The 100-crore club, initiated by Ghajini in Christmas week 2008, is all about a film raking in that much sum in ‘nett’ collections (after Entertainment Tax is deducted) in India. It does signify in that sense how the films did collect that much sum at theatres, for this index is only about that source of revenue. But it does not indicate the cost of the film, which decides whether the returns on the investment came back or not, and how much were the theatrical and non-theatrical profits (other rights like overseas, music, satellite and streaming among them).
Based on this, 93 films have so far made it to the list. Among them, there are 5 South Indian films: Bahubali—The Beginning (2015), Bahubali 2—The Conclusion (2017), 2.0 (2018), Saaho (2019) and now Pushpa—The Rise: Part 1 (2021).
Of these. some films reached this landmark within the opening weekend (3 days) while others took long. The 11 fastest 100-crore films are Dhoom:3, Sultan, Happy New Year, Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Bahubali 2—The Conclusion, Dangal, Sanju, War, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, Race 3 and Thugs Of Hindostan.
We now come to the slowest 10 to make it. Do remember, on the credit side, that in the current scenario of movies running theatrically in India for an average of two weeks, it is indeed creditable that these films did remain in the movie-halls for so long.
Singham 50 days / Director: Rohit Shetty
The 2011 super-hit took a record 50 days to touch this mark. It was a remake of the Tamil film of the same name, with major changes for the pan-Indian audience. It was the second of 7 100-crore grossers for the Ajay Devgn-Rohit Shetty team. It gave birth to the iconic character of Bajirao Singham, the first of three cops—Simmba and Sooryavanshi being the latter two—who would be featuring in India’s first cop universe by the filmmaker. Kajal Aggarwal made her Hindi lead debut. This film also generated the Singham franchise, and Singham 3 will happen soon now, after Singham Returns made it in 2014.
Pushpa: The Rise – Part 1 45 days / Sukumar
The Allu Arjun-Rashmika Mandanna-Fahaad Faasil actioner was a surprise for all! It began growing slowly and steadily in Hindi, defying all trade pundits. With collections steady for weeks, and later too despite a streaming release, the Hindi version alone continued to garner audiences across the country. Overall, as of now, it has crossed Rs 365 crore in 5 languages—the original Telugu, Kannada, Tamil and Malayalam as well. And it is still running!
Bol Bachchan 45 days / Rohit Shetty
Yet another Ajay-Rohit enterprise, this hilarious comedy sprinkled with action was among the bigger hits of 2012. Abhishek Bachchan, Asin (in a dual role) and Prachi Desai were in the cast, with Amitabh Bachchan in a special “singing appearance”. The film has huge repeat value.
Shivaay 32 days / Ajay Devgn
Produced, directed by and starring Ajay Devgn, whose company NY VFXWala won the National award for its visual effects, this 2016 Diwali release had Ajay also supervising the action. Sayyeshaa was introduced as a lead actress in this action spectacle. But the returns on investment were disappointing despite the long run and the festive season.
De De Pyaar De 28 days / Akiv Ali
This cute romantic triangle between Ajay Devgn, Tabu and Rakul Preet Singh was a delightful drama in 2019 that warmed the cockles of the heart. It marked the directorial debut of ace film editor Akiv Ali and had an unconventional and bold ending.
Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety 25 days / Luv Ranjan
Among the small films that thus had the highest ratio of profits, this unconventional youth-driven 2018 story turned Kartik Aaryan and Nushrratt Bharuccha into stars. It was a bittersweet tale where bromance and romance were at odds.
Bhaag Milkha Bhaag 24 days / Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra
The 2013 biopic on sports legend Milkha Singh was a slow and steady winner. A crawling first half might explain the slow trudge to this position, but the powerful performances and a soulful yet zingy music score were great assets.
2 States 24 days / Abhishek Verman
Karan Johar and Sajid Nadiadwala came together to produce this 2014 love story based on Chetan Bhagat’s bestseller of the same name. Superb performances (Arjun Kapoor, Alia Bhatt, Amrita Singh, Revathi and Ronit Roy) and an excellent music score garnished this wonderful saga.
Grand Masti 23 days / Indra Kumar
This 2013 out-and-out adult comedy was the surprise in this list. For one, it cut off the under-18 viewers. And secondly, its content was enough to scandalize the puritans, made by a filmmaker whose forte was supposed to be family dramas! But what we saw with this entertaining confection was couples of all ages, youngsters and older men or women in groups thronging the theatres. And imagine such a film running for over three weeks in the cinemas!
Bahubali—The Beginning 23 days / S.S. Rajamouli
No one knew it then that this first South Indian film would reach this distinction in its Hindi version alone. But this was the film that laid the ground to a record reception for Bahubali 2—The Conclusion. That film went on to break even Dangal’s record with a smashing Rs. 510 crore-plus collection in Hindi alone. Like all of Rajamouli’s films, it was a phenomenal mix of emotions and all-round cinematic excellence.
