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Q1 2015 Bollywood Movies Online

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2015 has been an anemic year for Bollywood releases in the United States, and this weekend is no exception. With nothing new in theaters — and assuming you’ve already been to see Detective Byomkesh Bakshy! — this is a good weekend to catch up on some releases from the first three months of 2015 that you may have missed.

I’ve included links below to services carrying the films in the U.S., how much the movies cost to rent or purchase, and in what format they are available, if specified: high definition (HD) or standard definition (SD). All of the films supposedly have English subtitles.

Dolly Ki Doli
Google Play: rental = $3.99; purchase = $4.99
iTunes: SD rental = $3.99; HD rental = $4.99; SD purchase = $13.99; HD purchase = $14.99
YouTube: SD rental = $3.99; HD rental = $4.49; SD purchase = $4.99; HD purchase = $7.99

Tevar
Eros Now: available for streaming with a $7.99 premium monthly subscription
iTunes: SD rental = $3.99; HD rental = $4.99; SD purchase = $7.99; HD purchase = $14.99

Spuul is streaming a pair of movies from 2015 that released theatrically in India but not in the U.S. Alone and Dirty Politics are both included in the cost of a premium monthly subscription, priced at $4.99.

Here’s how I would organize a weekend movie marathon of the above titles:

  1. Alone on Spuul ($4.99 monthly subscription)
  2. Dirty Politics on Spuul (included with the monthly subscription)
  3. Dolly Ki Doli on YouTube ($4.49 HD rental)
  4. Tevar on Eros Now ($7.99 monthly subscription)

My marathon would cost me $17.47, a price which includes two monthly streaming subscriptions. Sounds like a good deal to me.

Bollywood Box Office: March 13-15

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After enduring three weeks with no new Hindi films in North American theaters, fans turned out in large numbers for the thriller NH10. During the weekend of March 13-15, 2015, NH10 earned $143,209 from 46 theaters. Its per-screen average earnings of $3,113 are second highest for the year, behind Baby‘s $4,393 opening weekend average.

NH10‘s per-screen average is twice that of another actress-led film from 2015, January’s Dolly Ki Doli ($1,557 average). Dolly Ki Doli had the theoretical advantages of Rajkummar Rao in a supporting role and a cameo by Saif Ali Khan, but it overreached by opening in 72 theaters. Plus, NH10 is simply a better movie.

2014 featured two more direct comparisons by which to measure NH10‘s performance: Queen and Gulaab Gang. Both movies released on March 7, 2014, with Queen opening in 39 theaters in the United States and Canada and Gulaab Gang in 46. In their first weekend in theaters, Queen took in $161,998 ($4,154 average) and Gulaab Gang $60,718 ($1,320 average).

It’s hard to imagine any movie receiving the extraordinary uptick in business that propelled Queen to an eventual total in excess of $1.4 million, but NH10‘s opening weekend performance is closer to that of Queen than to other recent female-led films. With no new releases of note on the horizon for the rest of the month and a positive IMDb rating of 7.6 stars, NH10 should hold up well in the weeks to come.

Other Hindi movies still in North American theaters:

  • Badlapur: Week 4; $6,495 from eight theaters; $812 average; 418,490 total
  • Roy: Week 5; $196 from one theater; $242,344 total
  • Shamitabh: Week 6; $52 from one theater; $299,352 total

Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama

Bollywood Box Office: February 13-15

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Ranbir Kapoor’s return to the big screen (not counting his cameo in PK) wasn’t the resounding success one would’ve hoped for. During its debut weekend of February 13-15, 2015, Kapoor’s Roy earned $165,203 from 83 theaters ($1,990 average) in the United States and Canada.

Kapoor’s last major role was in 2013’s Besharam. That film was branded a total flop after earning just $504,000 from 217 theaters in North America. While Besharam‘s extravagant theater count magnified its degree of failure, it still averaged more per screen — $2,323 — than Roy.

Other Hindi movies still in North American theaters:

  • Shamitabh: Week 2; $23,936 from 36 theaters; $665 average; $289,133 total
  • Baby: Week 4; $5,491 from three theaters; $1,830 average; $730,288 total
  • PK: Week 9; $264 from one theater; $10,550,310 total
  • Dolly Ki Doli: Week 4; $90 from one theater; $173,887 total

Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama

Bollywood Box Office: February 6-8

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2015 is off to a slow start for Bollywood movies at the North American box office, and the opening weekend figures for Shamitabh reinforce that trend. According to Rentrak figures supplied to Bollywood Hungama, Shamitabh earned $215,512 from 137 theaters ($1,573 average) during the weekend of February 6-8, 2015. Box Office Mojo’s reported earnings for Shamitabh are only slightly better: $241,720 from 137 theaters ($1,764 average).

Though the sample size isn’t huge, the per-screen averages of Bollywood films that opened in North America in 2015 are down considerably from 2014. The four Hindi movies released in the United States and Canada during the same time period last year posted per-screen averages of $3,270; $141; $4,469; and $3,895. Compare those figures to the averages of the six Hindi movies released in 2015 to date: $1,007; $397; $4,393; $1,557; $251; and $1,573.

Whether it’s a case of too many films opening in too many theaters — 125 screens for Tevar? — or a lack of interest in the movies available, it’s harder to get people to come out to the cinema this year. It will be interesting to see how that affects the screen counts of films released later in the year. If theaters can earn more from a four-week-old Hollywood movie, what’s the incentive to program a new Hindi film that doesn’t have a Khan in a leading role? (No, that doesn’t include Saif Ali Khan.)

Other Hindi movies still in North American theaters:

  • Baby: Week 3; $12,660 from seven theaters; $1,809 average; $718,340 total
  • PK: Week 8; $7,142 from four theaters; $1,786 average; $10,456,943 total
  • Dolly Ki Doli: Week 3; $1,889 from four theaters; $472 average; $173,741 total
  • Hawaizaada: Week 2; $215 from five theaters; $43 average; $21,902 total

Sources: Box Office Mojo and Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama

Bollywood Box Office: January 30-February 1

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Poor, poor Hawaizaada. Family friendly Hindi movies don’t stand much of a chance at the North American box office as it is, but the historical fantasy performed especially poorly here. During its debut weekend — January 30-February 1, 2015 — Hawaizaada earned $16,546 from 66 theaters for a dismal per-screen average of $251.

Hawaizaada‘s failure strikes another blow against leading man Ayushmann Khurrana’s once promising career. His debut film, 2012’s Vicky Donor, was a surprise hit, taking in $169,209 from 50 North American theaters ($3,384 average) in its first weekend, with final earnings of $549,001. Its success owed more to its racy subject matter — sperm donation — than its leading man, however.

Khurrana’s subsequent films didn’t fare nearly as well here. 2013’s Nautanki Saala! opened with $92,851 from 61 theaters ($1,522 average), ultimately earning $127,844. 2014’s Bewakoofiyaan fared even worse, with first-weekend earnings of $67,738 from 66 theaters ($1,026 average), and total earnings of $106,800.

I’ve enjoyed all of Khurrana’s films, so his ability isn’t the problem. The Bollywood fan base in North America is motivated by name recognition, which Khurrana doesn’t yet have. His best bet for earning it would be to pair with another notable male star, maybe for a buddy comedy. Unfortunately, his next two projects — Dum Laga Ke Haisha and Agra Ka Daabra (which is a great title) — feature him as the solo male lead. I don’t see his international box office prospects turning around any time soon.

Other Hindi movies still in theaters include:

  • Baby: Week 2; $165,732 from 77 theaters ($2,152 average); $694,509 total
  • Dolly Ki Doli: Week 2; $22,155 from 14 theaters ($1,583 average); $164,186 total
  • PK: Week 7; $16,627 from 13 theaters ($1,279 average); $10,535,369 total
  • Tevar: Week 4; $16 from one theater; $166,342 total

Source: Rentrak, via Bollywood Hungama

Opening January 30: Hawaizaada

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The historical fiction film Hawaizaada is the only new Hindi movie opening in the Chicago area on January 30, 2015.

Hawaizaada opens on Friday at MovieMax Cinemas in Niles, AMC South Barrington 30 in South Barrington, and Regal Cantera Stadium 17 in Warrenville. It has a listed runtime of 2 hrs. 33 min.

Baby carries over for a second weekend at MovieMax, South Barrington 30, Cantera 17, and AMC Showplace Niles 12 in Niles. Both Dolly Ki Doli and PK continue their runs at MovieMax and the South Barrington 30.

Other Indian movies showing at MovieMax this weekend include Isai (Tamil), Ladies and Gentlemen (Telugu), Mariyam Mukku (Malayalam), and Pataas (Telugu).

Bollywood Box Office: January 23-25

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Akshay Kumar’s Baby posted a solid opening weekend at the North American box office. Released into 99 theaters, Baby earned $434,952 ($4,393 average) during the weekend of January 23-25, 2015, according to Rentrak data supplied to Bollywood Hungama.

That’s significantly better than the weekend’s other new release, Dolly Ki Doli. The romantic comedy starring Sonam Kapoor took in $112,068 from 72 theaters, a so-so per-screen average of $1,557.

By comparison, PK — now in its sixth weekend in theaters — earned an average of $2,245 per screen ($40,417 from 18 theaters). That brings its total in North America to $10,507,134.

In its third weekend, Tevar took in just $138 from one theater, bringing its total U.S. earnings to $166,236.

Movie Review: Dolly Ki Doli (2015)

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DollyKiDoli1 Star (out of 4)

Buy the DVD at Amazon
Buy the soundtrack at Amazon

Was footage accidentally left out of Dolly Ki Doli? That’s the only way to account for a climax and resolution that come completely out of left field.

Sonam Kapoor plays Dolly, “The Plundering Bride” as she’s known by the police. She flits around the outskirts of Delhi, marrying eligible bachelors and drugging and robbing them on their wedding night. She arranges marriages with men of various religions and traditions, requiring her to change her appearance and mannerisms to appeal to each family she’s marrying into.

Dolly is a seductress only in a fantasy sense. She never so much as allows her grooms to kiss her, delaying their affection with excuses* until the drugs she’s administered have taken effect.

While Dolly’s swindled grooms — including nouveau riche braggart Sonu (Rajkummar Rao) and horny loser Manjot (Varun Sharma) — are jerks, so is she. Dolly works with a group of fellow cons who pose as her family, and her fake brother, Raju (Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub), is in love with her. Dolly knows this, and she ridicules Raju for it.

Dolly’s pride derails their criminal enterprise. After being rejected as a prospective bride by Manjot’s mother for being too tall, Dolly insists on pursuing Manjot in order to take revenge on his family. This mistake lands her in the clutches of police officer Robin Singh (Pulkit Samrat), who has his own reasons for pursuing Dolly. The history between Robin and Dolly isn’t developed enough for the film’s final act to feel remotely believable.

While Kapoor imbues Dolly with a fun vibe, that’s the thief’s only positive attribute. She lacks chemistry with her potential beaus, and she lacks character depth. Dolly says that she’s a thief because she’s good at it. That’s a valid enough reason, but the movie gives no sense of what ambitions Dolly has for her future, when she can no longer keep up the con.

I’m still not sold on the acting abilities of Samrat and Sharma, who got their big breaks in 2013’s Fukrey. Ayyub is earnest as lovelorn Raju, but the script gives his character no room to grow.

What Dolly Ki Doli does show is what a terrific actor Rajkummar Rao is. Sonu tracks down Dolly not for revenge but because he genuinely loves her. He stares at her with such devotion and longing that one secretly hopes Dolly will return to him. It’s a quality performance that deserved a better film.

* – I’d like to thank Dolly Ki Doli‘s subtitles for me teaching me a nauseating euphemism for menstruation I’d never heard before. When Dolly puts off one of her grooms by saying she’s having “ladki problems” (“girl problems”), the subtitles read, “I’m chumming.”

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Opening January 23: Baby and Dolly Ki Doli

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Two new Hindi films open in the Chicago area on January 23, 2015. Akshay Kumar’s counter-terrorism drama Baby gets the wider release of the two.

Baby opens on Friday at AMC Showplace Niles 12 in Niles, AMC South Barrington 30 in South Barrington, and Regal Cantera Stadium 17 in Warrenville. It has a listed runtime of 2 hrs. 39 min.

The weekend’s other new release is the romantic comedy Dolly Ki Doli, starring Sonam Kapoor.

Dolly Ki Doli opens on Friday at MovieMax Cinemas in Niles and the South Barrington 30. It has a listed runtime of 1 hr. 40 min.

PK gets a sixth week at MovieMax and the South Barrington 30.

After a terrible box office response to Gangs of Wasseypur Part I, it looks as though Friday’s planned theatrical release of GOW Part II has been scrapped. Click here for information on upcoming showings of GOW in Dallas, Nashville, and Seattle.

Other Indian movies showing in the Chicago area this weekend include the Tamil version of I at the Cantera 17, Cinemark at Seven Bridges in Woodridge, and MovieMax, which holds over the Telugu version as well; Gopala Gopala (Telugu) at Seven Bridges and MovieMax; and the Telugu films Beeruva and Pataas at MovieMax.