Where are the movies for the masses? Single-screen theatres rue a year of blockbuster drought

Exhibitors say hits such as F1: The Movie, Mission: Impossible – The Final Reckoning and even Saiyaara played largely to metro crowds, and that the period drama Chhaava, released in February, remains the only true pan-India blockbuster. With operational costs mounting, many are now looking to early 2026, when mass-market sequels like Border 2 finally land.

Films skewed towards urban audiences deal with more mature and niche themes, and don’t typically feature mainstream popular stars. Mass-market commercial entertainers, on the other hand, are headlined by big stars and revolve around more universal themes such as comedy, romance, action.

Sports drama F1: The Movie, starring Brad Pitt, has been a big draw in the bigger metros, with its theatrical run bolstered by showcasing in premium formats such as Imax that have taken box office collections to ₹102.22 crore. Yash Raj Films’ Saiyaara has crossed the ₹337 crore mark, but its audience was largely urban-skewed with youngsters and college students.

“Some films like Chhaava and Mahavatar Narsimha helped us survive the year, but the challenge has been one of content that appeals to the grassroots arriving in theatres on a consistent basis,” said Akshaye Rathi, an independent film distributor and exhibitor. The big hits of the year—Chhaava grossed ₹600 crore while Mahavatar Narsimha earned ₹182 crore.

For multiplexes and urban markets, it has turned out to be a reasonably good year with the likes of F1 having done exceedingly well in high-end theatres and premium luxury formats, Rathi added. The same has unfortunately not been true of markets beyond these premium properties.

As things stand right now, annual box office earnings for single-screen cinemas and standalone theatres are at least 20-30% lower this year as compared to 2024.

While 2023 was an exceptional year with the likes of Pathaan ( ₹543.05 crore), Gadar 2 ( ₹525.45 crore), Jawan ( ₹643.87 crore) and Animal ( ₹556.36 crore) making for unprecedented box office earnings. Even 2024 had sprung up mass-market blockbusters such as Stree 2 ( ₹627.02 crore) and the Hindi dub of Allu Arjun’s Pushpa 2- The Rule ( ₹830.10 crore). Films that could forge a similar connect with small-town audiences have been missing this year. Apart from Chhaava, only Saiyaara crossed the ₹300 crore mark.

The share of multiplexes in pan-India box office collections differs based on the film. For an urban, multiplex-skewed films, it can be as high as 80%. For films that appeal equally to small-town audiences, it can be 40-50%.

The past few weeks have also seen several awaited films move their release dates to 2026. While Yash Raj Films’ Alia Bhatt-starrer Alpha, which is a part of the Spy Universe, has been moved from Christmas 2025 to April next year; Prabhas’ The Raja Saab will also now release next year after speculations of a release this year.

“Big films such as War 2 and Son of Sardaar 2 that we thought would cross the ₹300-400 crore mark this year, turned out to be real disappointments. Plus, delays in releases have been challenging. That said, a few small films that we never even considered to have potential have done well for us. We also see filmmakers increasingly working to cater to small-town audiences with good promotions and music which is a positive sign,” said Ashutosh Agarwal, owner of Star World Cinemas in Uttar Pradesh.

Some industry players are pinning hopes on Ranveer Singh-starrer action drama Dhurandhar, slated for release early December, followed by Border 2 scheduled for January, the bigger concern is around the lack of mass-market content for several weeks of the year.

“Multiplexes can still get away with fewer seats and more shows distributed across multiple films per day. We are struggling to fill auditoriums with 700-800 seats per film, and that is a disaster for us,” said Arijit Dutta, owner of Priya Cinema in Kolkata.