3 min readMumbaiUpdated: Dec 10, 2025 03:34 PM IST
2025 is the year of newcomers in the Indian entertainment sector, at least as per IMDb. The global platform has released its list of Most Popular Films and Most Popular Shows of the year. While Mohit Suri’s blockbuster romantic drama Saiyaara, starring newcomers Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda, has emerged as the No 1 film, Aryan Khan’s directorial debut on Netflix India, The Ba***ds of Bollywood, has been ranked the No 1 show.
Most Popular Films
Saiyaara captured the nation’s attention by becoming the highest grossing Indian film starring newcomers. The movie earned Rs 579.23 crore at the global box office, and Rs 329.20 crore at the Indian box office. Produced by Aditya Chopra’s Yash Raj Films, it also became the highest grossing romantic film of the year, announcing the return of the long-lost genre in Hindi cinema.
The #2 film on IMDb‘s list was Ashwin Kumar’s mythological animated film Mahavatar Narsimha, which became the highest grossing Indian animated film of all time. Backed by Hombale Films, it earned Rs 325.74 crore at the worldwide box office and Rs 250.29 crore at the Indian box office, across the Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam languages.
The third spot on the list was Laxman Utekar’s period action film Chhaava, starring Vicky Kaushal, Rashmika Mandanna, and Akshaye Khanna. Backed by Dinesh Vijan’s Maddock Films, it became the highest grossing Hindi film of the year, amassing Rs 716.91 crore domestically and Rs 807.91 crore worldwide.
The fourth spot was secured by Rishab Shetty’s Kannada action epic Kantara: Chapter 1, a prequel to his 2022 blockbuster Kantara. The film, backed by Hombale Films, earned Rs 622.04 crore at the domestic box office and Rs 851.89 crore at the worldwide box office. The fifth spot belonged to another South film — Lokesh Kanagaraj’s Tamil crime thriller Coolie. The Rajinikanth-starrer earned Rs 285.01 crore at the domestic box office and Rs 518 crore at the global box office.
The remaining five films on the list are Ashwath Marimuthu’s Tamil coming-of-age comedy Dragon, starring Pradeep Ranganathan, on #6; RS Prasanna’s sports dramedy Sitaare Zameen Par, starring Aamir Khan, on #7; Rosshan Andrrews’ cop drama Deva, starring Shahid Kapoor, on #8; Raj Kumar Gupta’s crime thriller Raid 2, starring Ajay Devgn, on #9; and Dominic Arun’s Malayalam superhero film Lokah Chapter 1: Chandra, starring Kalyani Priyadarshan, on #10.
Also Read: Gangs of Wasseypur, Saiyaara top IMDb’s list of most popular Indian films of last 25 years; Pathaan, RRR, Chhaava miss top spots
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Most Popular Series
IMDb’s list of Most Popular Series was topped by The Ba***ds of Bollywood, marking the directorial debut of Shah Rukh Khan’s son Aryan Khan. The other shows that made it to the list are Vikramaditya Motwane’s prison drama Black Warrant on Netflix India at #2, Sudip Sharma’s crime thriller Pataal Lok: S2 on Prime Video India at #3, Panchayat: S4 on Prime Video India at #4, Yash Raj Films’ Mandala Murders on Netflix India at #5, Smita Sharma’s supernatural show Khauf on Prime Video India at #6, Neeraj Pandey’s spy thriller Special Ops: S2 on JioHotstar at #7, Pandey’s Khakee: The Bengal Chapter on Netflix India at #8, Raj & DK’s spy thriller The Family Man: S3 on Prime Video India at #9, and Rohan Sippy’s courtroom drama Criminal Justice: A Family Affair on JioHotstar at #10.
Saiyara and The Ba***ds of Bollywood secure the #1 spots in IMDb's list of Most Popular Films and Shows of 2025 respectively.