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Home  » Movies » Bollywood's 10 Heist Movies

Bollywood's 10 Heist Movies

By Joginder Tuteja/ Rediff.com
September 15, 2014 09:05 IST
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The Happy New Year castJust how well do heist movies do in Bollywood?

Heist movies are quite popular in Hollywood, and most of the time, they're pretty engaging.

It's not the same here.

Shah Rukh Khan's upcoming movie Happy New Year attempts a heist, and throws in music and dance as well.

Directed by Farah Khan, the film also stars Deepika Padukone, Abhishek Bachchan, Boman Irani, Sonu Sood and Vivaan Shah.

Whether they pull off the heist, we will know this Diwali.

Until then, we look back at how this genre has done in Bollywood.

 

Cash 

Riteish Deshmukh, Esha Deol, Ajay Devgn and Zayed Khan in Cash

Image: Riteish Deshmukh, Esha Deol, Ajay Devgn and Zayed Khan in Cash

Box office collection: Rs 20 crore

The trailers of Cash looked very cool and stylish.

The cast was exciting too, with Ajay Devgn, Suniel Shetty and Riteish Deshmukh joined by hot ladies Shamita Shetty and Dia Mirza. 

But it was so bad, Devgn ultimately disowned it, adding he was happy that the film didn't do well at the box office.

Aankhen

Movie poster of Aankhen

Image: Akshay Kumar, Arjun Rampal, Paresh Rawal and Amitabh Bachchan in Aankhen

Box office collection: Rs 18 crore

One of the most authentic heist dramas in Hindi cinema, Aankhen starred Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Arjun Rampal, Paresh Rawal and Sushmita Sen.

Akki, Arjun and Paresh played blind men, pulling off a cool bank robbery. The film deserves a repeat watch.

Kaante

Kumar Gaurav, Sanjay Dutt, Suneil Shetty, Amitabh Bachchan, Mahesh Manjrekar and Lucky Ali in Kaante

Image: Kumar Gaurav, Sanjay Dutt, Suneil Shetty, Amitabh Bachchan, Mahesh Manjrekar and Lucky Ali in Kaante

Box office collection: Rs 21 crore

Yet another Amitabh Bachchan affair, Kaante was inspired from Reservoir Dogs.

Sanjay Gupta shot the film like a Hollywood thriller, and did complete justice to the genre. The suspense was all there as well.

Players 

Sonam Kapoor and Neil Nitin Mukesh in Players

Image: Sonam Kapoor and Neil Nitin Mukesh in Players

Box office collection: Rs 28 crore

An official remake of The Italian Job, director duo Abbas-Mustan called the shots.

No expense was spared to give it a slick and glossy look.

The twists were left intact as well. However, it did not find any takers.

Dhoom series

Movie posters of Dhoom, Dhoom: 2 and Dhoom: 3

Image: Movie posters of Dhoom, Dhoom: 2 and Dhoom: 3

Combined box office collection: Rs 398 crore (Dhoom: Rs 30 crore, Dhoom 2: Rs 84 crore, Dhoom 3: Rs 284 crore)

Con, thrillers, drama, heist... the Dhoom series had it all.

Every time, the antagonists (John Abraham, Hrithik Roshan and Aamir Khan respectively) managed to achieve what he had set out for and the cops (Abhishek Bachchan and Uday Chopra) are left behind.

Don 2 

Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra in Don 2

Image: Shah Rukh Khan and Priyanka Chopra in Don 2

Box office collection: Rs 107 crore

Yes, Shah Rukh Khan has done a heist film before.

In Farhan Akhtar's edgy Don 2,  SRK's stylish Don took on the cops, and emerged trumphs.

It may not have been as entertaining as the first Don but it was a winner anyway.

Tees Maar Khan

Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in Tees Maar Khan

Image: Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif in Tees Maar Khan

Box office collection: Rs 68 crore

The concept was good.

A fake movie was being shot, and a train full of goodies would be looted.

Directed by Farah Khan, the film starred Akshay Kumar and Katrina Kaif. Her Sheila Ki Jawani song was a huge hit, and ensured a huge opening.

However, a severe backlash from all quarters pulled it down.

Special 26

Movie poster of Special 26

Image: Movie poster of Special 26

Box office collection: Rs 66 crore

Based on a real life incident, a group of crooks posed as cops and looted a jewellery store. Special 26 is one of the most authentic heist thrillers in Hindi cinema.

Akshay Kumar and Anupam Kher were the stars of the show. It was directed by Neeraj Pandey.

Shalimar

Movie poster of Shalimar

Image: Dharmendra, Zeenat Aman and Shammi Kapoor in Shalimar

Box office collection: Rs 1.5 crore

Dharmendra and Zeenat Aman's Shalimar attempted this genre long before Tom Cruise and George Clooney gave us Mission: Impossible and Ocean's Eleven.

The object of heist attention was a ruby. The film was very fashionable, and had some chartbuster music as well.

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Joginder Tuteja/ Rediff.com in Mumbai