‘Chhaava’ ruled
Vicky Kaushal’s ‘Chhaava’ sprung up a huge surprise and the film proved to be a juggernaut at the box office to say the least. Thus, it is the most defining film of 2025 so far. While the year has still six more months to go, it could well even end up being the most profitable film of the year. We shall wait to see if any other movie crosses this number. ‘Chhaava’ made Rs 601.54 crore at the domestic box office (in all languagescombined).” Trade expert Taran Adarsh says, “I think I would describe it as Kabhi Khushi and Kabhi Gham’. Although there have been successes, there was ‘Chhaava’, which is a blockbuster Right now, it’s ‘Sitaare Zameen Par’ Prior to that, there was Raid 2. And there were moderate successes also like JaaT and ‘Kesari 3’. But the thing is that the huge numbers were missing except for ‘Chhaava’.”Here’s the box office collection of some movies of the first half of 2025, according to sacnilk:
Many moderate movies doing a good number
Post lockdown, the trend that we’re seeing is that only those big scale movies with theatrical value or big visuals are doing well at the box office. But the first half of 2025 was encouraging as one also saw many mid-scale movies do well. Trade expert Girish Wankhede says, “In 2023, we witnessed five films that crossed the coveted ₹100 crore mark, including blockbusters like “Pathaan,” “Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar,” “Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan,” “The Kerala Story,” and “Adipurush.” In 2024, there were only 2 films which crossed the 100 crores marks : Gangubai Kathiawadi and The Kashmir Files. However, the first half of 2025 has already seen six films surpassing the ₹100 crore threshold, a testament to the growing appetite for diverse narratives in Indian cinema. The standout films include “Chhava” which generated more than 600 crores, “Sky Force,” which grossed ₹113 crores, “Raid 2,” with ₹173 crores, and “Housefull 5,” which amassed ₹182 crores. Additionally, “Sitare Zameen Par” is still counting its earnings at ₹121 crores, while “Sikandar,” despite being labeled unsuccessful, managed to generate ₹110 crores. Collectively, these films have contributed to an impressive total of nearly ₹1400 crores in business, marking a significant achievement for the industry.” He added further, “Overall, the box office figures for the first six months of 2025 have crossed ₹5000 crores, a remarkable milestone that underscores the vitality of Indian cinema. This surge is not solely attributed to Bollywood; films from various regional industries have made substantial contributions to the overall revenue.”
Hollywood making a huge comeback in the Indian market
This year, one is also seeing many Hollywood movies making a huge comeback to the Indian markets. While there were big franchise movies like ‘Captain America: Brave New World’, Mission Impossible, others films like ‘F1’ also made impact. Wankhede adds, “The contribution of Hollywood films has also been noteworthy. “Thunderbolts” managed to perform modestly with a budget of ₹25 crores, while “Interstellar” rerelease crossed ₹25 crores in earnings. “Captain America: Brave New World” grossed around ₹22 crores, and “Jurassic World: Rebirth” opened strong in India, with “F1: The Movie” already surpassing ₹35 crores. Other significant Hollywood releases like “How to Train Your Dragon,” “Ballerina,” and “Mission Impossible” have also performed well, contributing to the overall success of the box office this year.”
South bringing in money as well
Apart from Hindi and Hollywood movies, the south has also done a good business overall with all the languages. Girish Wankheded says, “In the Telugu film industry, several titles have performed admirably. “Anil Ravipudi’s Sankranthiki Vasthunam” raked in around ₹187 crores, while N. Balakrishnan’s “Daku Maharaj” grossed ₹91 crores. Naga Chaitanya’s “Thandel” also found success, earning approximately ₹66 crores. Other noteworthy Telugu films, such as “Hit: The Third Case,” “Kubera,” and “Court : State Versus a Nobody,” have further solidified the industry’s strong performance.” He added, “The Malayalam cinema sector has also made impressive strides, with Asif Ali’s “Rekhachitram’,also Mohanlal’s Thudarum” grossing ₹106 crores, alongside successful titles like “Officer on Duty,” “Alappuzha Gymkhana,” “Narivetta,” and “Prince and Family”. Mohanlal’s other blockbuster was L2: Empiraan which netted 106 crores. In the Tamil film industry, Ajith Kumar’s “Good Bad Ugly” generated ₹153 crores, while Pradeep Ranganathan’s “Dragon” crossed the ₹102 crore mark. Other films like “Tourist Family” and “Madha Gaja Raja” also contributed positively to the box office landscape. The Kannada film industry has not lagged behind either, with titles like “Agnyathavasi ,” “Apaghatakke Karana ,” and “Choo Mantar”performing well.”
In the crux
Overall, it’s been a promising first half at the movies when compared to the previous two years but one can still expect the second half to be even better.
