Small Stars, Big Wonders

Image design: Roop 
Gone are the days when the box office defined a movie ‘hit’ only when it had a stellar star cast. Today, people enjoy movies based on the content rather than mindless entertainment. This audience enjoys out of the box thinking and has the power to make small budget films rake in moolah.

Here goes the list of some movies which proved to be triumphant in the race towards success without the so called ‘star cast’-

1. Little Zizou

Little Zizou is a 2008  Indian film, written and directed by Sooni Taraporevala. It  is a fast-paced, exuberant yet emotional comedy about how two battling Mumbai families finally come to terms with each other. It won the ‘Rajat Kamal’ of ‘National Film Award for Best Film on Family Welfare’ category at the 56th National Film Awards. In spite of having a not so famous cast this film did more than just fine, proving that talent overcomes names.

2. Dum Laga Ke Haisha

Dum Laga Ke Haisha is a 2015 Indian Hindi romantic comedy film directed by Sharat Katariya. This low-budget film from YRF studios had Ayushmann Khurrana and debutante Bhumi Pednekar in central roles. The movie faced a disappointing opening at the box office but still managed to collect more than 30 crore by the end. Word of mouth definitely played a key role in this film’s success.

3. Udaan

Udaan is a coming of age film produced by Sanjay Singh, Anurag Kashyap and Ronnie Screwvala. It may not have flied high among the masses but Vikramaditya Motwane’s Udaan was every critic’s favourite. The movie was so good that it was selected for the “Un Certain Regard” (A Certain Glance) category at the 2010 Cannes Film Festival. Udaan is one of those film that proved it’s not always big banners or stacks of money that need to be put in, to make a film. Sometimes, your heart needs to be in the right place and your hardwork will earn its price.

4. Khosla Ka Ghosla

Dibakar Banerjee’s directorial debut revolved around a middle-class family in Delhi that mistakenly falls in a trap of land mafias. The way that all the characters in movie were portrayed, won the hearts of many. This film was made with a total budget of less than 3 crore but it recovered Rs 7.5 crore, bringing a smile to the producers face.

5. Phas Gaye Re Obama

National Award winning director Subhash Kapoor just added another feather to his crown with this brilliant satire. The film starring Sanjai Mishra, Rajat Kapoor, Neha Dhupia, Manu Rishi Chadha and Amol Gupte was made with a budget as low as Rs 6 crore and it still recovered 19 crore! The movie was declared a super hit and each and every actor had put in their best effort! If you still haven’t seen this film, then you surely are missing on one of the finest gems in Indian cinema.

6. Vicky Donor

The movie starring Ayushmann Khurrana, Yami Gautam, Annu Kapoor and Dolly Ahluwalia was a game-changer in Bollywood. Never before had a small-budget film  ever had this much limelight. This film, that raised a sensitive issue, was made with a budget of Rs 5 crore only but it managed to make more than Rs 65 crore at the box office. It’s popularity filled the seats everyday!

There exists many more such movies that in spite of having small stars, who has worked wonders for themselves and the entire film industry altogether, has rocked the box office. These films have proved time and again, that not only big names and big banners work, but even the small members can make a huge difference.

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