Bollywood Is In Love With Biopics

upcoming biopic movies

From sports personalities to politicians and other real life heroes, many filmmakers in Bollywood are keen on making movies that are inspired by true stories and based on real people.If there is one thing Bollywood loves, it's true stories. Even though Bollywood has come to a standstill due to the lockdown, many releases have been delayed, shootings have been rescheduled as actors and crew members are staying at their homes; the amazing line-up of upcoming Bollywood movies, especially biopics give us hope that soon we will be able to see films which will be good in terms of entertainment.

Given the interest that biopics generate, it makes sense that the coming year witnesses several films. As many as 12 biopics - of sportsperson, politicians, gangsters - are slated to be released.

Almost everyone is waiting for the release of '83 with bated breath. The film was expected to release last year but now has been postponed indefinitely due to Covid-19 pandemic. With an ensemble cast which is led by Ranveer Singh who will be seen playing Kapil Dev, the film will recreate the glorious moment when Team India lifted the 1983 Cricket World Cup. The film also brings Singh and Deepika Padukone together on the big screen after their marriage for the first time.

Alia Bhatt is joining the biopic bandwagon with Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Gangubai Kathiawadi . It's an upcoming biographical crime film based on the life of the famous brothel owner in Kamathipura and matriarch. Bhatt's first looks from the film have already created a buzz on social media, where she will narrate the journey of a young girl who goes on to become a fierce mafia queen.

Ajay Devgn is all set to bring back the golden era of Indian football, with his upcoming sports biopic Maidaan. The actor will step into the shoes of legendary football coach Syed Abdul Rahim, under whose guidance the Indian football team reached the semi-finals of the 1956 Melbourne Olympic Football tournament and became the first ever Asian country to accomplish that.

His last release Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior (2020) which was also a biopic was a huge success at the box-office. The actor will be seen in another biopic, as he is going to play the character of Indian Air Force (IAF) pilot Squadron Leader Vijay Karnik in a film titled Bhuj. Set during the 1971 Indo-Pak war, when Vijay Karnik was in-charge of the Bhuj airbase in Gujarat, the film will also narrate the courageous story of 300 women who helped the Indian Air Force and played a significant role in India's victory.

Biopics are not new to Bollywood. Despite being a popular genre, it has had mixed success in the box office and among critics.In the past we have seen films like Bhagat Singh (Shaheed, 1965) and performers such as Hansa Wadkar (Bhumika,1977) were made earlier, the Indian film industry perhaps witnessed the power of the biopic for the first time in Richard Attenborough-directed Gandhi (1982), which won a slew of international awards including several Oscars.

In the 1990s and 2000s, Indian filmmakers tentatively explored life-stories of national leaders such as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel which was portrayed by Paresh Rawal in Sardar (1994), president of the constituent assembly B R Ambedkar which was played by Mammootty in Dr. Babasaheb Ambedkar (2000) or even Sachin Khadekar's portrayal of Subhash Chandra Bose in Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose: The Forgotten Hero (2004). These were mostly small-budget projects that did not set the box office tingling.

Another biopic on Bhagat Singh, The Legend of Bhagat Singh (2002) featuring Ajay Devgn in the lead, won a few awards but bombed at the box office.

It was only in 2013 that biopics started becoming popular.

That year Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, a sports drama based on the life of Milkha Singh, was released. Actor Farhan Akhtar played the lead role in the film that earned INR 164 crore across the globe. Next year, Priyanka Chopra Jonas played the role of Olympic medal winner Mary Kom in an eponymous biopic. This film was also a huge success.

In 2016, when the biopic of former Indian cricket captain, M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story was released, it became one of the biggest grosser at the box office, collecting almost INR 200 crore at the box office. In the same year, another biopic, Dangal, starring superstar Aamir Khan took the box office by storm. Khan played the role of Mahavir Singh Phogat, an amateur wrestler who trains his daughters Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari Phogat, both of whom went on to win international medals.The film was one of the all-time highest-grossing films, collecting INR 700 crore . It also set the box office on fire in China, where the film found a huge fan following and went on to earn around INR 2,000 crore.

When it comes to biopics on sporting personalities, Taapsee Pannu will bring to the big screen the inspiring story of cricketer Mithali Raj with her upcoming biopic Shabaash Mithu. On the other hand, Anushka Sharma will step into the shoes of Jhulan Goswami, former Indian captain of the women's cricket team.

What makes this genre so popular?

Trade analyst Amod Mehra explains, "The audiences love to watch stories which are inspirational. India is a country where idol worship is popular. People have heroes they look up to. When you see the story of these ordinary people you realize what extraordinary circumstances they have gone through to achieve what they achieved."

Due to the lockdown, theaters have been shut for a long time and so we saw many films releasing on OTT platforms including Vidya Balan's Shakuntala Devi: The Human Computer based on the life of mathematical wizard, Shakuntala Devi who is also known as "Human Computer" because of her exceptional and extraordinary abilities to solve highly complex mathematical problems within seconds received a mix response.

We also saw Parineeti Chopra playing the role of Olympic winner and badminton champion Saina Nehwal in Saina. While the film couldn't garner numbers at the box-office due to the lockdown, it received a good response once it was released on OTT.

According to filmmaker Vikram Bhatt, the trend of biopics in Hindi cinema is a result of herd mentality. "If a biopic works, people start making biopics. If comedy films work, then people start making comedy films and then if action films start working, they make action films. So it's a phase and we have to see how long this phase lasts."

Other than sports biopics another kind of biographical films that are capturing the imagination of filmmakers are political biopics. In the past we have seen films on the lives of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, our current Prime Minister Narendra Modi and many other politicians like Bal Thackeray, NTR, Balasaheb Thackeray, Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. A film on former Tamil Nadu chief minister late J. Jayalalithaa's life starring Kangana Ranaut titled Thalaivi is already waiting to be released.

Sidharth Malhotra is all set to bring the valour and bravery of Captain Vikram Batra to the big screen with his upcoming biopic Shershaah. Captain Vikram Batra was martyred in the Kargil War. On the other hand we will see Vicky Kaushal in a biopic on Sam Manekshaw, the first Field Marshal of India. Manekshaw was also the Chief of the Army Staff of the Indian Army during the 1971 Indo-Pak War. The actor will be seen in another biopic as he plays legendary freedom fighter Sardar Udham Singh in an upcoming biopic.