Bollywood, like all other industries, will witness several changes in the coming decade. But for now, we look at the trends and genres which will be evident in 2020 and the films which are likely to create an impression on the mind of audiences, make moolah at the box office and also touch a chord with critics.
Several newcomers will be making their debut. Former Miss World Manushi Chillar’s mega-budget period drama Prithviraj will have a theatrical release. Shalini Pandey will be seen as Ranveer Singh’s heroine in Jayeshbhai Jordaar. Krystle D’Souza will be making her debut in Amitabh Bachchan and Emraan Hashmi-starrer Chehre. Pooja Bedi’s daughter Alaia F will be seen on the big screen in Jawaani Jaaneman. Katrina Kaif’s sister Isabelle will make her debut in Kwatha.
Bollywood will also have two films releasing in 3D, including Tanhaji: The Unsung Hero and Street Dancer 3D.
And let’s not forget the 2020 big releases with the biggest stars — Salman Khan’s Radhe, Aamir Khan’s Lal Singh Chaddha, Akshay Kumar will have numerous releases and Ajay Devgn will also have two big releases.
While remaking South Indian films and working on biopics continue to be favourite subjects of Bollywood filmmakers, some previous years’ trends will also hold sway. Here are five trends that more or less sum up the film industry this year.
Women power
In 2019, we saw a couple of female-centric films and the trend is back in a big way this year. Deepika Padukone-starrer Chhapaak will be releasing on January 10. Then there is Alia Bhatt’s Gangubai Kathiawadi, which is about a brothel owner and matriarch. Kangana Ranaut-starrer Panga is about a forgotten kabaddi world champion. Thalaivi is based on the life of the former chief minister of Tamil Nadu, the late J Jayalalithaa. Kriti Sanon-starrer Mimi is about surrogacy. Kiara Advani’s Indoo Ki Jawani is a coming-of-age story. Vidya Balan-starrer Shakuntala Devi is based on math genius Shakuntala Devi — also known as the human computer. Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Durgavati is a scary thriller.
While promoting Chhapaak, Deepika said that she hasn’t taken a risk playing an acid attack survivor. “It is not something that ever crossed my mind... my appearance, the way I am going to look. In fact, that’s exactly what we want to challenge through this film. That we all have very set ideas, notions of what beauty is and we really want to challenge that and broaden that perspective,” she had said in an interview.
While announcing the project, the makers of Durgavati had shared a photo which had Bhumi holding the placard with ‘Hero’ written on it. During an interview with Sakal Times, the actress said, “It’s a superb script and I am really excited to do it because it’s a genre I haven’t attempted before. I am nervous because as you said it comes with great responsibility because there is nobody to share the burden with.”
While keeping women at the core, all these films have very interesting territories to explore, and are likely to appeal to the audience.
Inspired from reality
Real-life stories, incidents, personalities continue to inspire Bollywood filmmakers. That’s the reason we will see several biopics releasing this year too. Ajay Devgn’s 100th film Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior follows the story of Maratha military leader Taanaji Malusare. Chapaak is based on an acid attack survivor. Gunjan Saxena: The Kargil Girl is about the first Indian Air Force woman officer who went to war. Kabir Khan’s ’83 is inspired by India’s historic 1983 Cricket World Cup win. Sardar Udham Singh is based on the life of freedom fighter Udham Singh and will be portrayed by Vicky Kaushal.
YRF has announced Prithviraj, based on the great king Prithiviraj Chauhan and will star Akshay. Amit Sharma’s Maidaan stars Ajay as Syed Abdul Rahim who is known as the architect of modern Indian football. Parineeti Chopra will bring alive sports star Saina Nehwal’s life on screen in Amol Gupte’s Saina. Sidharth Malhotra will play the role of Indian Army officer Captain Vikram Batra in Shershaah and the list continues.
Out-of-the-box content works
Even though big budgeted films with big stars are still box-office favourites but there is no denying that innovative scripts made with a medium budget have been doing wonders too. In fact, the number of such films has increased in the last few years because today’s audience want good content. Films like Photograph, Mard Ko Dard Nahi Hota, Dream Girl, Article 15 and others were appreciated by the audience and critics too.
The trend continues this year too with makers concentrating on content. Films like Anurag Basu’s Ludo, Meghna Gulzar’s Chhapaak, Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari’s Panga, Shoojit Sircar’s Gulabo Sitabo and Divyang Thakkar’s Jayeshbhai Jordaar have very unique subjects.
South Indian remakes continue
It’s a given that Bollywood filmmakers are fascinated with South Indian films. Why? Because the makers there work on fresh ideas, and their stories have a mass appeal and are entertaining too. 2019’s biggest hit Kabir Singh, was a remake of Telugu film Arjun Reddy.
Karan Johar bought the rights of Telugu actor Vijay Deverakonda’s film Dear Comrade even before its theatrical release last year, which validates Hindi film producers’ trust in South Indian movies. Boney Kapoor has acquired the rights of the Tamil film Comali, a story about the struggles of a young lad who wakes up after being in coma for 16 years. The film will star his actor son Arjun Kapoor and Boney also plans to remake the film in Telugu and Kannada as well.
Other projects include Akshay Kumar-starrer Laxxmi Bomb, which is a remake of Tamil film Kanchana. Ikka is a remake of Vijay’s Tamil film Kaththi and will reportedly star Akshay. Tadap, which is a launch vehicle for Suniel Shetty’s son Ahaan, is a remake of 2018 Telugu film RX 100. Shahid Kapoor-starrer Jersey is a remake of Telugu sports drama with the same title. Bhumi Pednekar-starrer Durgavati is a remake of Telugu film Bhaagamathie.
It’s raining sequels
Bollywood will see a string of sequels this year. The success of the first surely nudged filmmakers to come up with a sequel. So what’s coming up this year? Imtiaz Ali’s Love Aaj Kal 2, starring Kartik Aaryan. Then there will be Ayushmann Khurana-starrer Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan; Tiger Shroff and Shraddha Kapoor-starrer Baaghi 3; Angrezi Medium, which marks Irrfan Khan’s return to the big screen; David Dhawan’s Coolie No. 1, starring Varun Dhawan and Sara Ali Khan; Alia Bhatt-Aditya Roy Kapoor-starrer Sadak 2; Anees Bazmee’s Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, Hungama 2 and Dostana 2.
Many of these films have already created a huge buzz on social media because of various reasons. For example, Sadak 2 marks the comeback of Mahesh Bhatt as a director after 20 years and the first collaboration between the father and daughter. After battling cancer, Irrfan shot for Angrezi Medium, which also stars Kareena Kapoor Khan. This is the first time, the two actors will share screen space. Bhool Bhulaiyaa was a huge hit, thanks to Akshay Kumar and the sequel looks interesting enough with Kartik playing the lead. Hungama 2 brings together Paresh Rawal and Shilpa Shetty Kundra and we are curious about the unusual couple’s onscreen chemistry.
During an interview to ST, Kartik said, “I believe working in sequels is a huge responsibility. That said, I think more than the actor, the producer and director have greater responsibility in choosing the right actor who they can trust with carrying forward the story.”
