With 2014 winding down, let’s look ahead to the Hindi movies likely to open in American and Canadian theaters in 2015. Keep in mind that these are educated guesses on my part. There’s always a chance some random family film starring Sharman Joshi will open in 75 theaters, despite the fact that he’s not a box office draw here. Also, I consider Bollywood release dates tentative until the film is actually in the theater. Expect many of these dates to change.
January
The new year of Bollywood movies starts with Tevar on January 9. It’s Arjun Kapoor’s turn to rescue Sonakshi Sinha from some guy she doesn’t want to marry. Even with Manoj Bajpayee as the villain, I can’t get excited for this one.
Bipasha Basu’s horror movies rarely open in North America, but I would LOVE to see Alone on January 16.
The following weekend sees the release of the Akshay Kumar spy thriller Baby…
…and Dolly Ki Doli, starring Sonam Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao.
Long shot releases on January 30 include Ayushmann Khurrana’s Hawaaizaada and Ali Fazal’s Khamoshiyan.
February
February 6 sees the possible release of two films: Amitabh Bachchan’s Shamitabh and John Abraham’s Rocky Handsome. I am filled with dread at the thought of John Abraham starring in a remake of The Man From Nowhere, a Korean movie I love. Ranbir Kapoor, Arjun Rampal, and Jacqueline Fernandez come to the rescue on February 13 with Roy.
One of my most anticipated movies of the year is the action-packed February 20 release Badlapur, starring Varun Dhawan, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, and my girl Huma Qureshi.
Though no date has been set, the sequel to 2012’s surprise hit OMG: Oh My God is planned for release in February.
March
March is front-loaded, with three potential candidates planned for March 6, and nothing else until April (except possibly Randeep Hooda’s Main Aur Charles on March 13). Movies scheduled to open on March 6 include Y-Films’ Bank-Chor; Anushka Sharma’s NH10; and Emraan Hashmi’s Tigers.
April
After two slow months, a flurry of notable titles come out in April. The month kicks off on the 3rd with two action flicks: Gabbar, starring Akshay Kumar and Shruti Haasan, and Phantom, starring Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif.
Another film I’m really excited about releases April 10: Detective Byomkesh Bakshy, starring Sushant Singh Rajput.
The following week sees the release of Excel Entertainment’s Bangistan, along with Emraan Hashmi’s thriller Mr. X. April closes out with Yash Raj Films’ Dum Laga Ke Haisha on the 23rd and Piku — starring Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone — on the 30th.
May
From May onward, details on release dates are sparse. For example, the month kicks off with a film Bollywood Hungama has tentatively titled “Kajol-Ram Madhwani’s Next“. The surer bets are director Anurag Kashyap’s long-awaited Bombay Velvet on the 15th and the comedy sequel Welcome Back on the 29th.
June
I’m really looking forward to June 5, which sees the release of Dil Dhadakne Do, director Zoya Akhtar’s star-studded film about “a dysfunctional Punjabi family on a cruise” (according to Wikipedia). Vidya Balan and Emraan Hashmi star in the romance Hamari Adhuri Kahaani, releasing on the 12th. Much to my delight, the dance flick ABCD 2 hits theaters on June 26.
July
Amitabh Bachchan’s All Is Well opens on July 3, in time for Independence Day in the U.S. On the 16th, Salman Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan — co-starring Kareena Kapoor Khan and Nawazuddin Siddiqui — opens in time for the end of Ramadan. Another remake already making me cringe is Brothers, Akshay Kumar’s rendition of the riveting 2011 film Warrior. Brothers opens on July 31.
August
Shahrukh Khan claims the Indian Independence Day audience with Fan, opening on August 14. Then on the 28th, Ranbir Kapoor plays a teenage detective (Seriously? He’s 32!) in Jagga Jasoos.
October
There’s no news yet about September, but October 2nd sees the release of the unnecessary sequel Singh Is Bling. The fact that Prabhu Deva is directing it just makes it worse.
November
Salman Khan and Sonam Kapoor star in the November 1 release Prem Ratan Dhan Payo. No word yet on which superstar will claim the Diwali holiday release window during the middle of the month.
December
A big battle is scheduled for Christmas day between two movies starring Deepika Padukone. Bajirao Mastani features Deepika alongside Ranveer Singh and Priyanka Chopra in a historical romance directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Tamasha features Deepika opposite Ranbir Kapoor in a romance directed by Imtiaz Ali, with a score by A.R. Rahman. There’s no way these two films will actually face off, so let’s see who blinks first and changes dates.
Sources: Wikipedia’s list of Bollywood films of 2015 and Bollywood Hungama’s regularly updated list of Hindi movie release dates