Though Bollywood has always been associated with grandeur and expensive film making, the industry has recently seen a splurge in the number of small budget films, which have focused on quality rather than outer frills. Many of these small budget movies have gone on to become big successes at the box offices, besides earning huge applause from national and international audience.
Here is a list of top 10 most successful small budget Bollywood movies:
10. Phas Gaya Re Obama
One of the biggest surprise hits of Bollywood is the 2010 comedy called “Phas Gaya Re Obama”, a comedy based on global recession and its aftereffects. The movie stars Rajat Sharma, Neha Dhupia and Manu Rishi and has been directed by Subhash Kapoor. Its budget was merely Rs 6 crore, but the film was able to make a collection of Rs 19 crore.
9. Udaan
The 2010 drama film called “Udaan” comes next among the top 10 most successful Bollywood movies. Made with a tiny budget of Rs 5 crore, this one became a cult super hit and was able to muster Rs 30 crore on the box office, without being affected by its small star cast and low budget. Rajat Barcmecha and Ronit Roy starred in lead roles in this film, which was directed by Vikramaditya Motwane.
9. No One Killed Jessica
Based on a real life incident, the 2011 release “No One Killed Jessica” proved to be one of the biggest small budget films in the industry. The film starred big names like Rani Mukherjee and Vidya Balan, but had a small budget of Rs 90 million. However, it was able to gross up a phenomenal collection of Rs 580 million.
8. Paan Singh Tomar
“Paan Singh Tomar”, a 2012 biographical film made on the life of a soldier and athlete by the same name, literally made history by making a box office collection of Rs 384 million, in spite of its small budget of Rs 45 million. Irrfan Khan played the title role to perfection, while Tigmanshu Dhulia did complete justice to the direction part.
7. Pyaar ka Punchnama
Another small budget movie which made it big on the box office is “Pyaar ka punchnama”, a 2011 romantic comedy with a small starcast and even a smaller budget of Rs 7 crore. But the film was amazingly declared a hit, with a box office collection of Rs 17 crore.
5. Tanu Weds Manu
Featuring next on the list of top 10 most successful Bollywood small budget movies the romantic comedy called “Tanu weds Manu”, which hit the cinemas in 2012. The film was directed by Anand L Rai and had Kangana Ranaut and R Madhavan in lead roles. it was made with a budget of Rs 175 million, but made a commendable box office collection of Rs 560 million.
4. Dhobi Ghat
“Dhobi Ghat” is a 2011 release, which marked the debut directorial venture of Kiran Rao and starred Aamir Khan, Monica Dogra and Prateik Babbar. It was made in Rs 100 million, but made an amazing collection of double the amount in just two weeks after the release.
3. Tere Bin Laden
Another successful low budget Bollywood flick is the 2010 satirical comedy called “Tere Bin Laden”, starring Pakistani rock star Ali Zafar and directed by Abhishek Sharma. Made with a petty budget of Rs 58 million, the film surprised everyone by making a whopping box office collection of Rs 150 million.
2. Peepli Live
The rustic comedy called “Peepli Live” features next on the list of best small budget Bollywood movies. It has been directed by Anusha Rizvi and produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao, while veterans like Omkar Das Manikpuri, Raghubir Yadav, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Naseeruddin Shah have acted in it. The 2010 release was made with a budget of $ 100 million, but made a huge collection of Rs 402.5 million.
1. Kahaani
The 2012 suspense thriller starring ace actress Vidya Balan and directed by Sujoy Ghosh takes the cake as one of the most successful small budget films made in Bollywood. Based on the theme of feminism, the film was shot all the way in Kolkata and made with a meager budget of Rs 80 million, but went on to gross as much as Rs 1.04 billion in just 50 days.
The success of all these movies proved that fancy frills are n guarantee to the success of a film in Bollywood. it is rather the concept and story which is the true hero and makes a movie worth watching.
Santosh Kumar is a Professional SEO and Blogger, With the help of this blog he is trying to share top 10 lists, facts, entertainment news from India and all around the world.