Karan Johar Return To Romantic Film?

Are romantic films a safer bet for Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions? Here’s a deep dive into box office figures.

Dharma Productions’ head honcho, Karan Johar, recently argued that in the age of action overdose, Bollywood filmmakers need to return to their roots and make films they are best at – romantic dramas. He said that filmmakers from the South are better suited for grand action. The filmmaker has also promised to return to the directorial chair and make ‘old-fashioned’ Hindi films again. For fans of Karan Johar’s cinema, this means more romance, drama and aspirational world-building.

But for a massive legacy production house like Dharma, are action films really such a downer? If romantic dramas prove to be more profitable for Karan Johar, how much more money do these films rake in in comparison? This article is a comparative analysis of the box office numbers of the last five action releases and the last five romantic films by Dharma. Only theatrical releases are included here.

Dharma Productions’ last five action (largely action) releases are Jigra, Yodha, Kill, Sooryavanshi and Simmba. Jigra reportedly had a budget of Rs 80 crore and grossed Rs 56.9 crore worldwide. Yodha had a reported budget of Rs 55 crore, and its worldwide gross collection stood at Rs 53.5 crore.

Kill is said to have been made on a budget of Rs 40 crore. It minted Rs 47.25 crore worldwide. Sooryavanshi was made on a budget of Rs 160 crore, and it earned Rs 293 crore worldwide. Simmba reportedly had a budget of Rs 80 crore. The film minted Rs 390 crore worldwide.

One must note that Brahmastra Part One – Shiva and Liger have intentionally been avoided here. While Brahmastra includes action, it also largely falls into the fantasy genre. As for Liger, the film has not been included as it was jointly produced by Puri Connects, a Telugu production house.

Dharma Productions’ last five romantic (comedy and drama both) releases are Bad Newz, Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, Jugjugg Jeeyo, Good Newwz, and Student of the Year 2. Dhadak 2 has been omitted here as the film is yet to complete its box office run. Mr and Mrs Maahi is not included here as it is largely categorised as a sports drama.

Bad Newz reportedly had a budget of Rs 80 crore, and grossed Rs 113.75 crore worldwide. RRKPK had a reported budget of Rs 160 crore, and its worldwide gross collection stood at Rs 357.5 crore. Jugjugg Jeeyo is said to have been made on a budget of Rs 100 crore (estimated figure). It minted Rs 139.5 crore worldwide. Good Newwz was made on a budget of Rs 70 crore, and it earned Rs 316 crore worldwide. SOTY 2 reportedly had a budget of Rs 80 crore (estimated figure). The film minted Rs 95.50 crore worldwide.

Which Bollywood Films Earn More: Action Or Romance?

Dharma’s action films had an average budget of Rs 85 crore, and they minted Rs 168.13 crore worldwide on average. The return was thus 2.02 times the budget.

In the case of romantic films, they had an average budget of Rs 98 crore and earned Rs 204.45 crore worldwide on average. The return here was thus 2.09 times the budget. (The Gross/Budget Ratio measures a film’s financial performance and tells you how many times the film earned back its cost of production at the box office.)

Romantic films slightly edge out action with a 2.09× return on budget vs 2.02× for action. While the gap between these figures might not seem much at first, it can create a significant gap in the box office numbers, making romance a safer bet. Though action films had lower average budgets, the higher earnings of romantic films gave them a better overall return on investment. As per these calculations, romantic films performed better both in absolute numbers and profitability.

The romance expectations from Dharma are about to turn a notch higher now, as Karan Johar has promised to return to the director’s chair in 2026!