Border 2 saw the best opening ever for Bollywood since last year's Chhaava.
'The war in the trenches and the tank sequences were difficult.'
We asked readers to list their favourite films from 2025, and we got an interesting range of movies that included blockbusters, well-reviewed films and a couple of surprises.
In the year gone by, quite a few of the younger actors flexed their acting muscle. Whether the films were blockbusters or not is immaterial, what matters is the effort put in.
'Established filmmakers want to go with the sequels of earlier hit films like Housefull 5 or Mastiii 4. They don't want to come up with fresh ideas. This is pure laziness.'
A R Rahman feels a power shift may have happened in the past eight years, as 'people who are not creative have the power now to decide things.'
2025 started with a blockbuster in Chhaava and ended with an even bigger one in Dhurandhar. There have been other Hindi hits too, and we take a look at the Top 10.
Chhaava has entered the prestigious Rs 500 Crore (Rs 5 billion) Club and with that, it joins the likes of Pushpa 2, Stree 2, Jawan, Animal, Gadar 2, Pathaan and Baahubali 2 to have achieved this feat.
In times when films have struggled to score Rs 50 crore (Rs 500 million) in their first weekend, this Ranveer Singh-led multi-starrer has done that in its fourth weekend, which is unprecedented.
'When Aditya saw what Akshaye Khanna did to his introductory sequence with his dancing he was bowled over.'
Bollywood stars always make for good pictures but catching them in their most unguarded, candid moments is what makes for great pictures.
Razvi claimed that the film portrayed Emperor Aurangzeb in a manner that provoked Hindu youths.
Film and television folk enjoyed a red carpet weekend, where they even got recognised for their cine achievements.
'There are certain characters that, when you get the opportunity to play them, you feel scared, wondering if you will be able to do justice to them.' 'That fear comes from knowing how deeply sentiments and faith are attached to such roles.'
'With Chhaava, we had to look from a different lens.' 'We had to write it in such a way that apart from the sacrifice, the fight and the war, there's a lot more to understand about the history of the Marathas.'
Chhaava deserves 2 stars for the historically half-baked film that it is, but 4 stars just for its attempt on making a film on Sambhaji, observes Prasanna D Zore.
'She was so happy that she misses Chhaava now.'
Months after the last big success in the Hindi film industry, Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3, there is another big one running successfully in theatres.
Loud music, bombastic action scenes, over-the-top dialogues that don't have any ring of truth to it followed by scenes of blood-oozing bodies floating in a river definitely don't make for a magnum opus!' exclaims Prasanna D Zore after watching the Chhaava trailer.
'Look at the amazing combination of you coming from Punjab, me coming from Chennai, and we are making a Marathi film.'
'I often give myself a pat on the shoulder, reminding myself that I've done a good job considering where I started and the mindset I grew up with.'
January and February surpassed the monthly domestic box collection on a year-on-year basis.
Think you know all about Chhatrapati Sambhaji Maharaj, who takes centrestage in the blockbuster Chhaava?
Ten days after its release, Chhaava continues to dominate theatres.
It collected Rs 13.30 crore (Rs 133 million) on Friday, and zoomed past Rs 20 crore (Rs 200 million) on Saturday and Sunday.
Chhaava has entered the Rs 100 crore (Rs 1 billion) club in just three days.
Indian films are set to cross A$39 million at the Australian box office in 2025, outperforming local cinema and becoming the third-largest after the US and UK.
'The doctors were really pissed, and today, when I look at my foot, the shape has changed.'
Film folk have been looking very glamorous in the last two days, thanks to the Bollywood Hungama OTT India Fest.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
Aseem Chhabra ranks the Best of 2025's films that released in theatres, or went directly to OTT platforms.
The year had a variety of films to choose from. Not all of them were successful at the box office, but had merit.
The biggest hit of 2025 arrives on OTT this week, along with many other highs and horrors.
Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has called the violence in Nagpur a premeditated conspiracy and said the mob had targeted specific houses and establishments. The violence erupted on Monday after a protest against Mughal emperor Aurangzeb's tomb, resulting in several houses and vehicles being vandalised. At least 12 police personnel, including three deputy commissioners of police, were injured in the violence, which erupted in central Nagpur. Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio, said those who attacked police personnel will not be spared.
'Audiences are loyal to good content.'
Sambhaji is a lion but the movie was a damp squib, sighs Vishaka Rautela.
After a character and film like this, at least for a while, everything else Vicky Kaushal does will look bland, asserts Deepa Gahlot.
Let's see what the festive box office finally brings us.
The administration in Madhya Pradesh's Burhanpur district has launched an investigation after people dug up land around Asirgarh fort in search of a hidden treasure. The rumour about the treasure is believed to have been sparked by the depiction of the fort in the Vicky Kaushal-starrer "Chhava". Authorities have warned that any coins found will be considered government property due to their archaeological importance.
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