If I say 2017 hasn’t been a great start to Bollywood, many trade analysts would agree with me.
We
had just experienced the first quarter with nearly 12 Fridays, and
multiple releases, and yet only four movies managed to make any kind of
good impression at the box office – Shah Rukh Khan’s Raees, Hrithik
Roshan’s Kaabil, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt’s Badrinath Ki Dulhania and
Akshay Kumar’s Jolly LLB 2. But some of the better movies like The
Ghazi Attack and Trapped failed to leave an impression at the box
office, as they did with the minds of the viewers who actually watched
them. Well, the quarter is over, and the report card surely has a lot of
red marks.
But we are already into the next quarter, and it is looking so very
exciting thanks to two huge movies that are releasing in the next three
months – SS Rajamouli’s mega budget Baahubali 2 and Salman Khan’s
Tubelight.
While these are most likely to dominate the box office , we have other
interesting movies too that could surprise us at the ticket windows.
Here are 10 movies releasing this quarter in order of their release
dates
Begum Jaan
Cast: Vidya Balan, Gauhar Khan, Chunky Pandey, Pallavi Sharda, Vivek Mushran and Naseeruddin Shah
Scheduled release date: April 14
The Bollywood remake of the acclaimed Bengali movie, Rajkahini, Begum
Jaan narrates the woeful tale of a brothel that came in the way when
India and Pakistan were drawing their borders. Boasting of a fine
ensemble cast and Vidya Balan at her best, Begum Jaan has intrigued us
with its plot and captivating trailer.
Noor
Cast: Sonakshi Sinha, Purab Kohli, Shibani Dandekar and Kanan Gill
Scheduled release date: April 21
A movie adaptation of the popular ‘Karachi, You’re Killing Me!’, Noor
has Sonakshi Sinha in the lead. The movie has made some significant
changes from the book, most prominent being changing the setting from
Pakistan to Mumbai. Noor looks like an interesting woman-centric
entertainer with an interesting female protagonist. Also, watch out for
the cameo of Sunny Leone.
Baahubali 2
Cast: Prabhas, Rana Daggubati, Anushka Shetty, Tamannaah Bhatia, Ramya Krishnan and Sathyaraj.
Scheduled release date: April 28
The biggest movie of the year releases this quarter, and we will
finally know why Kattappa killed Baahubali. The trailer has already made
things very interesting, and the VFX looks mindblowing. Don’t ignore
Baahubali: The Conclusion as just ambitious Telugu movie; this is Indian
cinema at its grandest.
Sarkar 3
Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Jackie Shroff, Manoj Bajpayee, Amit Sadh, Yami Gautam and Ronit Roy
Scheduled release date: May 12
The maverick Ram Gopal Varma finally completed his trilogy with
Sarkar 3 releasing this May. The trailer has been dark, bleak but really
good. Abhishek Bachchan’s character might not be returning this time,
but Amitabh Bachchan looks quite powerful than ever. With Big
B’s brilliant form at the box office and the huge appeal in the brand
name, Sarkar 3 looks to be that one hit RGV’s career has been longing
for a long time.
Meri Pyaari Bindu
Cast: Parineeti Chopra and Ayushmann Khurrana
Scheduled release date: May 12
Clashing with Sarkar 3, at least till the time this piece is written,
is this breezy romcom from Yash Raj Films. From its trailers and
teasers, Meri Pyaari Bindu looks like likeable that can be easily
digested by our light-fare loving audiences. Parineeti Chopra makes her
singing debut here, and the video has already won her lot of admiration.
Half Girlfriend
Cast: Arjun Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor
Scheduled release date: May 19
If you aren’t satisfied with your fill of romantic fare after
watching Meri Pyaari Bindu, then there is Half Girlfriend that is
releasing a week after. An adaption of Chetan Bhagat’s bestseller by the
same name, the movie is directed by Mohit Suri, and tells a story of
friendship, infatuation, separation and reunion. Both Arjun and Shraddha
play basketball players in the movie. Expect some really good songs in
this one.
Atithii In London
Cast: Kartik Aaryan, Paresh Rawal, Kriti Kharbanda, Tanvi Azmi and Sanjay Mishra
Scheduled release date: June 2
The first Athithi movie was a surprise hit, and was a
well-intentioned comedy aimed at the family audiences. The sequel is now
arriving, with the action (and the farts) now shifting to London.
Paresh Rawal is still bothering hosts with his intrusive but
good-intentioned nature, however, Ajay Devgn and Konkona Sen Sharma
won’t be there at the receiving end this time. Instead, we have Pyaar Ka
Punchnama fame Kartik Aryan and Raaz Reboot fame Kriti Kharbanda as the
young couple bothered by an unwanted guest.
Raabta
Cast: Sushant Singh Rajput and Kriti Sanon
Scheduled release date: June 9
Are they dating? Or are they not? Sushant and Kriti might not be in
any mood to answer this, but the curiosity about their rumoured
relationship has already piqued people’s interest in their upcoming
movie. Not many details are available about the film, apart from the
fact that it is a passionate love story and that it is directed by Saif
Ali Khan’s former associate, Dinesh Vijan.
Bank Chor
Cast: Riteish Deshmukh, Vivek Oberoi and Rhea Chakraborty
Scheduled release date: June 16
The much-delayed comedy from YRF is finally making its ways into the
theatres this June. Bank Chor was supposed to be Kapil Sharma’s
Bollywood debut, before he quit the project and went to do Kis Kis Ko
Pyar Karoon, and the makers replaced him with Riteish. It will also be
interesting to see both Riteish and Vivek Oberoi in a movie outside the
Masti franchise.
Tubelight
Cast: Salman Khan, Zhu Zhu, Om Puri and Sohail Khan
Scheduled release date: June 23
The quarter will end with what could be this year’s biggest hit in
Bollywood, unless that record is decimated by Salman Khan’s own Tiger
Zinda Hai, that will release in December. This is Salman Khan’s third
film with Kabir Khan, and their previous two collaborations have been
blockbusters. Tubelight is a love story set against the backdrop of the
Indo-China war, and also features a special appearance by Shah Rukh
Khan.