The first quarter of the year is already over and it’ll be safe to say that 2016 has been a mixed bag for Bollywood so far. While Fitoor, Wazir, Sanam Re and Ghayal Once Again gave Bollywood a hard time, movies like Airlift and Neerja brought real life incidents to life on the silver screen and won many hearts. With Kapoor & Sons, we saw a very unlikely Bollywood family drama where emotions were underplayed yet beautifully performed.
But as they say, picture abhi baaki hai mere dost! There are 9 months still to go and a lot of highly anticipated films to watch out for.
Here are 20 films that should be earmarked on your calendar this year:
1. Fan – April 15
Unless you just returned from the space, you know about this film already. The makers are leaving no stone unturned for the promotions of this film. From releasing the title track in multiple languages to SRK interacting with his fans all over the world, Fan has surely become the film to watch out for. The trailer of the film was an instant hit and it looks like this performance by King Khan will wipe out Dilwale and Happy New Year from his fans’ memory.
2. Azhar – May 13
Azhar is a biopic based on the life of the (in)famous ex-cricketer, Mohammad Azharuddin. The trailer of the film is out and it stars Emraan Hashmi, Nargis Fakhri, Prachi Desai and Lara Dutta. The film will also cover the controversial patch of the cricketer’s life when he was accused in the match fixing scandal. And by the looks of its trailer, the film doesn’t intend to present Azhar’s story like we all know! Watch out for major surprises.
3. Sarabjit – May 20
From Randeep Hooda’s massive weight loss to Aishwarya Rai Bachchan’s de-glam look for her role as Dalbir Kaur, this movie is being watched out for its re-telling of the life of Sarabjit Singh, an Indian national convicted of terrorism and spying by a Pakistani court. After his arrest, his sister, Dalbir Kaur struggled for years to get her brother released and this forms the basic premise of the movie. Aishwarya will be seen playing Dalbir’s character on screen.
4. Te3n – May 20
This film stars Amitabh Bachchan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui & Vidya Balan in lead roles. The film is said to be a thriller and is being directed by Ribhu Dasgupta.
5. Jagga Jasoos – June 3
The film starring Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif narrates the story of a detective in search for his missing father. Director Anurag Basu will be teaming up with Ranbir Kapoor after their last film Barfi, which was quite appreciated by the audience.
6. Udta Punjab – June 17
Udta Punjab starring Kareena Kapoor Khan, Shahid Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Diljit Dosanjh is a story set in Punjab on the rising substance abuse problem. The film is expected to be a dark thriller and will show a different side of the state of Punjab.
7. Sultan – July 3
Salman Khan and Anushka Sharma are all set to come together for the first time star in this wrestling drama which is being directed by Ali Abbas Zafar (of Mere Brother Ki Dulhan fame). The teaser of the film was released last year, while Anushka Sharma was roped in for the lead role earlier this year and has been training quite rigorously for her character of a wrestler. The film is set in Haryana and revolves around the life of a wrestler named Sultan.
8. Raees – July 3
Raees, starring Shah Rukh Khan, is apparently based on the life of the Gujarati don, Abdul Latif Shaikh. The teaser of the film was released last year and this film’s clash with Sultan has become quite a talking point in the film business. Mahira Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui will also be seen in the film. Parzania director, Rahul Dholakia, is directing this film and the audience is definitely waiting to see this epic clash.
9. Dishoom – July 29
After Main Tera Hero, this film will be director Rohit Dhawan’s second venture. John Abraham and Varun Dhawan will be seen as cops in the film.
10. Rustom – August 12
Akshay Kumar plays the lead role in this one and it is being speculated that the events of the film are based on the Nanavati case where naval officer Kavas Maneckshaw Nanavati was tried for the murder of his wife’s lover, Prem Ahuja. In the Nanavati case, the officer had fired three shots at Ahuja and then surrendered himself to police. After Baby and Airlift, the audience surely has high expectations from Akshay Kumar.
11. Mohenjo Daro – August 12
This film is being kept under tight wraps and nothing has been revealed yet. Ashutosh Gowariker is directing this epic period drama and Hrithik Roshan will be seen opposite newcomer, Pooja Hegde.
12. M.S. Dhoni – The Untold Story – September 2
This is probably the most awaited biopic ever. The life of the cricket legend Mahendra Singh Dhoni is being made into a film. His journey from being a Train Ticket Examiner (TT) at Kharagpur railway station to being the captain of the Indian Cricket Team that won the World Cup in 2011 is getting all the attention it deserves from the audience. The makers recently released a teaser of the film and it was highly appreciated by the audience.
13. Baar Baar Dekho – September 9
This audience will get to see Katrina Kaif and Sidharth Malhotra starring opposite each other for the first time in this movie. Isn’t that reason enough to be excited?
14. Mirzya – October 7
This film is the debut of veteran actor Anil Kapoor’s son, Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher and is being directed by Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra.
15. Rangoon – October 14
This film, starring Saif Ali Khan, Shahid Kapoor, and Kangana Ranaut, is a period drama. Director Vishal Bhardwaj’s venture is a love triangle set during the second world war.
16. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil – October 28
Karan Johar is directing this film with the dreamiest star cast ever. Ranbir Kapoor, Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Sharma are in the main lead but it also has Fawad Khan in a special appearance. Karan Johar has revealed that the film is a story about unrequited love.
17. Shivaay – October 28
Shivaay features Ajay Devgn in a lead role and is being directed by the actor too. This film will have a clash with Ae Dil Hai Mushkil as both are releasing on Diwali.
18. Rock On!! 2 – November 11
This film is a sequel to the 2008 film, Rock On!!. The stars from the first film have been retained in the film, however, Shraddha Kapoor is the new addition to the star cast. The film has been shot in Shillong and is the first film of director, Shujaat Saudagar.
19. Befikre – December 9
Starring Ranveer Singh and Vaani Kapoor, Befikre is the next directorial venture of Aditya Chopra. Ranveer Singh is still basking in the glory of his last film, Bajirao Mastani but for Vaani Kapoor, this will be her second film after Shuddh Desi Romance.
20. Dangal – December 23
This film is based on the life of wrestler, Mahavir Singh Phogat who taught wrestling to his daughters. Aamir Khan plays the lead role in this film and has bulked up quite a bit to perform the role.