Box office: India experienced growth in 2023 but fewer footfalls
What's the story
Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Indian films have struggled at the box office. However, in 2023, the curse was broken by Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan and the film industry witnessed a string of commercial blockbusters. India's box office revenue soared to a record-breaking $1.47B last year, marking a 15% increase from 2022, as reported by Ormax Media, reported Deadline. This growth is partially due to rising ticket prices, as footfalls are yet to bounce back to 2019 levels.
Details
Footfall details of 2023
In 2023, India saw 943M admissions, compared to 1.03B in the pre-pandemic year of 2019. Average ticket prices climbed to Rs. 130 in 2023, a 9% increase from 2022 and a substantial 22% increase over 2019. The report indicates that these higher ticket prices played a significant role in boosting overall box office revenue.
Trivia
'Jawan' to 'Oppenheimer': Top grossing films in India
Jawan, featuring SRK, led the pack with a $88.28M collection, followed by Animal starring Ranbir Kapoor at $77.57M, and Pathaan at $76.49M. Hollywood experienced a lackluster year in India, with a combined box office haul of $136.95M, a 7% drop from the $147.9M recorded in 2022. Oppenheimer was the top-grossing US studio film, earning $19M in India.
Insights
Market share and Punjabi cinema's resurgence
Hindi-language films reclaimed their dominant position with a 44% market share in 2023, trailed by Telugu at 19%, Tamil at 16%, and Hollywood at 9%. Punjabi cinema witnessed a revival with a 60% increase in box office revenue compared to 2022, led by Carry On Jatta 3, which became the highest-grossing Punjabi film ever with $6.5M. In 2023, six Punjabi films surpassed the $1.2M milestone, a significant jump from just two in 2022.