Published By: Sayan Paul

'Stree 2', 'Vedaa', 'Khel Khel Mein' To Face Off On Aug 15: Tracing Bollywood's Biggest Clashes On Independence Day

Besides these, the highly anticipated Tamil-language film 'Thangalaan' will also arrive at theatres on August 15, 2024.

Independence Day is just around the corner, and we don't need to reiterate the immense significance that this day holds. However, for Bollywood fans, it gets even more exciting with the release of some highly anticipated films. This year, we will see a massive clash of not two, but three, major Hindi releases - 'Stree 2', 'Vedaa', and 'Khel Khel Mein'. The first one is a horror comedy, while the second and third are action thriller and comedy-drama, respectively. Needless to say, it will be interesting to see which one among them wins the battle.

Historically, Independence Day (August 15) has always been a special window for the Hindi film industry, contributing to a remarkable surge in footfalls at theatres. And obviously, with more opportunity comes more competition, leading to a clash at the box office. Ashish Kanakia, the CEO of MovieMax Cinemas, said in a recent interview interview, "... Looking at it historically, such clashes have often led to increased footfalls as moviegoers have more choices. The key is scheduling and marketing to ensure each film gets the attention it deserves."

Credit: Filmy Explorer

As we gear up for the 'Stree 2' - 'Vedaa' - 'Khel Khel Mein' clash, let's travel down the history and have a look at Bollywood's biggest clashes around Independence Day.

Chennai Express - Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai Dobaara (2013)

Well, it wasn't a direct clash but we still had to mention this! Originallly, Shah Rukh Khan-starreer 'Chennai Express' and Akshay Kumar's 'Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai Dobaara' were set to clash at the box office on Independence Day, 2013. Later, 'Chennai Express' was preponed to August 9 to avoid the clash, and the Akshay-starrer hit theatres on August 15.

However, the dominion of Chennai Express' at theatres remained even after a week, putting a huge pressure on' Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai Dobaara!'. The SRK-starrer emerged a massive commercial success, while the latter managed to collect only ₹91.7 crore against a budget of ₹85 crore.

Rustom - Mohenjo Daro (2016)

'Rustom' and 'Mohenjo Daro' were both highly anticipated, and hence it was a huge clash between them on August 12, 2016. Almost everyone was pretty sure that 'Mohenjo Daro' would win the battle thanks to its star power (Hrithik Roshan), content (set in the ancient city of Mohenjo Daro), and director's brand value (Ashutosh Gowariker). However, Akshay Kumar's 'Rustom', directed by Tinu Suresh Desai, emerged as a surprise package - and how!

Made on a budget of ₹50 crores, 'Rustom' collected an estimated ₹218.12 crores at the box office. 'Mohenjo Daro', on the other hand, emerged as a critical and commercial failure.

Mission Mangal - Batla House (2019)

Akshay Kumar and John Abraham have long been friends and collaborators. However, it's also interesting that the two have had box office clashes multiple times in their careers. Back in 2019, on the occasion of Independence Day, Akshay's 'Mission Mangal' clashed with John's 'Batla House'.

Akshay Kumar was at the peak of his career at that time. So, Mission Mangal' (also starring Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Sonakshi Sinha, Nitya Menen, Kriti Kulhari, and Sharman Joshi) was naturally expected to win the battle over 'Batla House'.

However, what's worth noting is that both films worked well at the box office. 'Mission Mangal' was obviously the winner with ₹290 crores gross, while the John-starrer collected an estimated ₹113 crores.

I'm sure you have noticed that Akshay Kumar is the common name in all these clashes. It's because the actor has had an Independence Day release every year since 2013. And besides the above-mentioned clashes, the list also includes ‘Deewane’ – ‘Dhadkan’ (2000) 'Toilet - Ek Prem Katha' - 'Jab Harry Met Sejal' (2017), 'Gold' - 'Satyameva Jayate' (2018), and 'OMG-2' - 'Gadar 2' (2023) among others.