Ahead of Dream Girl 2 release, here’s an analysis of how Bollywood sequels have fared post-COVID

This coming Friday on August 25, Ayushmann Khurrana and Ananya Panday are set to arrive with Dream Girl 2. This marks the 11th Bollywood sequel to release theatrically in the post-Covid era and the 3rd just this month. Theatrical business has been quite uncertain in the last 3 years, and before Dream Girl 2 releases, here’s an analysis of the 10 sequels that have hit the theatres since 2020.

Bollywood sequels that didn’t work

Just before India faced a nationwide lockdown due to COVID, 2 sequels had just released- Baaghi 3 and Angrezi Medium. Both films faced the brunt of the pandemic and eventually found their footing on OTT. Eventually, the first sequel to arrive in theatres post the pandemic was Saif Ali Khan, Rani Mukerji, Siddhant Chaturvedi and Sharvari starrer Bunty Aur Babli 2. The film performed averagely critically, and its box office performance was below average.

A week later, John Abraham appeared in a triple role with Satyameva Jayate 2 and the film was a box office disaster. The theatres again faced a shutdown soon after and in February 2022, Badhaai Do became one of the first films to return to cinemas. The RajKummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar starrer got rave reviews but commercially, it was a failure. It eventually got its due on OTT.

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In April 2022, Heropanti 2 was the next sequel to release with Tiger Shroff and Tara Sutaria in the lead. Even amid high expectations, the film failed to live up to the expectations both critically and commercially and was a big failure.

Vidyut Jammwal’s Khuda Haafiz 2 released in July last year but went under the radar. Many didn’t even get to know about it. John Abraham, Arjun Kapoor, Disha Patani and Tara Sutaria starrer Ek Villain Returns did manage to grab some eyeballs, but its performance at the box office was still below average.

The success stories

Even though there were failures, it wasn’t all bad. Some of the biggest hits of the last 3 years have been sequels. As people were starting to lose faith in the box office performance of sequels, roaring came Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. The Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani starrer emerged as a blockbuster and one of the first and biggest success stories post Covid. It collected over Rs 200 crores at the cash counter.

Ajay Devgn’s Drishyam 2 surpassed even the benchmark set by Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. The much-awaited sequel earned over Rs 240 crores in India, proving that well-made sequels are still in demand. If these successes weren’t enough, this month itself Bollywood has seen 2 magnanimous blockbusters.

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Sunny Deol’s Gadar 2 and Akshay Kumar’s OMG 2 had a clash at the box office on August 11, but both films performed exceedingly well. While OMG 2 has collected over Rs 120 crores and counting, Gadar 2 is shattering records one after the other. The film has surpassed the Rs 400 crores mark and is just running towards the Rs 500 crore mark with full pace.

Final analysis

While the total score boasts a 40 percent success rate, the current momentum works in Dream Girl 2’s favour. Both Gadar 2 and OMG 2’s impressive performances have raised the hopes for the film. If the film receives a good word-of-mouth, the Ayushmann and Ananya starrer might emerge another success story. The trade experts predict an opening of around Rs 7-8 crores for the film. The subsequent days will depend on the critical reception.

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Also Read: Ayushmann Khurrana REACTS to Ananya Panday replacing Nushrratt Bharuccha in Dream Girl 2