khan but also stars himself, and is directed by his wife, Kiran Rao. You can bet, Aamir will move heaven and earth to ensure that his wife’s maiden directorial venture proves a success.
Delhi Belly: Never mind if Aamir Khan is not happy with Abhinay Deo’s version of Delhi Belly. He must have seen something in the film to have kept it on the backburner for more than a year rather than released it the way it was. After being done with Dhobi Ghat, which will be released on January 21, Aamir plans to take up this Imran Khan starrer and give it that unmistakable AK stamp. Remember, he had loved the script when he had first read it, which is why he decided to produce the film based on it. And what’s good on paper cannot but be good on celluloid, feels Aamir.
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara: Zoya Akhtar may have delivered a dud in Luck By Chance but the girl’s very lucky. After all, her second film stars Hrithik Roshan, Naseeruddin Shah, Abhay Deol, Farhan Akhtar, Katrina Kaif and Kalki Koechlin. And that’s not by chance.
Watch this space for Part 2 of this exclusive series. To read more of the Komal Nahta’s box-office analysis and reviews, click here, and follow Komal on Twitter!
