500 Crores Worldwide Gross Isn’t Cake Walk?

Shah Rukh Khan hit the 500-crore net mark in India back-to-back with Pathaan and Jawan. This unprecedented phenomenon created an impression that achieving a 500-crore net blockbuster is easily attainable.

Following Pathaan and Jawan, Animal and Gadar 2 also crossed the 500 crore worldwide gross figure. Since then the expectation for every major film is to gross at least ₹500Cr globally, if not 500 crores net in India. However, the reality is not that simple post-pandemic.

While Salaar grossed 600 crores worldwide, it required five languages to reach that figure. Tiger 3 fell short of crossing 450 crores globally, and Dunki struggled around the 470 crore gross mark.

This year’s much-anticipated release, Fighter, turned out to be a huge box office disappointment, not expected to surpass 350 crores gross worldwide. Hanu Man collected around 275 crores gross worldwide which is phenomenal for a film with that budget and star cast.

So what’s the recipe for a 500 crore worldwide grosser?

Generating excitement from the film’s announcement is crucial. Teasers should heighten anticipation, and songs play a role in maintaining or even boosting buzz.

And then the trailer must make a tremendous impact to secure staggering advance bookings; pre-release buzz is paramount in today’s film industry. Weak advance bookings can adversely affect opening-day collections, leading to a decline in overall buzz.

A solid trailer, akin to the impact of Jawan or Animal, sets the stage for good advance bookings. If the film lives up to expectations and satisfies the audience, achieving a 500-crore worldwide gross becomes a feasible task.

However, collecting 500 crores net only from India is a different beast altogether. Apart from the above-mentioned factors, the film needs extraordinary word of mouth, a clash-free run for at least two weeks, and also a lot of luck.

As of now, films that have the potential to cross the 500-crore worldwide gross figure are Kalki 2898 AD and Pushpa 2.