23 out of 25 remakes have FLOPPED or underperformed post-pandemic; Taran Adarsh makes an appeal to the Bollywood filmmakers: “Haath jod ke keh raha hoon – remake banana bandh kariye” 23 : Bollywood News - Bollywood Hungama (original) (raw)
At one point, remakes used to rule the roost in Bollywood. Some of the biggest grossers like Ghajini (2008), Wanted (2009), Singham (2011), Simmba (2018) etc. were remade from South films. But post-pandemic, there has been a massive shift. During the free time in lockdown, the audience ended up consuming too many Southern originals and it has deeply affected the remake trend. Deva, starring Shahid Kapoor, is the latest film to bite the dust. It was the official remake of the Malayalam film Mumbai Police (2013).
23 out of 25 remakes have FLOPPED or underperformed post-pandemic; Taran Adarsh makes an appeal to the Bollywood filmmakers: “Haath jod ke keh raha hoon – remake banana bandh kariye”
Since the pandemic, there have been 25 theatrical films which were remade. Out of these, 23 flopped or underperformed at the box office. These films are Antim: The Final Truth (2021), Tadap (2021), Bachchhan Paandey (2022), Jersey (2022), Nikamma (2022), HIT: The First Case (2022), Laal Singh Chaddha (2022), Dobaaraa (2022), Vikram Vedha (2022), Thank God (2022), Mili (2022), Shehzada (2023), Selfiee (2023), Bholaa (2023), Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan (2023), Chatrapathi (2023), Farrey (2023), Do Aur Do Pyaar (2024), Savi (2024), Sarfira (2024), Khel Khel Mein (2024), Baby John (2024) and Deva (2025). Some of these remakes were remakes of foreign films and even these movies failed. The only two remakes which worked were Drishyam 2 (2022) and Shaitaan (2023). Coincidentally, both starred Ajay Devgn.
When asked trade veteran Taran Adarsh about it, he appealed to the Bollywood producers, “Haath jod ke keh raha hoon – remake banana bandh kariye. Nowadays, all the original films are available on OTT or on YouTube. If in case the film is not available on the streaming platforms, fir bhi log kahin na kahin se dekh hi lete hai. In some cases, people have seen the original during their time of release. Like I had seen Mumbai Police (which was remade as Deva). Now, what am I supposed to do? Erase my memory?”
He added, “There was a time when filmmakers used to lift foreign films and then claim that they made an original movie. Now that is not possible, and you can’t hide it from the audience.”
Trade analyst Atul Mohan agreed, “The taste of the audience changes every five years. And things changed rapidly during and after the pandemic. A lot of original films were consumed in the lockdown. This also happens once people learn that a certain regional movie is being made. Yeh sab information news mein aa jaata hai. The audience feels, ‘Iska remake ban raha hai toh yeh film acchi hogi’.”
Distributor and exhibitor Raj Bansal also said, “Remakes will no longer work, more so after the pandemic. The original films are available on OTT and also in dubbed versions in most cases.” He agreed that even if the dubbed version is not available, a section of the movie buffs might still see the film in its original language. He added, “The awareness is quite high now.”
Ajay Devgn springs a surprise
Ajay Devgn has come out unscathed from the debacle of the remake trend. Taran Adarsh said, “I guess Drishyam 2 and Shaitaan were exceptions.” Raj Bansal explained, “Shaitaan had an advantage as it was a remake of a Gujarati film. Hence, it didn’t become popular on OTT. Drishyam 2 was a sequel, and its first part had a huge following. As a result, Drishyam 3 will also open well.”
However, two remakes of Ajay Devgn didn’t set the box office on fire – Thank God and Bholaa. Thank God, however, featured him in a supporting role. Atul Mohan pointed out, “Bholaa did a business of Rs. 80 crores at least. That’s a feat as not many actors are able to get that number.” Similarly, he also appreciated the numbers of Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan (Rs. 110.53 crores), “Even the weakest Salman Khan film manages to cross the Rs. 100 crore mark.”
Future of remakes
Two more remakes are on the anvil – Dhadak 2, a remake of Pariyerum Perumal (2018) and Loveyapa, an adaptation of Love Today (2022). Should the makers of these films be worried? Atul Mohan replied, “Yes, they should, especially when more than 95% of the remakes have not worked.” Raj Bansal exulted, “I am sure they must be worried. Its high time we must stop making remakes.”
Taran Adarsh signed off by stating, “I sometimes listen to old songs sung by singers of today. With due respect to them, they sing well but I can’t forget the magic of Kishore Kumar and Mohd Rafi. Some classics should be left untouched. The same goes for movies.”
More Pages: Drishyam 2 Box Office Collection , Drishyam 2 Movie Review
Tags : Ajay Devgn, Atul Mohan, Bollywood Features, Bollywood Hungama, Drishyam 2, Features, Post pandemic, Remake, Taran Adarsh, Trade, Trending
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