Apurv Shukla – 
As the year 2015 draws to a close, it is a good opportunity to look at how it treated the Hindi film industry.
The year has proved to be good both financially and content wise for Bollywood.
It has seen big mainstream masala films starring major stars co-exist with films of unconventional themes and new faces.
Salman Khan
The biggest hit so far has been the Salman Khan and Kareena Kapoor starrer ‘Bajrangi Bhaijaan.’ Directed by Kabir Khan, this human drama, with a strong social message set box office registers ringing across the globe.
Salman who turns 50 on December 27, also starred in the second biggest hit of the year – ‘Prem Ratan Dhan Payo.’
Reuniting with Sooraj Barjatya, the director with whom he had collaborated on his first solo hit, ‘Maine Pyar Kiya’ and the blockbuster ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun,’ the duo delivered a musical love story which was an ode to the family dramas of yore.
Kangana Ranaut
Kangana Ranaut had a splendid start to the year with the sequel of her 2011 release ‘Tanu Weds Manu,’ scoring big at the box office. The romantic comedy, set in North India, captivated audiences with a story, screenplay and dialogues rooted in everyday heartland milieu. Though Kangana’s other release this year, ‘Katti Batti’ co-starring Imran Khan sank without a trace at the box office.
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone strengthened her position as the top actress of the industry with another award winning performance in the Shoojit Sircar directed ‘Piku.’
Playing a modern independent woman, she delivered an assured and believable performance pitted against stalwarts like Amitabh Bachchan and Irrfan Khan. She looks to end the year on a high-playing one of the titular roles of Mastani in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s epic historical, ‘Bajirao Mastani.’
New actors
Amongst the newer set of actors Varun Dhawan had a year to remember. He played an intense, multi layered character in Sriram Raghavan’s Badlapur. This thriller had ample twists and turns to keep the audiences hooked, and the box office happy.
That reality television is having an effect on viewing habits of cinema-goers was evident in the impressive box office numbers posted by ‘Anybody Can Dance 2’.
Varun co-starred with Shraddha Kapoor in this musical, designed on similar lines as dance- based shows on the small screen. Varun is also part of the eagerly awaited yearend release- ‘Dilwale.’ The very popular and successful onscreen couple of Shahrukh Khan and Kajol reunite in this Rohit Shetty directed film, which promises to be an entertainer all the way.
The Sword
One of the best Hindi films of 2015 has undoubtedly been the Meghna Gulzar-directed ‘Talvar.’ Based on the infamous Arushi murder case of 2008 in Noida-India, this Irrfan Khan starrer depicted the incident from various angles, leaving the audiences to decide if the investigative processes and the trial in the case had been fair.
Another small gem this year has been ‘Masaan’ directed by Neeraj Ghaywan. This complex life story, set in the holy city of Varanasi, has earned applauds and awards in film festivals across the globe.
Small Screen competition
Like in the West, Hindi cinema should also brace itself for more stern competition from the small screen in years to come. Online streaming of content is also getting increasingly popular. But with more professional movie making set ups, and avenues for revenue generation growing manifolds, both in India and overseas; the future looks exciting for Hindi cinema.
What it needs is consistent repackaging of existing masala movie formulas to ensure repetition and boredom amongst viewers does not set in, and also different stories with new faces being told on screen to infuse fresh ideas and energy in the industry.
Mega hit from South
The world is talking about ‘Baahubali-The Beginning,’ a bilingual epic fiction film directed by S S Rajamouli and produced by Shobu Yarlagadda and Prasad Devineni.
First of two cinematic parts, the film was simultaneously made in Telugu and Tamil and dubbed into Hindi, Malayalam, and French.
A fictional story of two warring brothers fighting for control of an ancient Indian kingdom, it stars Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Tamanna, Anushka Shetty in lead roles. Ramya Krishnan, Sathyaraj, Nassar, Adivi Sesh, Tanikella Bharani and Sundeep appear in supporting roles.
The film made on a budget of Rs 120 Crores (US$18 million) released worldwide on July 10 to positive reviews from critics, and became the highest grossing Indian film within India and third highest grossing Indian film globally. It became the first South Indian film to gross over Rs 600 Crores (US$90 million) worldwide and the first non-Hindi film to gross over Rs 100 Crores (US$15 million) in dubbed Hindi version in India.
It is also the highest grossing film of all time.
