Only 1 Hit film in 2020; COVID- 19 to be blamed for poor box office collections?

2019 witnessed 4 superhit and 2 hit films in the first quarter

There were 4 Superhit and 2 hit films in the first quarter of 2019, while the films have been struggling at the box office this year to impress the viewers. The first quarter of 2020 is about to end and so far only 1 film - 'Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior', managed to become profitable.

2020 has been very crucial to the Indian entertainment industry and with the nationwide lockdown due to panic of CoronaVirus, things are getting even worse as the release of many films have been pushed since malls and cinema halls are all shut and shootings of films and tv serials have been postponed. While one can blame the COVID- 19 for the loss but here is a detailed comparative analysis of the first quarter of 2019 versus 2020.

January: The beginning with Superhit films

A total of 6 films were released in January 2019 out of which 'Uri - The Surgical Strike' became Super Duper Hit with a collection of over 244 crores. 'Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi' also performed well at the box office but due to its heavy budget it's not been able to get the hit tag. Apart from these, with a controlled budget 'Thackeray' also turned out to be an average performer.

2020 took a great start with Superhit film like 'Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior' but out of 5 released films, no other film managed to impress the audience including highly anticipated films - 'Chhapaak', 'Panga' and 'Street Dancer 3D'.

February: 2019 takes the lead

The month of love had showered lots of love on Bollywood films last year. 'Gully Boy' not only became a box office success but also went on to win many awards this year in various categories. 'Total Dhamaal' was another film that entertained the audience and became one of the hit movies of 2019.

On the other side, 2020 had a promising lineup but none of the films were able to perform as per the expectations. Films like 'Shikara', 'Love Aaj Kal' and 'Bhoot: Part One- The Haunted Ship' failed to impress the audience. However, controversial films 'Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan' and 'Thappad' were praised by the audience and critics alike.

March: The debut of CoronaVirus in Bollywood

Last year in March Bollywood delivered back to back hit films starting with 'Luka Chuppi' followed by 'Badla' and 'Kesari'. Also, the Hollywood film 'Captain Marvel' also became hit in India with a collection of over 84 crores.

This year the lineup was very promising but unfortunately, due to the rising cases of CoronaVirus worldwide, not only the box office collections of the movies are getting affected but also the release of many most-awaiting films have been pushed. 'Baaghi 3' which was released early this month took a bumper opening but later collections went down due to the rise of panic among the people. Irfan Khan's comeback film 'Angrezi Medium' is the movie whose box office run affected most by the current medical emergency worldwide. Makers have decided to release the film again once the situation has been controlled.

The last verdict: & the winner is 2019

Undoubtedly, films in the last phase of the first quarter of 2020 have been affected by the current situation but if we compare the performance of the films released in the months of January and February where no CoronaVirus existed to haunt the audience, then 2019 is the clear winner.