2023 review: The year when Bollywood bounced back with a vengeance
After a lacklustre 2022, the tides turned for Hindi cinema in 2023, with Shah Rukh Khan leading the pack with Jawan, which became the highest-grossing film of the year
The year 2022 had ended with a whimper for the Hindi film industry. Several films, including the likes of Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha, his comeback film in four years — after what had turned out to be another dud (Thugs of Hindostan, 2018) — had flopped. Aamir was not alone. There were a string of films that had tanked at the box-office: Ranbir Kapoor’s Shamshera, Ranveer Singh’s Jayeshbhai Jordaar and Cirkus (directed by Rohit Shetty), Akshay Kumar’s Samrat Prithviraj, Ajay Devgn’s Runway 34 and Ayushmann Khurrana’s Anek and An Action Hero.
The only films that fared well in 2022 included Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva, The Kashmir Files, Drishyam 2 (starring Devgn), Karthik Aryan-starrer Bhool Bhulaiyaa and Alia Bhatt’s Gangubai Kathiawadi. Five films that topped the gross box-office collections were all non-Hindi: KGF: Chapter 2, RRR, Avatar: The Way of Water, Kantara and Ponniyin Selvan: I.
The year of Shah Rukh Khan
In 2023, Bollywood bounced back with a vengeance. First and foremost, it was the year of Shah Rukh Khan, whose high-octane action thrillers (Pathaan and Jawan) not only resonated with the audience, they also brought cinephiles to theatres in hordes. SRK’s last outing, Zero, a romantic drama directed by Anand L. Rai, also featuring Anushka Sharma, had managed to rake in a total of Rs 178 crore worldwide, but the January release Pathaan marked the roaring comeback for the ‘Badshah of Bollywood,’ with Rs 1,050.3 crore global collection. His September release, Atlee-directed Jawan, raked in more moolah. Acording to trade analysts, it holds the record for highest-grossing Indian film, with Rs 1,150.7 crore worldwide collection — Rs 764.3 crore earnings in India, and Rs 386.4 overseas.
Another standout moment of the year was the success of Gadar 2, which saw the return of Sunny Deol in the 22-year-old film franchise, riding the wave of hyper nationalism. Out of the three films starring Akshay Kumar — Selfiee, OMG 2 (on sex education, it had to undergo nearly 27 cuts by the Central Board of Film Certification), and Mission Raniganj: The Great Bharat Rescue, based on the Raniganj Coalfields collapse of 1989 in West Bengal — only OMG 2 did reasonably well, earning over Rs 221 crore worldwide. If SRK reigned, Salman Khan’s film could not match up, with Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan barely managing to cross the Rs 100 crore mark. However, his Diwali release, Yash Raj Films’ Tiger 3, did better with Rs 285 crore.
The triumph of the alpha male
If Ranbir Kapoor-starrer Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar (200 crore worldwide) — Luv Ranjan’s quirky romcom — was seen as problematic for its sexist tones, the actor delivered another hit in the same misogynistic mould with Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s high-on-testosterone, alpha-male entertainer, Animal. Besides making Tripti Dimri the ‘national crush,’ it also revived the career of Bobby Deol. Though Animal was one of the highest-grossing films, it also triggered the debate, yet again, on the need for filmmakers to tread cautiously when it comes to depicting violence and abuse in films.
Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani — centred on a flamboyant Punjabi boy Rocky starring (Ranveer Singh) and an intellectual Bengali journalist Rani (Alia Bhatt), who fall in love despite their different social backgrounds and decide to live with each other’s families for three months before getting married, despite fierce family opposition — was another highlight of the year. Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s SRK-starrer Dunki — which revolves around a group of friends who use a backdoor process to move to another country, then struggle to return home — did not resonate with the audience.
But, earlier in the year, Chopra’s 12th Fail, starring Vikrant Massey — based on the inspiring real-life story of Manoj Kumar Sharma, who failed his Class 12 exams but became an IPS officer was one of the sleeper hits of the year. The film also stars Medha Shankar, Joshi Anantvijay and Anshuman Pushkar. Yashowardhan Mishra’s Kathal: A Jackfruit Mystery, among the films that released on OTT this year, cleverly satirized government systems and the quirks of bureaucracy. When a local politician’s prized jackfruit trees disappear from his garden, Mahima Basor, a young policewoman (brilliantly essayed by Sanya Malhotra), desperately tries to solve this strange case to prove herself worthy of her position.
Manoj Bajpayee’s feats, and other sleeper hits
After SRK, if there is any other actor who left a big impact in 2023, it was Manoj Bajpayee, whose stellar performances in Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai, Gulmohar and Joram dominated discussions around cinema. Directed by Apoorv Singh Karki, Sirf Ek Bandaa Kaafi Hai is a simple courtroom drama based on Asaram Bapu’s imprisonment for rapes and murders, which is elevated by Vajpayee’s nuanced acting. Rahul V. Chittella’s Gulmohar, also featuring Sharmila Tagpore, follows the multi-generation Batra family, who are all set to move out of their 34-year-old family home, but this shift makes them rediscover the bonds that have held them together as a family, with its own sets of secrets and insecurities. In Devashish Makhija’s Joram, he plays Dasru, an Adivasi from Jharkhand who quits his life as a Naxalite to work as a labourer in Mumbai. The film is an unapologetic and gripping examination of poverty, corruption, dispossession and grief.
There were a clutch of films that may not have done commercially well, but stood out for their craft. Pushan Kripalani’s Goldfish, a poignant meditation on mental health and ageing, explored the complexities of familial bonds. Anamika (Kalki Koechlin) returns to her childhood home when her mother, Sadhana (Deepti Naval), is diagnosed with dementia. With the help of her supportive neighbourhood, Anamika tries to come to terms with the ghosts of her past and reconcile with her mother. R. Balki’s Ghoomer, which sank in the ‘tsunami’ (Balki’s word) of Gadar 2, is the story of a young batting prodigy Anina (Saiyami Kher), who loses her right hand on the eve of her international cricketing debut. When a failed cricketer, Padam ‘Paddy’ Singh Sodhi (Abhishek Bachchan) enters her life and offers her new hope, she becomes a bowler for the Indian cricket team, and they invent a new style of bowling.
If Vijay Varma shone in Jaane Jaan — Sujoy Ghosh’s adaptation of Keigo Higashino’s 2005 novel, The Devotion of Suspect X, which marked Kareen Kapoor’s OTT debut — Lust Stories (besides the series Dahaad), Jaideep Ahlawat proved his mettle, once again, in Three of Us, a scintillating portrait of dementia, and an ode to memory and abiding love. Films like Ghuspaith: Between Borders, Bheed, Adipurush, Sam Bahadur, The Archies, and Kho Gaye Hum Kahan had their moments. In 2024, one hopes, the audience is equally spoiled for a choice, with as diverse offerings as 2023 boasted of.