Trade analysts pick 5 films of 2017 they aremost excited about

Next year, a plethora of big- budget Bollywood extravaganzas are set to hit theatres, including those starring the Khans, Hrithik Roshan and Akshay Kumar. 

While Aamir Khan has no major releases except a special appearance in Secret Superstar, Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan have two releases each — Salman has Kabir Khan’s Tubelight and Ali Abbas Zafar’s Tiger Zinda Hai while Shah Rukh has Rahul Dholakia’s Raees and Imtiaz Ali’s The Ring (tentatively titled). Akshay has three releases — Subhash Kapoor’s Jolly LLB 2, Shree Narayan Singh’s Toilet Ek Prem Katha and Shankar’s 2.0 while Hrithik Roshan has Sanjay Gupta’s Kaabil.

And then comes the Gen Next’s films — Arjun Kapoor (Mohit Suri’s Half Girlfriend and Anees Bazmee’s Mubarakan) Varun Dhawan (Shashank Khaitan’s Badrinath Ki Dulhania and David Dhawan’s Judwaa 2), Sidharth Malhotra (Raj and Krishna DK’s Bang Bang Reloaded), Ranveer Singh (Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati), Sushant Singh Rajput (Raabta) and Tiger Shroff (Saabir Khan’s Munna Michael, Punit Malhotra’s Student Of The Year 2 and Ahmed Khan’s Baaghi 2).

There are the other biggies too — Milan Luthria’s Baadshaho, starring Ajay Devgn and Emraan Hashmi, Rohit Shetty’s Golmaal Again, starring Ajay Devgn and Parineeti Chopra, Baahubali 2, Apoorva Lakhia’s Haseena (starring brother-sister duo Shraddha and Siddhant Kapoor), Ram Gopal Varma’s Sarkar 3, Vishal Bhardwaj’s Rangoon featuring Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor and Kangana Ranaut, Anurag Basu’s Jagga Jasoos starring Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, Rajkumar Hirani’s biopic on Sanjay Dutt starring Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor, Akshay Roy’s Meri Pyari Bindu starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Parineeti Chopra and Habib Faisal’s love story starring Raj Kapoor’s grandson Aadar Jain (both films produced by Aditya Chopra).
Five B-Town trade analysts pick their top five, most eagerly anticipated films of 2017. 

Komal Nahta
(Trade analyst)

SS Rajamouli’s Baahubali 2 because of the sheer scale of huge business the first film did and the phenomenon it became all over India.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmavati because all his films are not just heart-warming, they are also visually brilliant and beautiful.

The Dutt biopic, only because Raju Hirani is directing it. You don’t need anything else beyond that. His name spells success beyond anything else.

Kabir Khan’s Tubelight as Salman and he have given blockbusters before and with this one, they will complete their hattrick as one hopes.

Rahul Dholakia’s Raees, because it looks fabulous. It’s a film that looks like it will get Shah Rukh back in the game of big grossers. It will bring him back into the business of big money-making films.

Akshaye Rathi
(Film exhibitor-distributor)

For my No.1 film, I pick Tubelight as the Kabir-Salman combination has never gone wrong. 

The biopic on Sanjay Dutt for one simple reason — neither Ranbir Kapoor nor Sanjay Dutt but the fact that Raju Hirani is directing it. Irrespective of who is in that film, just like people trust Aamir Khan with good cinema, just the name Rajkumar Hirani does the same. There’s this whole trust thing that the audience and I have with Raju as a director. If Hirani is there, it will be worth a watch.

Padmavati brings all the three together (Bhansali, Deepika Padukone and Ranveer Singh) after their first two hits. Each film of SLB just seems to grow a step bigger and better with the scale, grandeur and mounting.

You cannot call Baahubali 2 a regional film. It has done `100 crore business in Hindi films, plus has caused a veritable tsunami down South. It’s a global film and I really think in terms of scale, mounting, production values, storytelling, and so many other departments it has pushed the envelope in Indian cinema. It has shattered the boundaries of language and opened up business in markets which were not good earlier. We had not seen this kind of film coming out in India before so it has to feature here.

I would like to choose 2.0 for the fifth spot as it has Rajinikanth, Shankar, AR Rahman and Akshay and it’s coming on Diwali? What more can you ask for?

Amul Mohan 
(Editor, Super Cinema)

Tubelight because the combination of Kabir and Salman together is sensational! They are the box office kings when they come together. They did Ek Tha Tiger and Bajrangi Bhaijaan together and both were blockbusters. Also, Kabir has always shown Salman in a very different light and given him almost a new lease of life in terms of performance-oriented roles. Kabir did that in ETT as well as in Bajrangi Bhaijaan last year. We know that Salman is a superstar but Kabir showed us that he’s a good actor too. Also, Tubelight is coming on Eid and it’s a big release so will get the BO registers really ringing.

Toilet Ek Prem Katha. Akshay has had such a great year and the hit momentum is with him. He has given `300 crore movies in one single year. People watch out for your movies more, when you are that successful. He’s been doing so many films a year and picking the right films. Toilet… could be a totally different and satirical take on the Swacch Bharat Abhiyan project. It’s something that’s relevant in India right now and it will be interesting to see what Akshay brings to the table. The fresh pairing of him and Bhumi Pednekar will also be exciting to watch.

While I am confused between Raees and The Ring, I will pick the latter for the reason that it has SRK and Anushka Sharma together again. That pairing has some phenomenal chemistry. I also want to see Imtiaz and Shah Rukh together. He is one of the top directors and I want to see what he does with a superstar like SRK. But my biggest reason for selecting The Ring is that of Imtiaz coming back with Pritam for the music again. That’s a top notch pairing with their earlier hits in Love Aaj Kal and Jab We Met.

The Sanjay Dutt biopic if it is coming on Christmas. I think we will all look out for it because Sanjay Dutt is such an interesting and exciting topic to depict and given the fact that Raju Hirani is dealing with him as the central character. Raju knows Sanju inside and out as an actor, performer and human being and brings out the vulnerability and emotional aspect of all his characters. When you know the subject matter so well and are so involved with it, Raju will definitely bring it out in the best way possible. Also he is working with Ranbir for the first time. Ranbir is the perfect person to do this film because he comes from a filmi background so he brings something extra to the table. He would empathise with Sanju and play him better.

Padmavati because of Bhansali, Shahid, Ranveer and Deepika — all these actors together in a film. SLB is the master of making epic films in India right now and brings out the colour and vibrancy of the cinematic medium really well. As a filmmaker the performances and way he projects his characters brings out the best in his actors.

Judwaa 2 because I am a big fan of David Dhawan and a bigger fan of Varun in the comedy space. That and the fact that he is working with his father again after their super hit film Main Tera Hero is like a match made in heaven. They share similar sensibilities and it is a movie I am looking out for because though it’s a sequel, it’s with a new actor. Rohit Shetty’s Golmaal Again with Ajay Devgn is a winner at the BO hands down but I would choose Judwaa 2 because with Rohit, the formula with the four actors is set but with David, I would like to see how he will reinvent the wheel with Varun after Salman in Judwaa.

Amod Mehra,
(Trade Analyst)

I want to see cinema that will change the view of the public and not cater to the public. I like to see good, entertaining cinema and going by the track record and curiosity value my first choice will be Padmavati because of the past record of Bhansali and the kind of successes he has had. The expectations have increased as far as the entire trade is concerned because of the star cast and the maker.

Salman and Kabir have given two blockbusters. Tubelight is the most eagerly awaited, exciting and most looked forward to film in 2017 for me.

Because of curiosity value, I am confident that Akshay’s Toilet Ek Prem Katha will be very interesting. That film and Jolly LLB 2 both look interesting. With Rustom and Airlift he has proved that he can deliver.

The Ring because Shah Rukh and Imtiaz are working together for the first time. Their sensibilities don’t match, but it’s a love story. People love SRK in a romantic role the most and love stories are his forte. I think by doing Farah Khan and Rohit Shetty’s kind of films he has brought himself down. The Ring will make him rise up again as an actor and performer. He has a huge fan following among the ladies and this film will be the answer to what they want to see him as the most. This is his forte and what he is best known for.

The most interesting film of the year can be Secret Superstar, which has Aamir in a special appearance. It’s a small film, but can be a surprise package. I am eager to see the concept as it is so interesting. It may bring a revolution in Indian cinema as it deals with the highly-debated topic of a Muslim girl taking to music. It’s a delicate subject but has been treated very well and has the Dangal girl, Zaira Wasim, who has proved to be a power-packed actress in the film already.

Atul Mohan, 
(Trade Analyst)

My most eagerly awaited film is Tubelight. Salman and Kabir after ETT and BB has proved they are a hit jodi. Kabir gave Salman his first `300 crore film with BB. There can’t be any reason bigger than Salman Khan to say why Tubelight is No.1 on my list!

Padmavati because Sanjay Leela Bhansali is just getting bigger and better with each movie. It has Ranveer and Deepika again and is one of the costliest films ever made.

Robot was an extravaganza and a huge success when it released. It was one of the finest technical films ever made in India. Shankar is a top Indian director and comparable to Hollywood directors. Then we have Akshay as a villain and the first look of 2.0 left us all stunned and asking for more. The combination of Rajinikanth, Shankar, Akshay and AR Rahman and the fact that it’s one of the costliest film made in Hindi and Tamil. Can you ask for more?

The Sanjay Dutt biopic as Rajkumar Hirani is making a film on the life of Sanjay Dutt — one of the most controversial stars we have around us today. It’s also an emotional story revolving around how he lost his mother, went into drugs, jail, his relationship with his father so everything points to a masala entertainer. Plus the fact that biopics are doing well these days like a Dangal and MS Dhoni: The Untold Story.

It’s a tie between Toilet Ek Prem Katha and The Ring. TEPK is against the unusual backdrop of Swacch Bharat Abhiyan project and promises to be interesting. The Ring has a great combination and promises something new with SRK playing a guide and loverboy. Everybody wants to know kya aane wala hai. This is also the first time that Imtiaz has worked with an older star, so it seems like a mature love story.