Satyaprem Ki Katha, Pathaan, Zara Hatke Zara Bachke: Bollywood’s superhits of 2023 so far

The first half of 2023 is behind us. While there were doubts earlier about whether the Hindi film industry has lost the plot, owing to fewer box-office successes, five films managed to put an end to the debate. Not just that — these projects also raked in high profits for their producers.

1. Satyaprem Ki Katha– This Kartik Aaryan- Kiara Advani starrer recently grossed 100 crore collection worldwide. The film opened to good reviews and only continued to garner lots of critics and netizens appreciation since especially Kartik for his portrayal of the endearing, and inspiring Sattu who came as a breath of fresh air for the audiences amongst the toxic Bollywood heroes.

2. Zara Hatke Zara Bachke– Starring Vicky Kaushal and Sara Ali Khan, this sleeper hit proved that small town stories still connect with the masses.

3. The Kerala Story– Directed by Sudipto Sen, this film whipped up quite a debate all around the country. Controversies galore, it nevertheless managed to emerge as one of the biggest all-time hits in the Hindi film industry.

4. Tu Jhoothi Main Makkar– A good rom-com will always find an audience, and the same happened with this Ranbir Kapoor- Shraddha Kapoor starrer. His fans got to see Ranbir in his lover-boy role after a long time.

5. Pathaan– Shah Rukh Khan made a comeback, and what a comeback it was! Crossing the magical 1000-croe figure worldwide, this actioner rocked the box office.

Trade analyst Joginder Tuteja says, “Since the pandemic, the Bollywood box office has been an unpredictable game but a few films have managed to make their mark in 2023. The year started with King Khan making his comeback with Pathaan, which started the year strong. And now, the first half has ended on another high note with Kartik’s Satyaprem Ki Katha doing extremely well worldwide, grossing over ₹100 crore already and still running.”