India is the largest producer of films globally India also beats every other country when it comes to the total number of movie tickets sold annually. Beyond the glamorous world of Bollywood which comes into national prominence, the regional film industries esp in South India has also grown multi-fold over the last few decades. But did you know which are the Highest Grossing Bollywood movies of all time?
Indian movies have expanded their market globally especially in the last two decades. Indian Film industry now caters to an audience spread across almost 90 countries. From South East Asia, Middle East and China to Europe and North America, Indian movies today have greater avenues to increase their revenues beyond the borders. Movies like Dangal (2016) and Secret Superstar (2017) have managed to earn more from the global market as compared to the Indian one. The total revenue earned by Indian movies have surged from a few crores to hundreds and even thousands of crores recently.
We bring you a list of the top 10 Highest Grossing Bollywood movies of all time after adjusting Inflation.
Also read: 50 Must Watch Bollywood Movies Of All Time
Note: The actual collections of some of the old movies are disputed due to limited information and lesser revenue tracking systems. Some of the movies like Sholay saw several re-releases and hence estimating the total lifetime revenue and adjusting inflation is challenging. Also, the inflation adjustment for the revenue are also not unanimous and is always a subject of debate. We have provided the most accepted inflation-adjusted revenue figures for the old movies.
1. Dangal (2016)
Nominal gross revenue (2017): INR 2000 – 2100 Crores
A biographical sports drama loosely based on the Phogat family, Dangal is the story of how India’s first world class female wrestlers – Geeta and Babita overcame poverty and societal norms to win glory for India. While this Aamir Khan starrer earned INR 500-600 crores in the domestic market, it broke several records with its international collections.
The movie managed to collect around INR 1500 crores from the international markets, with a bulk of its earnings coming from Chinese markets. Dangal became a superhit in the Chinese markets where it outclassed star-studded Hollywood movies with word-of-mouth promotion and discussions on Chinese social media platforms. It is also one of the most watched movie on Chinese online streaming platforms.
The total revenue collected by this movie is around INR 2000-2100 Crores. It is the highest grossing Bollywood movie ever, the 5th highest non-English film ever and no other sports movie has earned more revenue than Dangal. And the movie has been made with a total budget of around INR 70 crores!
Also read: 11 Best Quotes From Dangal-The Bollywood Blockbuster
2. Mughal-e-Azam (1960)
Gross Revenue during release : 11 Crores
Lifetime Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 2000 Crores (As on 2017)
One of the milestones in Indian Cinema, Mughal-e-Azam follows the love story of Prince Salim, the son of Akbar and Anarkali, a court dancer. It is said that a crowd of almost 100,000 had gathered at Maratha Mandir – a cinema hall in Mumbai waiting in queues for 4-5 days to purchase a ticket for this epic movie. The chaos forced police intervention to control the crowds. The film earned a total of a total gross revenue of INR 11 Crores at the time of its release. It has a good run at the box office again when the movie was colored and re-released in 2006.
Many believe the total lifetime inflation-adjusted gross revenue of Mughal-e-Azam to be around 2000 crores. While its total revenue is lower than Dangal even after adjusting Inflation, one has to keep in mind the limited number of screens in India and almost negligible global audiences in the 1960s. It still remains the highest grossing Bollywood movie of all times in terms of the domestic collections.
Also read: 10 Iconic Mughal-E-Azam Dialogues That Still Remain Evergreen
3. Sholay (1975)
Gross revenue during release: 15 Crores
Lifetime Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1910 Crores (As on 2017)
Probably the most popular movie that has impacted pop culture like none other, Sholay was released in 1975 and continues to resonate with the audiences. Few would believe that Sholay opened to very little crowds and financial gains in the first two weeks. However, Sholay soon picked up by a positive word of mouth becoming the highest grossing Bollywood movie of 1975. It still has a record of 60 golden jubilees across India. It had a continuous theatrical run at Bombay’s Minerva theatre for over five years. The movie sold almost 100 Million tickets in India and around 60 Million in the Soviet Union. It was also declared the “Film of the Millennium” by BBC India in 1999.
Also read: 25 Iconic Dialogues From Sholay That We Still Cherish
4. Bahubali 2: The Conclusion
Nominal gross revenue (2017): 1810 Crores
One of the most iconic movies of recent times, Bahubali 2 went on to capitalize on the huge popularity and appreciation of the first edition to become one of the highest grossing Bollywood movies of all time. The movie has a blockbuster opening day minting around INR 150 Crores in the first day itself. The movie was also become the highest-ever opening for an Indian film in the United States grossing a little over INR 130 Crores. The movie also did well in the Arab Gulf States (Over INR 70 Crores), China (INR 80 Crores) and Japan (INR 15 Crores). The movie went on to sell an estimated 100 Million tickets across geographies and languages.
Also read: 10 Amazing Dialogues & Quotes From Baahubali 2
5. Mother India
Actual Revenue: 8 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1600 Crores (As on 2017)
6. Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!
Actual Revenue:200 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1316 Crores (As on 2017)
7. Ganga Jamuna (1961)
Actual Revenue: 11.27 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1263 Crores (As on 2017)
8. Disco Dancer (1982)
Actual Revenue: 100.7 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1261 Crores (As on 2017)
9. Awara (1951)
Actual Revenue: 10.38 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1155 Crores (As on 2017)
10. Bobby (1973)
Actual Revenue: 30.24 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1155 Crores (As on 2017)
11. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)
Actual Revenue: 126.5 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1087 Crores (As on 2017)
Also read: 10 Iconic DDLJ Dialogues That Redefines Love & Relationships
12. Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015)
Actual Revenue: 933 Crores
Inflation-adjusted Gross revenue: 1053 Crores (As on 2017)
Also read: 25 Best Bollywood Romantic Movies Of Recent Times
With Bollywood movies getting more and more screens and releases across the globe, we expect several new entries in this list that would displace the existing ones.
Which of these highest grossing Bollywood movies is your favorite?
