Epic Bollywood Box Office Clashes: When Films Went Head-to-Head
Lagaan Vs Gadar: Ek Prem Katha (2001)
June 2001 brought to the audience a unique meeting of titans- Lagaan (Aamir Khan) and Gadar (Sunny Deol). Although Lagaan received international recognition and Oscar nomination, the patriotic flavour and mass appeal of Gadar attracted 76.88 crore as opposed to 34.31 crore by Lagaan. It was an encyclopedic critical triumph versus commercial hegemony.
Om Shanti Om and Saawariya (2007)
In November 2007 Shah Rukh Khan and newcomer Deepika Padukone in Om Shanti Om were where Om Shanti Om knocked heads with Sanjay Leela Bhansali visually rich Saawariya, the launch of Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor. The film by SRK was an eruption of entertainment and pop music with its earnings touching 100 crores whereas Saawariya was a failure with earnings of 20.92 crores. This conflict showed that even successful newcomers cannot defeat a star-driven entertainer that was promoted with full energy.
Jab Tak Hai Jaan vs Son of Sardaar (2012)
The Diwali face off in 2012 between Shah Rukh Khan romantic comedy Jab Tak Hai Jaan and the Ajay Devgn family comedy action film Son of the Sardaar were as dramatic as it was off-screen. Devgn alleged YRF of screen monopoly, yet the legal steam could not impede the movie of SRK which collected 120.85 crore versus 105.03 crore collected by Son of Sardaar. This was a battle of genre, star status and timing-Christmas-the romance just edged out the comedy.
Dilwale Vs Bajirao Mastani (2015)
In Christmas 2015 a modern love story had to fight against an epic historical show. Dilwale, which has SRK and Kajol, made 148.72 crore but Bajirao Mastani by Sanjay Leela Bhansali took the prize with 184.2 crore. The historical epics, with all the trappings of grandeur, music, and story-telling, eclipsed the glossy romance, a change of taste being noticeable in favour of large scale and cultural stability.
Ae Dil Hai Mushkil vs Shivaay (2016)
Ajay Devgn had a film Shivaay that was action based and Karan Johar had a film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil which was romance based and both these films released during Diwali 2016. Although Shivaay was an impressive scale project and VFX actor, the slow pace of narration earned it less than 100 crores. The music and the emotional appeal of ADHM resulted in the film making 113.9 crore despite controversies related to the use of Pakistani actors. The result showed once more how good stories and a number one on the soundtrack can overshadow even spectacular shows in visual terms.
Kaabil and Raees (2017)
In 2017 when Raees and Kaabil were released , there was a conflict between charisma and content. The gangster drama Raees by SRK scored 137.51 crore which edged out the revenge thriller Kaabil by Hrithik Roshan at 103.84 crore. Although Kaabil had an emotional outlook, the larger audience was attracted by SRK who had delivered his screen presence and high voltage dialogues.
Zero vs KGF (2018)
Zero is SRK's most experimental role ever but with a poor story it was stuck at 90.28 crore. In the meantime, Kannada blockbuster KGF: Chapter 1 invaded the Hindi market and grossed 160.5 crore. The conflict opened up a new era, and it demonstrated how the pan-Indian movies of high quality in narrative could oust Bollywood giants.
Gadar 2 vs OMG 2 (2023)
Of course, nostalgia now merges with social messaging, when in 2023, Gadar 2 and OMG 2 collided in the Box Office. There was no stopping Sunny Deol as Tara Singh and the film collected roughly 525 crores and OMG 2 by Akshay Kumar could only score 150 crores despite favourable critics. The trial was evident--the views on the patriotic, mass action sequel trumpeted across the nation were in favor as compared to the intellectually stimulating drama. The confrontation demonstrated the power of an emotional attachment to a movie heritage to prevail upon even thoughtful topical issues of the modern kinetic when enhanced by the popularity and nostalgia.
