Box Office Nightmares: 15 Big-Budget Bollywood Movies That Turned Out To Be Flops
From ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ to ‘Maidaan’ and ‘Ganapath’, here’s a look at big-budget Bollywood films that failed to justify their massive costs at the box office.
In the world of Hindi cinema, monumental budgets, extravagant sets, and A-list casts often serve as a formula for theatrical success. However, as box office history has proven time and again, scale does not always guarantee audience approval. When an ambitious project fails to connect with viewers, the resulting financial hit can be historic. For every ‘Pathaan’, ‘Stree 2’, ‘Chhaava’ or ‘Saiyaara’ that turns into a box-office juggernaut, Bollywood has a graveyard full of disasters – films mounted on superstar power, sky-high budgets and months of marketing muscle that crashed spectacularly the moment audiences walked into theatres.
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The post-pandemic era, in particular, has been ruthless to vanity projects, where weak scripts have repeatedly proved costlier than any production design. Relying on data from Sacnilk, here’s a look at some of Bollywood’s most expensive box-office flops in recent memory – the films that turned producers’ dream projects into balance-sheet nightmares.
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Check out the list here:
1. War 2 (2025)
The costliest entry in YRF’s Spy Universe became its biggest cautionary tale. Directed by Ayan Mukerji and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, ‘War 2’ released on August 14, 2025 and brought together Hrithik Roshan and Telugu superstar Jr. NTR for the first time, alongside Kiara Advani and Anil Kapoor. The film carried an estimated budget of Rs 400 crore, but it managed only Rs 236.55 crore net in India and Rs 364.35 crore worldwide. Reports suggested YRF would have absorbed roughly Rs 50 crore in losses despite recovering big money via non-theatrical deals – digital rights to Netflix at Rs 150 crore, satellite at Rs 50 crore and music at Rs 25 crore. The franchise’s brand pull simply could not survive the negative word-of-mouth around its weak screenplay and patchy VFX.
2. Sikandar (2025)
Salman Khan’s Eid 2025 release was meant to be a triumphant return to form – instead, it dented his decade-long Eid supremacy. Directed by Tamil filmmaker AR Murugadoss and produced by Sajid Nadiadwala under Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment in association with Salman Khan Films, ‘Sikandar’ released on March 30, 2025 and starred Salman alongside Rashmika Mandanna, Kajal Aggarwal, Sathyaraj and Sharman Joshi. The film carried a reported budget of Rs 200 crore but managed only Rs 184.89 crore worldwide and Rs 110.36 crore net in India. Critics flagged poor content, uninspired music and a tired formulaic approach.
3. Bade Miyan Chote Miyan (2024)
The Eid 2024 face-off between Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff turned into one of the most expensive misfires in recent Bollywood history. Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar and produced by Vashu Bhagnani, Jackky Bhagnani, Deepshikha Deshmukh, Himanshu Kishan Mehra and Zafar himself under Pooja Entertainment and AAZ Films, the action thriller released on April 11, 2024. The cast also included Prithviraj Sukumaran, Manushi Chhillar, Sonakshi Sinha and Alaya F. The film was reportedly made on a budget of around Rs 350 crore, while Sacnilk pegged its worldwide collections at Rs 111.50 crore – with India gross at Rs 78.50 crore. The financial damage to Pooja Entertainment was so severe that the production house faced widespread reports of insolvency proceedings.
4. Maidaan (2024)
Ajay Devgn’s sports biopic on legendary football coach Syed Abdul Rahim was, ironically, far better received than its Eid clash partner ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ but the box office didn’t reward the goodwill. Directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma and produced by Boney Kapoor under Bayview Projects and Zee Studios, ‘Maidaan’ also released on April 11, 2024. Boney Kapoor himself admitted the original budget of Rs 120 crore ballooned to Rs 210 crore due to repeated COVID delays and a cyclone that washed out his sets. The film struggled to even cross the Rs 50 crore net mark by its 29th day, eventually finishing with Rs 71.72 crore gross at the worldwide box office.
5. Auron Mein Kahan Dum Tha (2024)
Even the dependable pairing of Ajay Devgn and Tabu in their tenth film together couldn't save this Neeraj Pandey-directed romantic thriller. Released on August 2, 2024, it also starred Shantanu Maheshwari and Saiee Manjrekar. The film grossed a devastating Rs 15.79 crore worldwide, with India gross lifetime collections of just around Rs 13 crore. Made on a reported budget of Rs 100 crore, the film bombed miserably at the box office.
6. Ganapath: A Hero Is Born (2023)
Vikas Bahl's dystopian action drama is widely considered one of the most spectacular Bollywood disasters of the post-pandemic era. Directed and co-produced by Vikas Bahl alongside Vashu Bhagnani, Jackky Bhagnani and Deepshikha Deshmukh under Pooja Entertainment, ‘Ganapath’ released on October 20, 2023 and starred Tiger Shroff in a dual role with Kriti Sanon, Elli AvrRam and a cameo by Amitabh Bachchan. The film was made on a reported budget of Rs 200 crore but grossed just Rs 18 crore worldwide with a domestic net of Rs 13.2 crore. Reportedly, the planned sequel was quietly shelved.
7. Shamshera (2022)
Ranbir Kapoor's much-awaited big-screen return after a four-year gap turned into one of YRF’s most painful disasters. Directed by Karan Malhotra and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, ‘Shamshera’ released on July 22, 2022 and saw Ranbir in a double role alongside Sanjay Dutt, Vaani Kapoor, Saurabh Shukla and Ronit Roy. The film was made on a massive budget of Rs 150 crore but barely managed to cross Rs 60 crore mark worldwide with India net of Rs 40.45 crore.
8. Laal Singh Chaddha (2022)
Aamir Khan's ambitious Hindi adaptation of ‘Forrest Gump’ turned into one of the most high-profile failures of his career. Directed by Advait Chandan and produced by Viacom18 Studios and Aamir Khan Productions in association with Paramount Pictures, the film released on August 11, 2022 and starred Aamir alongside Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mona Singh and Naga Chaitanya. As per Sacnilk, the film netted Rs 61.36 crore in India and Rs 133.50 crore worldwide against a reported budget of Rs 180 crore. The film was hit by sustained boycott calls and tepid reviews, prompting Aamir to step away from acting for several years. He made his comeback with the 2025 Hindi movie ‘Sitaare Zameen Par’.
9. Samrat Prithviraj (2022)
Akshay Kumar's historical period drama on legendary warrior king Prithviraj Chauhan added to the actor's painful 2022 streak. Directed by Chandraprakash Dwivedi and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, ‘Samrat Prithviraj’ released on June 3, 2022 and also starred Manushi Chhillar in her Bollywood debut, with Sanjay Dutt, Sonu Sood, Manav Vij, Ashutosh Rana and Sakshi Tanwar in supporting roles. The film grossed Rs 80.55 crore in India and Rs 10 crore overseas for a worldwide gross of Rs 90.55 crore. Bollywood Hungama reported YRF lost a minimum of Rs 50 crore on the film against its Rs 220 crore budget, while director Chandraprakash Dwivedi later revealed Akshay had been so heartbroken by its failure that he was reduced to tears.
10. Kalank (2019)
The Karan Johar passion project of nearly fifteen years finally hit screens – only to crumble at the box office. Directed by Abhishek Varman and produced by Karan Johar, Sajid Nadiadwala, Hiroo Yash Johar and Apoorva Mehta under Dharma Productions, Nadiadwala Grandson Entertainment and Fox Star Studios, ‘Kalank’ released on April 17, 2019. The ensemble cast featured Madhuri Dixit, Sonakshi Sinha, Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Sanjay Dutt and Kunal Kemmu. Made on a reported budget of Rs 150 crore, the movie was unable to even recover its cost and earned Rs 146.80 crore worldwide.
11. Thugs of Hindostan (2018)
The first-ever pairing of Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan, alongside Katrina Kaif and Fatima Sana Shaikh, was supposed to be a historic event. However, it became a historic flop. Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya and produced by Aditya Chopra under Yash Raj Films, ‘Thugs of Hindostan’ released on November 8, 2018, during Diwali week. It was made on an estimated budget of Rs 310 crore, making it among the most expensive Bollywood films ever, and grossed Rs 327 crore at the worldwide box office. Its first day collection of 50.75 crore nett was the highest ever for a Hindi film at the time, before negative reviews triggered an unprecedented collapse.
12. Zero (2018)
Riding high on the massive success of his previous heartland romances, Aanand L. Rai teamed up with Shah Rukh Khan for this incredibly ambitious, VFX-heavy project. The movie, produced by Gauri Khan, Aanand L. Rai, Karuna Badwal, also starred Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif. SRK played Bauua Singh, a vertically challenged man from Meerut, which required extensive and expensive visual effects to seamlessly execute throughout the film's runtime. Despite a strong opening weekend fuelled by pre-release hype and star power, audiences felt a massive disconnect with the bizarre second half of the film, which inexplicably shifted from a small-town romance to a space mission. The severe drop in footfalls meant it couldn't recover its towering Rs 200 crore budget and made only Rs 178 crore worldwide.
13. Jagga Jasoos (2017)
Ranbir Kapoor and Anurag Basu's reunion after the success of ‘Barfi’ turned into one of the most expensive misfires of 2017. Directed and co-produced by Anurag Basu alongside Ranbir Kapoor under Picture Shuru Entertainment, with Disney India distributing, ‘Jagga Jasoos’ released on July 14, 2017 and also starred Katrina Kaif, Saurabh Shukla and Saswata Chatterjee. As per Sacnilk, the film netted Rs 54.16 crore in India, Rs 75.22 crore India gross, Rs 8.13 crore overseas and Rs 83.35 crore worldwide against a budget of Rs 125 crore. Both Anurag Basu and Ranbir Kapoor reportedly took fee cuts to ensure producers didn't bear the full brunt of the loss, and the planned trilogy was quietly shelved.
14. Mohenjo Daro (2016)
Ashutosh Gowariker reuniting with Hrithik Roshan after the success of ‘Jodhaa Akbar’ was meant to be magic. The Indus Valley Civilisation drama released on August 12, 2016 and was produced by UTV Motion Pictures, Sunita Gowariker and Siddharth Roy Kapur. It also starred Pooja Hegde in her Bollywood debut, with Kabir Bedi and Arunoday Singh. Made on a budget of Rs 120 crore, the film earned Rs 58.23 crore net in India and grossed around Rs 107 crore worldwide per Sacnilk. Veteran trade analyst Komal Nahta termed the losses around Rs 85-90 crore and called it the colossal disaster of the decade, putting it on par with ‘Bombay Velvet’. The film's clash with Akshay Kumar's ‘Rustom’ didn't help either.
15. Bombay Velvet (2015)
Anurag Kashyap's most ambitious project remains one of the most legendary disasters in Bollywood history. Directed and co-produced by Anurag Kashyap with Vikas Bahl and Vikramaditya Motwane under Phantom Films, in association with Fox Star Studios, the neo-noir period crime drama released on May 15, 2015. The film starred Ranbir Kapoor, Anushka Sharma and filmmaker Karan Johar in a rare acting turn, with Kay Kay Menon, Vivaan Shah and Manish Choudhary in supporting roles. Per Sacnilk, the film was made on a budget of Rs 115 crore but managed only Rs 23.71 crore net in India and Rs 43.20 crore worldwide. The misfire was so severe that it effectively ended the producing arm of Phantom Films and pushed Ranbir Kapoor into one of the rougher patches of his career.
