When the common man turned hero

Whether it was a comedy like Singh is Kinng, a serious film like A Wednesday, a candy floss romance like Jane Tu Ya Jane Na or a comic romance like Rab ne Bana Di Jodi, Bollywood saw a wide range of variety in 2008.
But in spite of variations it chalked out some distinctive trends. JT takes you through the movies released in 2008 as it tracks down what ruled Bollywood.
Comedy freak
While 2007 saw some of the biggest comic hits, Bollywood did not get over its love for comedy this year too.The audience laughed through the year as films like Golmaal Returns, and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi kept tickling them. Others like Krazzy 4 and One Two Three didn���t quite manage to laugh all the way to the box office.
RISE OF THE COMMOn MAN: Films like Aamir and A Wednesday where we saw the common man rising to the level of a hero, did exceptionally well in 2008. Says Rajeev Khandelwal, who portrayed the character of a man caught in a terrorist racket in, Aamir, ���Today people like to see something that is believable. People could relate to the characters in Aamir.���
Terror Struck
We don���t know if the terror attacks and the bomb blasts in the last few years have anything to do with it, but we saw a string of films released in 2008 that had terrorism as its theme. While films like Shoot on Sight did not do very well but others like Mumbai Meri Jaan did respectable business. They were widely appreciated for their treatment. ���We have seen the worst terror attacks of our times in the last few years. When I wrote the script of Aamir, these attacks kept haunting me. The script is everything I felt about these attacks. And that the film was well received proves that the audience has grown up,��� says Rajkumar Gupta, director of Aamir.
We want reality
A bite of reality along with a strong script worked well in 2008. Even a story on the world of fashion struck a chord with the audience. Madhur Bhandarkar���s Fashion was among the top grossers in 2008. Says Aaliya Curmally, Consultant, National Films Development Corporation of India, ���The films based on reality had simplicity of story-telling and a script that connected to the audience.��� There were only a few other big budget films like Race and Jodha Akbar which did well in spite of being different from the league.
Twinkle twinkle little stars: Be it Imraan Khan, Harman Baweja, Anoushka Sharma, Asin ��� the youngsters have all done decently in their first films. But the award for best debutant, should go to Aamir Khan���s talented nephew Imraan for his perfect portrayals of his characters in his first two films.
Expert Speak
With much hyped big budget films like Drona, Love Story 2050, Karzzzz bombing at the box office, It was indeed the small budget, simple movies that ruled silver screen in 2008. Trade Analyst Taran Adarsh says, ���It���s true that many small budget films did well in 2008 but one cannot ignore that all of them had very good stories to tell.���