Yet again, it’s the usual suspects who are leading from the front (Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Akshay Kumar). Shah Rukh Khan had an unusually quiet year though and so did Hrithik Roshan. However, a dhamaka’ is expected with their Raees and Kaabil. As for Amitabh Bachchan, he stays in the game even after four and a half decades.
Akshay Kumar - Rs 366 cr
Airlift: Rs 129 crore; Rustom: Rs 128 crore, Housefull 3: Rs 109 crore
Average moolah per release: Rs 122 crore
One man who continues to churn out one film after another while keeping the budget and timelines under control and ensuring consistency is Akshay. His superstardom was most apparent when he became the only actor to ever score three centuries (Airlift, Housefull 3, Rustom) in a single calendar year. As a matter of fact, he has ensured maximum ticket sales at Rs 366 crore!
Aamir Khan - Rs 325 cr
Dangal: Rs 325 crore+ (expected)
Average moolah per release: Rs 325 crore+
Aamir came, hit a six and is now counting all the moolah coming in! Dangal has already set quite a few records and while Rs 200 cr would be surpassed by the second weekend itself, the game is now big enough to result in a triple century. As things stand today, the film is pretty much heading towards the Rs 325 crore mark at the least and it won’t be surprising if bigger milestones are accomplished, too.
Salman Khan - Rs 301.5 cr
Sultan: Rs 301.5 crore
Average moolah per release: Rs 301.5 crore
Last year, Salman ruled from the top with a triple century (Bajrangi Bhaijaan) and a double century (Prem Ratan Dhan Payo), resulting in over Rs 500 crore coming in. While this feat could be repeated next year as well (with Tubelight and Tiger Zinda Hai), this year Salman maintained a healthy run rate with yet another triple century (Sultan) coming in. With this, he has maintained his numero uno position.
Shah Rukh Khan - Rs 153 cr
Fan: Rs 85 crore;
Dear Zindagi: Rs 68 crore
Average moolah per release: Rs 76.5 crore
Fan was a dream project, but had a delayed release. The film did open well, but couldn’t really cover the distance. That said, Shah Rukh was pretty much appreciated for the different choices he was making as an actor. This was reaffirmed once he agreed to be a part of an experimental niche film like Dear Zindagi.
The best of the rest
Sushant Singh Rajput - Rs 133.5 crore
(M.S. Dhoni - The Untold Story — Rs 133.5 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 133.5 crore
This turned out to be a major surprise of 2016! After Detective Byomkesh Bakshy, one waited to see how audiences would react to Sushant playing MS Dhoni. Well, they were more than happy to embrace him with open arms, courtesy Neeraj Pandey’s direction that allowed the film to not just take an excellent start but also score well on a consistent note. With this, Sushant entered the Rs 100 crore club.
John Abraham: Rs 32 crore
(Dishoom — Rs 70 crore, Force 2 — Rs 36 crore, Rocky Handsome — Rs 26 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 44.3 crore
John Abraham didn’t quite have a cracker of a start for him as Rocky Handsome fizzled out after its release. He did bounce back soon enough with Dishoom. which was a quintessential masala potboiler waiting to be grabbed by the audience. He could have scored a reasonably decent success with Force 2, but then the film arrived right at the onset of demonetisation. One waits to see what John picks up next.
Amitabh Bachchan - Rs 128 crore
(Pink — Rs 68 crore, Wazir — Rs 41 crore, Te3n — Rs 19 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 42.7 crore
The legend still has it in him! This was more than apparent in 2016 when the combined collections of his three releases ended up going past the Rs 125 crore mark. He started the year with Wazir where he played the central protagonist and the film emerged as a moderate success. His Te3n turned out to be a disappointment though but once the trademark Bachchan baritone was heard in Pink, audiences were wooed again!
Tiger Shroff - Rs 117 crore
(Baaghi — Rs 77 crore, A Flying Jatt — Rs 40 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 58.5 crore
Tiger started his 2016 campaign with a bang once his Baaghi saw a double-digit opening. The film grew well too and emerged as a solid superhit. However, his next release A Flying Jatt could just not find much going for it around its release and though its start was reasonably okay, the film couldn’t sustain itself well. This resulted in a mixed year for Tiger who will now be returning with Munna Michael.
Ranbir Kapoor: Rs 112.5 crore
(Ae Dil Hai Mushkil — Rs 112.5 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 112.5 crore
Now this was a welcome relief for Ranbir! Though after Besharam, Roy and Bombay Velvet he had a respite of sorts with Tamasha, the need of the hour was a bonafide hit. This is something that Karan Johar gave him with Ae Dil Hai Mushkil. With the film, Ranbir has managed to strike back reasonably well and now it is upto him to leverage well by making some smart and choices.
Sidharth Malhotra - Rs 105.3 crore
(Kapoor & Sons — Rs 73.3 crore, Baar Baar Dekho — Rs 32 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 52.65 crore
While working on varied genres of films, Sidharth is making sure that he doesn’t get stereotyped. This was evidenced in Kapoor & Sons which was miles away from his earlier releases like Brothers or Ek Villain. Audiences more than grabbed his act in Kapoor & Sons which emerged as a superhit. Later though, Baar Baar Dekho did not do well despite Katrina Kaif and Kaala Chashma. A mixed year!
Ajay Devgn - Rs 100.3 crore
(Shivaay — Rs 100.3 crore)
Average moolah per release: Rs 100.3 crore
When the promo of Shivaay was unveiled, it turned out to be instantly hot in trade as well as audiences. Hence, even though the film managed to enter the Rs 100 crore club, one does believe that the Ajay acted and directed affair could have gone past some bigger milestones it had originally set out for. Nonetheless, now that Ajay is through with the film, it is time to move on to Baadshaho and Golmaal Again.
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