Indian Cinema Reaches No. 1 at U.K. Box Office After 28-Year Climb

Sony Pictures' "Ramayana: Rise of a Legend" has debuted at No. 1 in the official U.K. and Ireland box office chart with £2.1 million ($2.8 million) including previews. It is the first Indian film to claim the territory's box office summit. The milestone closes a 28-year climb that began, improbably, with a political romance.

In August 1998, Mani Ratnam's "Dil Se.." entered the official top 10 at No. 8 — then unthinkable for South Asian cinema. Shah Rukh Khan's rising overseas stardom and A.R. Rahman's ubiquitous soundtrack pushed it through mainstream British multiplexes on limited screens. Before that, Indian cinema's U.K. footprint lived largely in single screens and community halls in diaspora hubs such as Southall, Wembley, Leicester and Birmingham. Films like "Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!" (1994) and "Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge" (1995) eventually crossed £1 million ($1.6 million) over prolonged runs, but they operated in an isolated distribution ecosystem outside mainstream computerized reporting.

How did Bollywood build on the breakthrough?

Quickly. Two months after "Dil Se..," Karan Johar's directorial debut "Kuch Kuch Hota Hai" bowed inside the top 10 and amassed £1.7 million ($3 million). In 2001, Johar's "Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham…" reached No. 3 with £473,255 ($681,000) in its first week from just 41 screens, finishing near £2.5 million ($3.6 million). A decade of major releases followed:

• Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Devdas" (2002)
• Yash Chopra's "Veer-Zaara" (2004)
• Johar's "Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna" (2006)

These cemented Hindi-language cinema as a reliable weekend fixture in the U.K. top 10.

The threshold rose in 2010 when 20th Century Fox released Johar's "My Name Is Khan," starring Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol, on 91 screens. It debuted at No. 6 with £936,000 ($1.4 million) and closed at £2.6 million ($4.1 million). In 2013, Aamir Khan's "Dhoom 3" bowed with £884,567 ($1.4 million) and became the first Indian film to cross £2.7 million ($4.4 million) in the territory. Aamir Khan pushed further with "PK" (2014, £2.3 million / $3.7 million) and "Dangal" (2016, £2.5 million / $3.2 million). Salman Khan's "Bajrangi Bhaijaan" (2015) reached £2.6 million ($4.1 million).

Yet a glass ceiling held: chart positions hovered between No. 3 and No. 10 against Hollywood tentpoles, and South Indian cinema stayed hampered by fragmented distribution.

What changed with South Indian cinema?

April 2017 brought S.S. Rajamouli's "Baahubali 2: The Conclusion," starring Prabhas. It crossed £1 million ($1.3 million) within 10 days, but Comscore's official chart listed each language version separately: the Hindi version opened at No. 6 with £221,452 ($286,000) from 50 sites, the Tamil version at No. 9 with £194,522 ($251,000) from 39 sites, with Malayalam and Telugu versions lower. Even combined, roughly £455,000 ($587,000) would have ranked only No. 6 — behind "Their Finest" (£630,544; $813,000) and far below the £13.1 million ($16.9 million) bow of "Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2."

The ceiling cracked in March 2022 with Rajamouli's "RRR." The Telugu epic debuted at No. 2 with £650,204 ($858,000) from 160 locations, including previews, held off only by Warner Bros.' "The Batman." The pan-Indian wave that followed united reporting streams and pulled Southern regional industries into the mainstream multiplex fold.

Mani Ratnam's Tamil epic "Ponniyin Selvan: I" (2022) opened with £745,000 ($834,000) across 119 U.K. sites, charting at No. 5 and finishing at £1.2 million ($1.3 million). In March 2024, Blessy's survival drama "Aadujeevitham – The Goat Life," starring Prithviraj Sukumaran, set Malayalam benchmarks: No. 5 on debut with £556,514 ($702,000), grossing some £717,000 ($903,000). That summer, Nag Ashwin's "Kalki 2898 AD," also starring Prabhas and released by Dreamz Entertainment across 450 U.K. sites, opened at No. 3 with £886,366 ($1.1 million) and passed £1.5 million ($1.9 million).

Who matched the No. 2 benchmark?

Shah Rukh Khan did, twice in 2023. In January, Siddharth Anand's spy thriller "Pathaan" opened at No. 2 with a £1.4 million ($1.74 million) three-day weekend — £1.97 million ($2.44 million) over five days — behind James Cameron's holdover "Avatar: The Way of Water," on its way to a then-record £4.38 million ($5.4 million). In September, Atlee's "Jawan" mirrored the feat, debuting at No. 2 with £1.35 million ($1.67 million). Ranbir Kapoor's "Animal" (2023) opened lower, at No. 6 with £719,000 ($906,000), but legged out to £2.37 million ($3 million).

In March this year, Aditya Dhar's spy sequel "Dhurandhar: The Revenge" became the fourth Indian film to open at No. 2, with a then-record £1.6 million ($2.1 million) Friday-to-Sunday weekend — £2.1 million ($2.8 million) including previews. It overtook "Pathaan" as the territory's highest-grossing Indian release, with more than £4.4 million ($5.9 million).

South Indian cinema hit its own high-water mark in October, when Nelson Dilipkumar's Tamil sequel "Jailer 2," starring Rajinikanth, opened at No. 3 with £1.1 million ($1.5 million) from 228 sites — the weekend's highest site average. Within 10 days it became the territory's highest-grossing Tamil film, with £1.6 million ($2.1 million).

Until this week, No. 2 remained the ceiling. "Ramayana" broke it.

What is 'Ramayana: Rise of a Legend'?

Directed by Nitesh Tiwari ("Dangal") and produced by Namit Malhotra's Prime Focus Studios and DNEG in association with Yash's Monster Mind Creations, the film is the first of a two-part adaptation of the Hindu epic. Ranbir Kapoor plays Rama, Yash plays the demon king Ravana, Sai Pallavi plays Sita, with Sunny Deol as Hanuman and Ravie Dubey as Lakshmana. The story pits the prince against the vengeful king and ends with Ravana's abduction of Sita, stopping short of the war between them.

Backed by a format-heavy rollout across 364 sites, including premium 3D and large-format screens, the film's £2.1 million ($2.8 million) debut set a new opening record for an Indian film in the territory. It outstripped Disney's "Wild Horse Nine" (£1.48 million; $1.97 million) at No. 2 and Anime Ltd.'s "Godzilla Minus Zero" (£1.3 million; $1.8 million) at No. 3.

One weekend, though, is not a full run. The territory's highest-grossing Indian release, "Dhurandhar: The Revenge," has taken just over £4.4 million ($5.9 million) — a fraction of the biggest Hollywood and British earners. "Project Hail Mary," which kept "Dhurandhar" off the top spot in March, passed £15 million ($20 million) in two weekends; "Avatar: The Way of Water" was above £70 million ($86.8 million) by its seventh. "Ramayana" has broken the ceiling for one weekend. Breaking it over a full run is the next test.