What a week! Sholay turned 50, incredible that it continues to be the byword for commercial success. Incidentally, 1975 was also the year Rajinikanth made his debut with K. Balachander in Apoorva Raagangal, which co-starred Kamal Hassan, with his 171st film Coolie releasing in the 50th year of his career. Coincidentally, Kamal’s daughter Shruti plays Rajini’s daughter in this story that rests on the continued drawing power of Tamizh cinema’s thalaiva. To the extent that the ticket sales of the Rajinikanth starrer have outstripped the collections of the more youthful Hrithik Roshan film War 2.
This week, the disappointing War 2 also hinted that Saiyaara was a flash in the pan for YRF, the banner’s filmmaking credibility having taken a beating over the last few years. Additionally, the poor reception of the Hrithik-Jr NTR film questions the wisdom of the Hindi film industry in riding solely on franchise value despite the setbacks suffered by recent sequels Dhadak 2 and Son of Sardaar 2. When it’s enforced and not organic, the south-north mix also doesn’t work well. The combination of Hrithik and Tiger Shroff, two good-looking heroes known for fighting and dancing skills that contributed to the watchability of War (2019), could not be replicated by bringing aboard Jr NTR. NTR’s grandson does not have a fan base beyond his home state and, like most heroes from other regions, he lacks pan-India charisma. While he could carry off a Naatu Naatu with fellow Andhraite Ram Charan, you cannot put him on the dance floor with Hrithik, that too in a badly composed Pritam number, Janaab-e Aali, with sluggish dance moves. There is another lesson there. For instance, the Madhuri Dixit-Vidya Balan dance off in Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 could never have the effervescence of Madhuri and Aishwarya Rai’s Dola Re Dola.
This week also saw Aamir Khan do a couple of uncharacteristic flip-flops. His podcasts to promote Sitaare Zameen Par were exposed as untruthful when his promise to take his film only to cinema halls turned out to be hollow. He went back on most of his statements on endorsing the theatre experience and not allowing his film to be seen on the small screen for at least three months. It’s baffling why Aamir had to organise a five-star press meet only to explain that he would go for a pay-per-view model on YouTube long before his deadline of three months. Further, he drew a difference between viewing his film on YouTube and an OTT platform by stating that he wanted his film to be the viewer’s informed choice and not an option in the subscription model. Rumblings that he’s now warming up to an understanding with an OTT platform indicate that Sitaare… is neither the blockbuster the trade made it out to be nor does it speak well for Aamir as one who stands by his convictions.
The week also saw the fall of the last bastion of theatre warriors. John Abraham did an about-turn when his geo-political thriller Tehran started streaming on Zee5. All through the economically difficult post-lockdown period, when bigger stars like Salman Khan were pragmatic enough to sell their films to OTT platforms, John had maintained, “I’m a big screen hero. I will not reduce myself to the small screen.” The flagging enthusiasm of the theatre-going audience for his films, Satyameva Jayate 2 (2021), Mumbai Saga (2021), Vedaa (Independence Day 2024) and The Diplomat (2025), have made him eat his words. His dully narrated Tehran had Manushi Chillar play an unconvincing agent in a strange hairstyle while an unsmiling John clenched his fists to avenge an Iranian attack on an Israeli diplomat in Delhi. “Don’t fight your wars on Indian soil,” hissed the hero. Despite that shot at patriotism, Tehran found no takers for a big screen release and John had to join the bandwagon.
Does it mean that OTT has won the round this week?