We go to the theatre expecting great entertainment but when the film fails to deliver, we criticise every aspect of the film. Directors are certainly the captain of the film’s ship and a lot of times, the audience expects a film to be great because the previous work of the filmmaker was quite entertaining.

There have been directors who started out with a lot of promise but soon thrashed all our hopes my making films that were horrible, to say the least. 

For instance, Vikas Bahl charmed the audience with Queen but with Shaandaar, we couldn’t even believe if it was the same director behind both the films. While Rahul Dholakia’s Parzania had the critics raving about the film, his Raees was nowhere close to that.

Here are 10 other directors who gave some amazing films in the beginning but eventually, fizzled out and how:

1. Shaad Ali

Shaad Ali started his directorial career with Saathiya (2002). 

Even his next movie, Bunty Aur Babli, received much acclaim but this happened back in 2005. Shaad then made Jhoom Barabar Jhoom (2007), followed it up with Kill Dil (2014) and recently, came out with the forgettable Ok Jaanu (2017). 

He started out as a promising director who understood the language of popular cinema but majorly failed to live up to our expectations.

2. Nikhil Advani

With Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003), Nikhil Advani set his standards way too high and he was expected to deliver just as much, or more, with his subsequent films. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. 

He followed it up with films like Salaam-e-Ishq: A Tribute To Love (2007), Chandni Chowk To China (2008) and Patiala House (2011). With D-Day (2013), it looked like Nikhil Advani was ready to take control again but that phase ended shortly when he came back with Katti Batti (2015) and Hero (2015).

3. Madhur Bhandarkar

When he directed Chandni Bar (2001), the audience and critics were simply bowled over by his skills. 

With Satta (2003), Page 3 (2005) and Fashion (2008), he was the director whose films became a must-watch. But that ended when he directed films like Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji (2011), Heroine (2012) and Calendar Girls (2015). And the way his graph dropped was certainly disappointing for his fans.

4. Ashutosh Gowariker

He received international acclaim for Lagaan (2001) and the film certainly cemented his place in the movies. 

With Swades (2004) and Jodhaa Akbar (2008), Gowariker had fans rooting for him. His films might be long but they were certainly worth the time. But then came the shocker in the form of What’s Your Raashee? (2009). And Mohenjo Daro’s (2016) fate was sealed as soon as the promos got out!

5. Kunal Kohli

With Hum Tum (2004), Kunal Kohli tasted success for the first time as a director.

Fanaa (2006) wasn’t as good as his previous film and yet, the audience was willing to give him another chance. However, he just couldn’t redeem himself! 

He followed it up with films like Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (2008) and Teri Meri Kahaani (2012) and those were quite forgettable, to put it mildly.

6. Farah Khan

Farah Khan made her debut as a director with Main Hoon Na (2004) and made the almost perfect commercial potboiler. 

Om Shanti Om (2007) tried to replicate the same success but the audience had mixed reactions about the film. Tees Maar Khan (2010) and Happy New Year (2014) were the last two films she made and though many may call them mindless entertainers, those films are certainly not worth revisiting.

7. Ram Gopal Varma

There was a time when RGV’s films were almost perfect. 

Rangeela (1995), Satya (1998), Kaun (1999), Bhoot (2003) were some of the films that created a cult following for the director. But in the later years, RGV has been more in the news for his Twitter wars than his film making. The Attacks of 26/11 (2013), Not a Love Story (2011) and Rann (2010) don’t even look like they are made by the same director who once created some true classics.

8. R. Balki

In 2007, Balki directed Cheeni Kum and honestly, we had never seen a love story done with that kind of humour. 

It was fresh and unique and naturally, the audience had high hopes from his subsequent projects. Amitabh Bachchan’s flawless performance in Paa (2009) was noteworthy but Balki’s subsequent projects Shamitabh (2015) and Ki & Ka (2016) failed to deliver completely.

9. Sanjay Gadhvi

The Dhoom series exists thanks to this man. 

He made the first two films of the franchise and gave us an action series to enjoy and love. But his later work was not as appreciated and failed to create a mark. His last film, Ajab Gazabb Love (2012) was nowhere close to the man’s potential.

10. Aditya Chopra

The man who gave us the iconic love story DDLJ (1995) is unfortunately on this list too. 

While Mohabbatein (2000) was nowhere close to his debut, it still got great feedback from the audience. But with Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (2008), the audience started questioning if this was the same director who made DDLJ. And with Befikre (2016), the audience was heartbroken to find that the man who once defined love on screen had misinterpreted it so badly.

We expected more!