Hansal Mehta says films shouldn’t be judged by box office numbers: ‘Terrible films sometimes make a lot of money’

Hansal Mehta, who has directed films like Faraaz, Aligarh and Citylights, said box office collections aren't any indicator of the quality of a film.

By: Entertainment Desk

Mumbai | April 25, 2023 12:04 PM IST

3 min read

Hansal Mehta opens up on box office obsession. (Photo: Hansal Mehta/Instagram)

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Filmmaker Hansal Mehta says the audience should focus on their experience of films, rather than fixate on their box office collections, which, according to him, is “nobody’s business”. The director, known for helming hard-hitting socio-political dramas, requested people to “stop judging” a film by the money it mints at the box office.

Mehta, who has directed films like Faraaz, Aligarh and Citylights, said box office collections aren’t any indicator of a good film, as sometimes even “terrible” movies have gone on to nett solid collections.

Responding to a tweet by a trade analyst, who had mentioned about the difference between a producer’s figure and that of the trade, Mehta wrote, “Bottom Line: A films box-office is nobody’s business. It impacts ONLY those involved in the film in various ways that are purely transactional and essentially private.

“STOP JUDGING FILMS BY B-O NUMBERS. Terrible films sometimes make a lot of money and good films make less money. Focus on your experience of the film as an audience and not on the film’s collections. Focus on whether the film was worth the price of your ticket not on whether the price of the film star should go up or down.”

Responding to another tweet, which had argued that the bottom line of business is just “profit and loss”, with box office being the “real key to judge the film at theatres”, Mehta said anyone who doesn’t invest in movies shouldn’t interfere with its economics.

“You judge a film by its B-O? Do you invest in films? If not, then the business of films is not your business. Simple economics will ensure corrections without your knowledgeable interventions. Without your knowledgable intervention hopefully better films will get made and good films will find their audiences,” he added.

So far for the Hindi film industry, only Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan has emerged as a blockbuster, while Salman Khan’s big Eid release Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan got a major holiday boost and put up a solid weekend total. Trade is keenly watching where it ends its lifetime run now.

On the work front, Mehta will yet dive into the world of long format storytelling again with Netflix’s upcoming series Scoop. Inspired by Jigna Vora’s biographical book Behind The Bars In Byculla: My Days in Prison, Scoop is created by Mehta and Mrunmayee Lagoo Waikul, known for co-writing Thappad.

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