For the Indian film business, 2025 was a familiar year. The previous year, women-led narratives had momentarily transformed India’s reputation in the world of film, garnering praise and fresh interest. However, last year’s domestic box office and cultural discussions were dominated by Bollywood’s violent, male-driven action thrillers.
Discussions about Dhurandhar, an espionage thriller set against the backdrop of India-Pakistan tensions, dominated Indian social media in the latter weeks of 2025. The picture, which was full of graphic violence and gangland politics, became the year’s biggest blockbuster and solidified its position in a wave of violent, hypermasculine movies that influenced public opinion.
In 2024, several female-directed films, including Payal Kapadia’s All We Imagine As Light, Shuchi Talati’s Girls Will Be Girls, and Kiran Rao’s Laapataa Ladies, received widespread acclaim. Film critic Mayank Shekhar describes 2024 as “a moment of truth” rather than a fad. “What 2024 established was that Indian women filmmakers are not marginal voices, but leading global ones,” she says.
It was hoped that the quantity and popularity of richer, more nuanced stories about women would increase. Instead, from the historical epic Chhaava to the action extravaganza War 2, the top 10 box office hits in 2025 were dominated by larger-than-life, hypermasculine heroes, five of which came from Bollywood, a little respite for a Hindi cinema industry still battling to regain its footing after the pandemic. Lokah, a Malayalam superhero movie, was the only film on the list starring a woman. Action thrillers weren’t the only type that prioritized guys. In the popular romance Saiyaara, a troubled male rock musician eventually “rescues” his partner from Alzheimer’s.
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