Just as cine buffs are wrapping up 2023 with hits like Jawan and Animal, the roster of upcoming Bollywood movies of 2024 has kept the energy soaring.
From Deepika Padukone and Hrithik Roshan to Katrina Kaif, Tiger Shroff and Ajay Devgn, nearly all Bollywood A-listers have movies lined up throughout the upcoming year. Some first-time pairings like Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi in Merry Christmas and Padukone and Roshan in Fighter have fans eagerly waiting for the films to hit the screens.
Hindi films that dominated the 2023 box office
Whether it was the blingy Karan Johar directorial Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani (RRPK), featuring Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh, the Sunny Deol-starrer Gadar 2 or Shah Rukh Khan’s action blockbusters Jawan and Pathaan, 2023 Bollywood releases saw some of the biggest highs.
Based on IMDb data, while Atlee’s Jawan collected around INR 640.8 crore on the home turf, the movie globally made a whopping INR 1,152 crore against a budget of INR 300 crore. Pathaan, too, made INR 543.3 crore in India with a global gross of INR 1,050 crore.
Gadar 2, a sequel to the 2001 film saw a rerun of the original star cast, comprising Deol, Ameesha Patel and Nana Patekar, made over INR 525 crore in the home country while the global collections crossed INR 687 crores.
The Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starter, Tiger 3, was another action hit that made INR 284.2 crore in India and Rs 466 crore worldwide.
On the other hand, pandering to the millennial audience and touching upon some issues of the hour, RRPK grossed INR 153 crore on home grounds while worldwide box office tallied around INR 357 crore.
Another hit Bollywood release of the year was OMG 2, starring Akshay Kumar, Pankaj Tripathi, and Yami Gautam. Despite a release date clash with Gadar 2, the film made over 150 crores at the domestic box office and Rs 220 crore worldwide.
With several movies like Animal, Sam Bahadur and 12th Fail still reigning at the box office, the upcoming Bollywood films of 2024 have already set the mood for what’s in store.
The most-awaited Bollywood movies of 2024 to look out for
1Merry Christmas
Release date: 12 January
Directed by: Sriram Raghavan
Cast: Katrina Kaif, Vijay Sethupathi
The suspense thriller has been filmed in Hindi and Tamil along with individual trailers. While the Hindi film stars Sanjay Kapoor, Vinay Pathak, Pratima Kannan and Tinnu Anand, the Tamil version features Radhika Sarathkumar, Shanmugaraja, Kavin Jay Babu and Rajesh Williams. Audiences can see cameo roles by Radhika Apte and Ashwini Kalsekar in both films.
Merry Christmas was postponed several times before the 2024 date was announced.
2Main Atal Hoon
Release date: 19 January
Directed by: Ravi Jadhav
Cast: Pankaj Tripathi, Benedict Garrett
Former Prime Minister of India and political stalwart, Atal Bihari Vajpayee is the muse of National Award-winning director Ravi Jadhav for this upcoming biopic. The trailer looks extremely promising with glimpses of poignant events that shaped Indian politics like Ram Janmbhoomi, Pokhran and Lahore Bus Yatra over several years.
The Indian Express quotes Tripathi saying, “More than the film, the journey of playing Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee is really close to my heart. The man is truly a legend, and we are honoured to bring his inspiring story to the world. I hope audiences appreciate our efforts to bring the legacy of Atal ji onto the big screens.”
The screenplay is penned by Rishi Virmani and Jadhav, while Salim-Sulaiman step in as the music directors.
3Fighter
Release date: 25 January
Directed by: Siddharth Anand
Cast: Deepika Padukone, Hrithik Roshan, Anil Kapoor
It has been a long-time wish for Deepika and Hrithik fans to see their favourite stars together, and Fighter does just that. The action flick has Roshan as squadron leader Shamsher Pathania aka Patty, Padukone as squadron leader Minal Rathore aka Minni, and Kapoor as Group Captain Rakesh Jai Singh aka Rocky, fighting for the country.
The IMDb logline of the movie reads, “Top IAF aviators come together in the face of imminent danger, to form Air Dragons. FIGHTER unfolds their camaraderie, brotherhood and battles, internal and external.” Two songs, “Sher Khul Gaye” and “Ishq Jaisa Kuch”, have already swooned fans all over.
4Yodha
Release date: 15 March
Directed by: Pushkar Ojha and Sagar Ambre
Cast: Sidharth Malhotra, Disha Patani, Raashi Khanna
After multiple premiere date changes, Yodha is finally slated to release in 2024 and marks Malhotra’s first theatrical release since Thank God (2022).
In this movie, he steps in the shoes of a rough and tough commando who has to rescue passengers from a hijacked aircraft. The film is helmed by the debutante director duo and is backed by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Shashank Khaitan’s Mentor Disciple Films.
5The Crew
Release date: 22 March
Directed by: Rajesh Krishnan
Cast: Tabu, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Kriti Sanon, Diljit Dosanjh
Backed by Rhea Kapoor and Ektaa R Kapoor, the all-women-led cast, of some of the most stunning leading ladies of Bollywood, adds to the excitement of this film. It marks their second collaboration after the 2018 comedy-drama Veere Di Wedding, which also starred Kapoor Khan.
Set against the backdrop of the airline industry, The Crew follows the lives of three hard-working women who get entangled in the web of destiny as a series of lies and deceit lead them to unwarranted situations.
6Metro… In Dino
Release date: 29 March
Directed by: Anurag Basu
Cast: Konkona Sen Sharma, Sara Ali Khan, Aditya Roy Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta, Fatima Sana Sheikh
Basu and music director Pritam team up for another of the most awaited upcoming Bollywood movies. Metro… In Dino is the sequel to the 2007 superhit film Life In A… Metro, featuring Shilpa Shetty, Irrfan Khan, Sen Sharma, Kay Kay Menon and Kangana Ranaut.
The title Metro… In Dino, takes cues from the hit song “In Dino” from the first film and marks the second collaboration between Roy Kapoor and Basu, after Ludo (2020). Described as an “anthology of heartwarming stories” by T-Series, the movie will explore human relationships juxtaposed against a modern city.
7Chandu Champion
Release date: 14 June
Directed by: Kabir Khan
Cast: Kartik Aaryan, Katrina Kaif, Shraddha Kapoor
Riding high on the success of Satyaprem Ki Prem Kahani (2023), Aaryan teams up with producer Sajid Nadiadwala for this upcoming Bollywood film of 2024.
The film is based on the real-life story of Murlikant Petkar, India’s first Paralympics gold medalist and a legend from the Indian Army’s Corps of Electronics and Mechanical Engineers. Its tagline “The man who refused to surrender” amplifies the mood and prepares the audience for an inspirational journey.
8Singham Again
Release date: 15 August
Directed by: Rohit Shetty
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Kareena Kapoor Khan, Deepika Padukone, Tiger Shroff, Ranveer Singh
Releasing on Independence Day, Singham Again is the third instalment in Bollywood’s cop film universe. Clashing with another South Indian blockbuster release, Pushpa 2: The Rise, this multi-starrer remains one of the most anticipated upcoming Bollywood movies.
The previous Singham films, released in 2011 and 2014, were all superhits and expectations for this upcoming title are only as high.
9Jigra
Release date: 27 September
Directed by: Vasan Bala
Cast: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina
Jigra is a Hindi thriller and action film that not only stars Bhatt but is also co-produced by her. Backed by Dharma Productions, the film also has Karan Johar serve as a producer along with the actress. For Bhatt, this is the second title under her production banner Eternal Sunshine Productions, after Darlings (2022).
The makers announced the upcoming Bollywood movie via a video with a G. K. Chesterton quote: “The paradox of courage is that one must be a little careless of life in order to keep it.” The video shows Bhatt standing in a deserted neo-lit street, while her grim and sombre voice-over suggests it will follow the tale of two siblings.
10Welcome to the Jungle
Release date: 20 December
Directed by: Ahmed Khan
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Sanjay Dutt, Raveena Tandon, Paresh Rawal, Johny Lever, Lara Dutt, Suniel Shetty, Arshad Warsi, Jacqueline Fernandez, Disha Patani
Get ready for a laughter riot during 2024 Christmas as the third instalment of the Welcome franchise is set to premiere with an ensemble of 24 stars, a first in Bollywood films. On 9 September, Kumar shared the promo video on Instagram which shows the actors dressed in military uniforms and carrying guns, dancing to the film’s tune.
Welcome Again is produced by Jyoti Deshpande and Firoz A Nadiadwala. The first two movies were helmed by Anees Bazmee.
11Bade Miyan Chote Miyan
Tentative release date: 10 April
Directed by: Ali Abbas Zafar
Cast: Manushi Chhillar, Tiger Shroff, Akshay Kumar, Prithviraj Sukumaran, Sonakshi Sinha
This high-energy action film locked for an Eid release is one of the most awaited Bollywood movies of 2024. Posters and stills shared by Shroff and Kumar show the actors armed with machine guns, riding motorbikes in the desert and shooting from helicopters.
According to The Indian Express, the mass entertainer was shot across Scotland, London, India and the UAE and is produced by Jackky Bhagnani and Deepshikha Deshmukh.
12Emergency
Release date: TBA
Directed by: Kangana Ranaut
Cast: Anupam Kher, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Marking her directorial debut, Ranaut looks impeccable as the former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. According to India Today, the actor believes that the upcoming Bollywood movie Emergency is not a typical biopic, but a political drama.
The film has faced many date changes, the most recent being pushed from 23 November theatrical release to an undisclosed 2024 date. Tracing the events of 1975, the days after that and how the Emergency impacted India.
