Top 10 Longest Running Bollywood Movies In Theaters
Posted On: 03 Nov 2020 | Last Updated : 07 Mar 2022 | Views : 10.1k
The longest run by a Bollywood movie in theatres nowadays is not more than a couple of months. Moreover, before you could say ‘Jack Robinson’, in no time you’d see the same flick appear either on a prime TV channel or any of the popular OTT movie apps. Well, the shelf life of a Bollywood movie during the olden days may be unbelievable for today’s generation, which would run for months together and create record collections. Bollywood has witnessed some longest-running movies in theatres, which are hard to forget. Let’s take a look at the top 10 longest-running Bollywood movies in theaters over the years which went on to collect huge moolah at the box-office.
1. Mohabbatein (2000) - 50 weeks
This could be a surprise to many but Aditya Chopra was back five years after Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge with Mohabbatein in 2000, which saw Shah Rukh Khan sharing screen space for the first time with Amitabh Bachchan. Despite a huge star cast and lovely music by Jatin - Lalit, Mohabbatein fell short of expectations set by DDLJ. But, somehow the film ran a good one year earning well at the box-office.
2. Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai (2000) - 50 weeks
Rakesh Roshan was desperate for a box-office hit before he launched his son Hrithik Roshan in Kaho Naa…Pyaar Hai along with Amisha Patel. The film gained instant success as it hit the bullseye at the box-office making Hrithik Bollywood’s next heartthrob. To no one’s surprise, the film ran to packed houses for a year while it went on to sweep a record number of maximum awards that year. Rajesh Roshan's songs added sheen to the proceedings.
3. Raja Hindustani (1996) - 50 weeks
Aamir Khan and Karisma Kapoor set the screen on fire in Dharmesh Darshan's romantic comedy-drama Raja Hindustani. A remake of Shashi Kapoor’s 1965 classic Jab Jab Phool Khile, Raja Hindustani became a blockbuster from the very first day with chartbuster songs from Nadeem - Shravan. The film ran in most centers for a year making it Aamir’s longest-running movie in theatres.
4. Hum Aapke Hain Koun...! (1994) - 50 weeks
Talk about family tearjerkers with lots of songs, it's got to be Sooraj Barjatya's Hum Aapke Hain Koun...! who was back with his lucky mascot Salman Khan five years after Maine Pyar Kiya, this time the latter romancing Madhuri Dixit on screen. A remake of Rajshri’s yesteryear hit Nadiya Ke Paar, Hum Aapke Hain Koun…! brought back families to the theatres in hordes while making it run for a year despite cable TV and video piracy making inroads those days.
5. Maine Pyar Kiya (1989) - 50 weeks
A bunch of newbies – Salman Khan, Bhagyashree and debutant director Sooraj Barjatya struck gold with this awe-inspiring tale of young romance. Maine Pyar Kiya came at the fag end of 1989 with just a few prints to go with but as the film grew in popularity, the prints increased and so did the cash registers. Maine Pyar Kiya was a colossal hit that made Salman Khan and Bhagyashree into overnight stars.
6. Barsaat (1949) - 100 weeks (2 years)
Raj Kapoor’s Barsaat was a runaway hit when released in 1949 and was one of the longest-running movies in theaters. The romantic drama ran for nearly two years getting the cash registers ringing which paved the way for building the RK Studios. The romantic pair of Raj Kapoor and Nargis was established while rookie music director duo Shankar-Jaikishan composed evergreen chartbuster songs that continue to play at many functions and music apps. The film remains the showman’s longest-running movie in theatres to date.
7. Mughal-E-Azam (1960) - 150 weeks (3 years)
K. Asif’s long-in-the-making historical period drama Mughal-E-Azam was the most awaited movie in those days. It took the director ten long years to shoot and release it but the result was nothing short of a blockbuster as it ran for three years continuously in cinema halls. Getting doyens Prithviraj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar sharing screen space was something audiences could not believe while the songs became chartbusters.
8. Kismet (1943) - 150 weeks (3 years)
Gyan Mukherjee's Kismet had Ashok Kumar playing an anti-hero character but the novelty in the screenplay turned the tide in his favour resulting in a blockbuster. The audiences thronged to the theatres to see a hero playing a character with grey shades as it ran for 150 weeks (three years) collecting a crore at the box-office which was unheard of in those days.
9. Sholay (1975) - 286 weeks (5 years)
It was Ramesh Sippy’s Sholay, which had held the record for the longest-running Bollywood movie in theatres until DDLJ released. Sholay rewrote history and shattered all existing previous box-office records, which were unheard of. The star cast was known by their characters rather than their real names while Gabbar Singh became the most dreaded screen villain of all times. The film that replaced Sholay after 5 years in Mumbai’s Minerva theatre was none other than Ramesh Sippy’s Shaan in 1980.
10. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) - 1200 weeks & still running
Believe it or not! Aditya Chopra’s directorial debut Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge which was released in 1995 is the undisputed king in the list of top 10 longest-running films in theaters that continue to run in Mumbai’s Maratha Mandir theatre. Shah Rukh Khan as Raj and Kajol as Simran have become household names while the film which recently completed 25 years of its release, is considered a landmark in Indian cinema. It’ll be very hard for any film to break or surpass the record established by DDLJ in the future.
