2016 wasn’t a great year for Bollywood and its fans. But don’t worry all you movie lovers, ‘cos 2017 has greater things lying ahead for us. Right from Konkona Sen Sharma’s directorial debut to some interesting collaborations, Bollywood might have quite a few surprises in store for us in 2017. Saif starring as a bawarchi in Raja Krishna Menon’s remake of Jon Favreau’s Chef is something we will closely have our eyes on.

Here are 15 Bollywood releases in 2017, which Bollywood fans absolutely can’t wait to watch:

1. A Death in the Gunj

Release date: January 13, 2017

Konkona Sen Sharma’s directorial debut looks like a dark, moody neo-noir set in the hills of North Bengal. Starring an ensemble cast including Vikrant Massey in the lead role along with Ranvir Shorey, Kalki Koechlin, Gulshan Devaiah, Om Puri, Tanuja and Tillotama Shome, the film has supernatural elements being unleashed on a family on vacation, and how that in turn brings out the everyone’s dark side.

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2. Raees

Release date: January 25, 2017

Shah Rukh Khan’s gangster routine has built up quite a lot of momentum since the release of its teaser more than a year ago. After the release of the trailer, the fans and the purists are both excited about the movie, since it looks to be a battle of great acting talent a la SRK vs Nawazuddin and at the same time promises to be damn good fun. With Parzania‘s Rahul Dholakia at the helm, this bootlegger’s story should be a fun watch.

Bollywoodlife

3. Rangoon

Release date: February 24, 2017

Saif Ali Khan. Shahid Kapoor. Kangana Ranaut. Vishal Bhardwaj. These four people coming together for this World War II period drama has even the most skeptic Bollywood fans on the edge of their seats. A cast including Kangana Ranaut along with Saif Ali Khan and Shahid Kapoor who have given their career-best performances with director Vishal Bhardwaj, has everyone excited. Also, a mainstream producer like Sajid Nadiadwala bankrolling the film is an exciting exhibition of commerce meets art.

IndianExpress

4. Phillauri

Release date: March 24, 2017

Anushka Sharma’s second production venture after the successful NH10, has Punjabi superstar Diljit Dosanjh in a lead role. Diljit, who made a significant Bollywood impact with his debut in this year’s Udta Punjab will star alongside Sharma who is rumoured to be playing a ghost in the film.

DC

5. Bhavesh Joshi

Release date: July, 2017 (tentative)

Vikramaditya Motwane has taken 4 years to come up with his next film after 2013’s Lootera, but the wait seems to be worth it. Starring Harshvardhan Kapoor and Radhika Apte in the lead roles, Bhavesh Joshi is rumoured to be based on the life of a Gujarati boy blessed with superpowers. However, both the director Motwane and leading man Kapoor have denied it is a superhero film. Fans of Udaan and Lootera, can’t wait for Motwane’s next film who has promised to be a stellar director is absolute control of his medium.

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6. Kaalakandi

Release date: April 21, 2017

Saif Ali Khan is one of the most interesting superstars from the ’90s as he takes on more experimental roles. Kaalakandi promises to be exactly that, with Delhi Belly writer Akshat Verma making his directorial debut. The film is a crime caper and also stars Raman Raghav 2.0‘s Sobhita Dhulipala, Kunal Roy Kapur, Neil Bhoopalam and Deepak Dobriyal. Should be a wild ride!

Bollywoodlife

7. Baahubali: The Conclusion

Release date: April 28, 2017

SS Rajamouli’s epic sequel and conclusion to the 2015 multilingual blockbuster will definitely be a movie event of the year in 2017. Starring Rana Dagubatti, Tamannah Bhatia and Prabhas the sequel will see each of them reprise their roles. Prabhas will essay the role of the son of Baahubali, who goes in quest of vengeance for his father’s death. This one is a sure-shot blockbuster too.

allIndiaroundup

8. Tubelight

Release date: June 26, 2017

Salman Khan’s third consecutive outing with Kabir Khan after Ek Tha Tiger and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Tubelight has the interest of many Bollywood fans. With Chinese actor Zhu Zhu playing the leading lady for the film along with reports suggesting that the movie is a period retelling of the Indo-China War of 1965, Tubelight has the interest of both Bhai fans along with followers of serious cinema who are definitely intrigued.

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9. Remake of Jon Favreau’s Chef

Release date: July 14, 2017

An official remake of Jon Favreau’s Chef, the film is being directed by Airlift‘s Raja Krishna Menon. The film stars Saif Ali Khan in the title role and Chandan Roy Sanyal as sous chef and, according to the director, traces the journey of a father-son bond as they take a road trip to rekindle Saif’s passion for food. It should be exciting to see Saif as a bawarchi after Siddharth Anand’s Salaam Namaste.

Collider

10. The Ring

Release date: August 11, 2017

Imtiaz Ali’s next outing features Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma in the lead roles. As the shoots remained a major piece of news thanks to Shah Rukh Khan’s raging Instagram handle, the film is exciting as it’s the first time collaboration between the actor and the director. Also, the tattoo SRK will be sporting in the film is a matter of great interest for fans. The film’s expected to come out in the Independence Day weekend.

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11. Simran

Release date: September 15, 2017

Hansal Mehta’s next will star opposite Kangana Ranaut in the titular role of Simran. The film will see Kangana play a middle-aged Gujarati woman divorced from her husband in a foreign country. After Shahid and Aligarh, one can only be excited about Hansal Mehta’s next film. Kangana is supposedly working on her Gujarati dialect with an accent coach, and preparing for the intensity of the role.

Bollywoodlife

12. 2.0

Release date: October 19, 2017

Thalaivar Rajinikanth’s 2.0 is the sequel to 2010’s Enthiran which was also directed by Tamil-maestro Shankar. And this time Chitti is not alone, he will have Bollywood superstar Akshay Kumar for company. Akshay Kumar will be playing the villain to Rajinikanth’s Chitti. This will be the most expensive Indian film when it comes out, and having both superstars from the northern part of India as well as the south, this one’s a sure-shot money spinner.

Movietalkies

13. Padmavati

Release date: November 17, 2017

Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s magnum opus is all set to star Ranveer Singh for his career’s first negative role as Alauddin Khilji, who is in wild pursuit of Rani Padmavati. The film stars Deepika Padukone in the title role, while Shahid Kapoor stars as Raja Rawal Ratan Singh, the Rajput who will defend his wife and his fort at all costs. Padmavati looks like it will be an interesting clash between Shahid and Ranveer.

GQ

14. Tiger Zinda Hai

Release date: December 22, 2017

Delivering Salman’s biggest hit in 2016, Ali Abbas Zafar will direct the sequel to the blockbuster Ek Tha Tiger. After directing Sultan which grossed more than Rs 500 crore at the box office, this one looks like a good bet for all Bhai fans and also those who enjoyed the first instalment of Salman as a spy.

Indianfilms

15. Remake of Nicolas Winding Refn’s Drive

Release date: December, 2017 (tentative)

2011’s Drive starring Ryan Gosling and Carey Mulligan is being remade in Hindi by Dostana director Tarun Mansukhani. The film will have Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput reprising Gosling’s nameless character, while Jacqueline Fernandez will play Carey Mulligan’s character as the petite next door neighbour. Drive is one of the most defining films of Gosling’s career, and we’re excited to see what becomes of the Bollywood remake.

Milk

Cannot wait!