With theatre doors opening up after the Covid-19 lockdown, cinemagoers are eagerly waiting for fresh content. Cashing on their appetite, Bollywood is all set to release a number of films, with a large chunk of them being sequels.
That sequels are loved by viewers is proved by Drishyam 2: The Resumption being streamed by Amazon Prime. Its popularity has made the film’s original director Jeethu Joseph announce the Telugu remake starring Venkatesh while Ajay Devgn is slated to make the Hindi variant.
Earlier also sequels of ‘Dhoom’ and ‘Krrish’ series have kept the audience hooked.
Advantage Sequel
What makes sequels lucrative is their inherent advantage of a ready fan base. Those have seen the earlier film or films hope to see what happens next. Attempting to woo crowds, this proves to be a great advantage.
Keeping abreast readers, here are some of the following sequels which are expected to hit the screen this year.
‘Badhaai Do’
This second instalment in Badhaai Ho franchise stars Rajkummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar. Directed by Harshavardhan Kulkarni, it depicts Rao playing the lone police officer in a mahila police station in Delhi. Pednekar will essay the role of police officer and a physical training teacher. The 2018 comedy Badhaai Ho starring Ayushmann Khurrana and Sanya Malhotra, and directed by Amit Ravindrenath Sharma, garnered Rs.229 crore at the box office.
Dostana 2
This Hindi film starring Kartik Aaryan, Janhvi Kapoor and TV actor Lakshya Lalwani, is directed by Collin D'Cunha. Marking the debut of Lalwani in Hindi films, it has been written by Navjot Gulati, Sumit Arora, Rishabh Sharma and D'Cunha.
(Pic: Courtesy Instagram/Divyakhoslakumar)
Satyameva Jayate 2
The first movie Satyameva Jayate starred John Abraham, who returns in the vigilante cop avatar for the second version. Directed by Milap Zaveri, it features Divya Khosla Kumar. The action drama presents John's character as one who fights corruption in Lucknow.
Directed by a newcomer Varun V. Sharma, this comedy features Rani Mukherji, Saif Ali Khan, Siddhant Chaturvedi and Sharvari Wagh. The first film, a huge 2005 hit, starred Rani and Abhishek Bachchan. In this Bunty and Babli are forced to come out of retirement as a number of robberies take place with their trademark sign.
Bhool Bhulaiya 2
This horror comedy stars Kartik Aryan and Kiara Advani while the earlier one had Akshay Kumar, Shiney Ahuja, Vidya Balan and Ameesha Patel. The film’s director Anees Bazmee has revealed that the new film has a different story with different characters. It is reported that it will include two songs from the original film.
Heropanti 2
Directed by Ahmed Khan, this sequel to Tiger Shroff's debut film of 2014, Heropanti, stars Kriti Sanon, and Rakesh Krushna. Produced by Sajid Nadiadwala, the story written by Rajat Arora, revolves around a guy who helps people at night.
Hungama 2
Following Priyadarshan's 2003 comedy hit Hungama, this film will feature Shilpa Shetty Kundra, Paresh Rawal, Meezaan and Pranitha Subhash. While Rawal was present in the 2003 film's cast, he gets new co-stars for Hungama 2.
Trade analyst Atul Mohan feels that sequels have worked well as they have the advantage of coming after a super successful film. “The films already enjoy popularity and many people go to watch them,” he observed.
Making a pertinent, another well-known analyst Komal Nahta says that interesting content is the only way to draw the audience, who are still treading warily into the theatres. "When we talk about sequels, there is a certain audience that will go to watch the film for sure. However, if the film is very bad, it will not survive. A sequel is no guarantee of a film doing well. It is just an assurance to the audience that the film will probably be good. Nothing can make up for bad content," he said. Agreeing with him, Mohan, adds that content will always matter and that the audience will step out only if they are confident that a film has good content.
(With input from IANS)
