In comparison to the previous year, 2024 has been a bleak year for Bollywood in terms of box office numbers, with no releases and subpar storytelling. It looks like the industry is still reeling from the post-pandemic effects and continues to lose its longstanding charm it once had. Although a few potboilers did bring footfall to the theatres, they lacked scale and quality.
Looking at the box-office numbers, the fact that South origin movies had a roaring revenue in the Hindi belt, audiences dissing bigger stars’ movies for their unfaithful attempts, and small-budget projects receiving applause at international film festivals, the Hindi film industry saw a mixed bag of triumphs and missteps. As the curtains close on 2024, it’s time to look at the popular Bollywood trends of 2024—what clicked with audiences and what didn’t quite hit the mark.
What worked
Horror-Comedies Overshadowed Theatres
This year, horror comedies overshadowed theaters—a trend that surprised everyone. While the genre kept us laughing and screaming, the movies like Stree 2, Munjya, and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 gave a much-needed boost to the industry. Rajkummar Rao’s impeccable comic timing and Kartik Aaryan’s quirky antics reminded us why these franchises remain fan favorites, and thus, horror-comedies have been a hit box office trend of 2024.
While Stree 2 and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 were sequels and a good turnover of audience was expected, Munjya, a new entrant in the scene, became a sleeper hit in the theaters and OTT as well.
The movie is inspired by Indian folklore and mythology and focuses on the legend of Munjya. It is the third installment in the Maddock Supernatural Universe, which resonated with the audience for its sharp storytelling and strong performances. It collected 100 cr at the box office, proving that people are interested in horror-comedies.
On the other hand, Stree 2 and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 are popular big franchises and earned a staggering ₹874.58 crore and ₹417.51 crore, respectively, making them a preferred choice for moviegoers.
Female-Led Films Stole The Spotlight
This year has been thrilling as we saw a surge in female-led movies that stole the spotlight at prestigious film festivals. From the commercial success Crew, which was laced with humour and featured characters driven by money, to Prime Video’s Sharmajee Ki Beti, which was completely opposite in storytelling but highly relatable, consisting of middle-class women navigating life amid everyday challenges.
Meanwhile, movies like Laapataa Ladies, Girls Will Be Girls, CTRL, and Jigra showcased the power of women in Bollywood, both on screen and on OTT. These movies couldn’t do much at the box office but represented the country’s art at platforms like Cannes and the Sundance Film Festival. These films display raw emotional depth and soft feminism and also tell the world how important womanhood is to be heard.
Experimental Narratives Showed Promise
Although experimental narratives take time to resonate with the audience, it’s clear that Indian viewers are now more open to accepting them. Films like Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya and All India Rank broke the mold with unconventional storytelling and fresh perspectives.
Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya, a science fiction romantic comedy starring Shahid Kapoor and Kriti Sanon, did decent business of ₹133.64 crore, showing audiences are open to the idea of sci-fi. On the other hand, All India Rank, another niche experiment, managed to find its loyal audience on the OTT platform.
Re-releasing Of Old Movies
Re-releasing old movies proved to be a nostalgic way to revive the dying box office, and Bollywood used this strategy to bring audiences back to the cinemas. This has to be the biggest changing trend in Bollywood in 2024. Hopping onto the trend of re-releasing old movies in theaters, this year saw a slew of oldies taking over the latest releases. As per reports, Kal Ho Naa Ho, Tumbbad, Rockstar, and Laila Majnu turned “theaters into time machines for fans as they revisited these beloved classics.
Classics like Karan Arjun, Pardes, and Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! performed well in terms of footfall. However, one movie that outshone the rest on the list was a modest budget of just Rs 5 crore—Tumbbad. This 2018 horror-fantasy movie starring Sohum Shah and directed by Rahi Anil Barve collected around Rs 15 crore at the box office. Ranbir Kapoor’s Rockstar earned ₹10.50 crore, and Shah Rukh Khan‘s Kal Ho Naa Ho made ₹2.50 crore, proving that audiences are still looking out for powerful and well-written stories over flashy and below-average stories.
Dark & Crime Triumph
While Bollywood relied on commercial elements, a few movies based on crime stories took center stage, including Bhakshak, The Buckingham Murders, Sector 36, Shaitaan, and Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba. These were a few dark and well-written crime-suspense movies that many people haven’t watched or appreciated.
Ajay Devgn’s starrer Shaitaan made ₹211.06 crore worldwide and also made a splash upon its release on Netflix. The movie is based on black magic, a topic rarely explored in commercially backed Bollywood projects. In contrast, Bhakshak, led by Bhumi Pednekar, is inspired by a real-life crime that occurred in a Bihar shelter house, where young girls were sexually exploited.
Kareena Kapoor’s investigative drama, The Buckingham Murders, and another real-life serial killer case, Sector 36, went on to trend on Netflix, proving that audiences are interested more in such hard-hitting dramas, making these genres an emerging trend in Bollywood in 2024.
Unsung Heroes
Small-scale and humble stories are a new trend that Hindi cinema ruled in 2024. Bollywood had some movies and actors who weren’t as cherished as their other counterparts. Actor Pratik Gandhi had four releases this year: Madgaon Express, where he played a Gujarati cokehead, showing he can do comedy; Do Aur Do Pyaar, based on a complicated modern relationship; Dedh Bigha Zameen, a drama movie about corruption and middle-class fury; and lastly, Agni, where he plays an imperfect Marathi dad.
Cold War spy drama Berlin and Laapataa Ladies, a women-empowering movie in the true sense, and Srikanth, which worked well on OTT, are a few lesser-known movies that actually deserve your attention. These small-budget movies are definitely an emerging trend in Bollywood in 2024, and this is likely to continue in the coming years.
South Cinema Inclination
It seems that South Indian movies will continue to succeed in the northern belt of the country. 2024 Bollywood’s biggest hits have been two Telugu-dubbed movies, showing that the trend of South Indian films taking over is not lessening anytime soon. Prabhas’ sci-fi Kalki 2898 AD and Allu Arjun’s much-awaited Pushpa 2: The Rule wowed the audience with their Hindi-dubbed versions and dominated the box office, surpassing Bollywood’s biggest blockbusters. It proved that good stories can transcend language barriers.
What Didn’t
Preachy Feminism
Over-the-top, patriarchy-smashing, modern female stories that are actually copycats of male-centric tales, and tit-for-tat female characters in Kanika Dhillon’s Do Patti, Mr. & Mrs. Mahi, and Bad Newz, felt outdated. Audiences are tired of token feminism wrapped in glossy packaging.
Overdone Remakes & Overemphasis On Star Power
Another top Bollywood-adopted trend failure of 2024 has been sequels and big-budget movies. It’s inevitable to not have a star-studded, big-budget Bollywood release in a year, and since sequels are a favourites among filmmakers, 2024 saw a good deal of franchise movies hitting theaters. While a few sequels like Stree 2, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, and Singham Again worked wonders at the box office, others like Bad Newz, Love Sex Aur Dhokha 2, and Ishq Vishk Rebound fell flat.
Although Singham Again performed well at the box office, the movie was criticised for its poor script, forced Ramayan reference, and exaggerated action scenes. The audience is craving original content, and it’s time for Bollywood to deliver.
While star power can draw in audiences, it’s not a guarantee of success. Movies like Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 are not free of flaws; they worked because of their well-crafted storylines and memorable soundtracks. Whereas Hrithik Roshan’s Fighter made good numbers at the box office, the film wasn’t that crisp in retelling the hardships of air force officers. Akshay Kumar had an awful year with the star-studded Bade Miyan Chotte Miyan, the middling Sarfira, and Khel Khel Mein, all of which could have been avoided. Meanwhile, biopics like Chandu Champion and Maidaan didn’t fare well.
Lackluster Storylines
With the rise of OTT platforms, viewers have become increasingly discerning in terms of picking what they want to spend time on. The same situation is true when it comes to theater releases, as audiences want to spend money on movies that give them some experience after they leave the theater. Bollywood needs to up its game when it comes to storytelling, and this has been Bollywood’s highest disappointment in 2024. Movies like Vicky Vidya Ka Woh Wala Video had all the ingredients for a blockbuster but failed to impress due to a weak and stretchy narrative.
Meanwhile, inflammatory pictures like Article 370, Bastar: The Naxal Story, Swatantriya Veer Savarkar, and The Sabarmati Report—based on historical facts, Pakistan-India hostility, and propaganda—couldn’t attract an audience like they used to.
