On October 27, 2000, the Indian box office witnessed a significant clash between two big stars of Bollywood Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan. This clash was highly anticipated due to the ongoing rivalry between these two stars.
Business Tweet introduces a new series called BOB (Box Office Battle), with the first story being the showdown between Mohabbatein and Mission Kashmir. Let’s dive into the details of this box office battle.
The Beginning:
It’s not uncommon for two big films to release on the same day at the box office. However, it’s not preferred by trade analysts and single-screen theaters as it often divides collections and spreads negativity. Nonetheless, when Mission Kashmir and Mohabbatein hit the screens, there was considerable excitement among audiences, despite the lack of social media back then. Information was primarily circulated through news channels and newspapers, yet fans were engaged in discussions and debates about their favorite stars.
Both films were released around Diwali, a time when cinemas were expected to be packed with audiences. While Mission Kashmir starred the rising star Hrithik Roshan, Mohabbatein featured the “King of Bollywood” Shah Rukh Khan. Even before the release, there was some controversy brewing between these two stars.
The Triumph of Hrithik over Shah Rukh:
Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai was a massive success that catapulted Hrithik to overnight stardom, earning ₹44.28 crores at the box office. Adjusting for inflation, this would be approximately ₹295 crores in today’s money. Hrithik’s performance in the film was exceptional, captivating audiences of all age groups. Just about a week later, Shah Rukh’s Dil Hai Hindustani was released.
While Dil Hai Hindustani boasted all the ingredients of a masala entertainer, its concept didn’t resonate well with audiences at that time. The film tackled the commercialization of media, a theme that didn’t appeal to audiences back then. However, Shah Rukh’s star power ensured a decent opening for the film. The songs were well-received too. Unfortunately, the film started declining in its first week itself and ended up being a flop, despite earning a total of ₹10.75 crores.
In this clash, it was clear that Hrithik emerged as the winner, overshadowing Shah Rukh Khan’s film at the box office.
The collection of this film was difficult to achieve even one-fourth of the collection of Hrithik’s “Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai.” Coincidentally, Aamir Khan’s “Mela” was released a week before “Kaho Naa Pyaar Hai” and turned out to be the biggest disaster of Aamir’s career. However, surprisingly, no negativity surrounded Aamir Khan. But when Shahrukh’s “Phir Bhi Dil Hai Hindustani” flopped, he came under the scrutiny of people.
People began to claim that Shahrukh’s stardom was declining and the industry had found a new superstar in Hrithik. A substantial article criticizing Shahrukh was published in Stardust magazine. Meanwhile, India Today magazine featured Hrithik on its cover page in the March 2000 edition, stating that after Hrithik’s arrival, all other stars, especially the Khans, seemed weak and exhausted. Some film magazines even portrayed Hrithik as superior to the Khans.
And things took a turn for the worse. It is said that when Hrithik’s picture appeared on the cover page of India Today, Shahrukh was in London undergoing knee surgery. Gauri, Shahrukh’s wife, felt uncomfortable with Shahrukh’s image being downplayed in these magazines. Gauri criticized these magazines for this. It is said that when Shahrukh returned from London, Gauri had all these magazines removed from their home and office so that Shahrukh wouldn’t have to read them.
It is also said that when the media sensed Gauri’s point of view, they began to harass her even more. Wherever Gauri went, media personnel started asking her questions about Hrithik. Several media groups even tried to interview Gauri, but she refused to give any interviews to anyone. However, Gauri did give an interview to a magazine named “Savvy” in which she spoke both positively and negatively about those criticizing Shahrukh.
Gauri referred to such people as jealous of Shahrukh. In this way, Gauri Khan continued to handle the unspoken rivalry between Shahrukh and Hrithik for a long time. But people were shocked when about two months after returning from London, Shahrukh’s Pepsi ad was released. The ad featured Tara Sharma with Shahrukh, depicting how Tara Sharma had to kiss a nerdy-looking boy, resembling Hrithik, after losing a bet with Shahrukh.
And the boy looked like Hrithik. After the release of this ad, a controversy erupted. People considered it a direct attack by Shahrukh on Hrithik. The matter escalated to the extent that Hrithik’s father Rakesh Roshan himself criticized it. And when the matter escalated further, Pepsi had to issue a clarification.
Pepsi said that they did not create this ad to target Hrithik. Even the director of that ad, Prahlad Kakkar, said that Rakesh Roshan was unnecessarily making a big deal out of it. It’s nothing like what he’s thinking. It’s worth noting that it was also the time when Coca-Cola had made Hrithik their brand ambassador. At that time, many people also said that Pepsi had made this ad targeting Coca-Cola.
Then came the face-off between SRK and Hrithik Roshan. After this entire controversy, in the same year, i.e., October 2000, Shahrukh and Hrithik once again faced each other. This confrontation took place at the box office. And this time, both stars’ films were released on the same date. These films were “Mohabbatein” and “Mission Kashmir.” On October 27, 2000, both these films knocked on the silver screen.
Not only in the country but also among Bollywood film enthusiasts worldwide, all eyes were on the performance of these two films. “Mohabbatein” was a Yash Raj Films production directed by Aditya Chopra. Apart from Shahrukh, “Mohabbatein” also featured a big name like Amitabh Bachchan. On the other hand, “Mission Kashmir” was directed by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. The pairing of Hrithik and Preity Zinta in “Mission Kashmir” had created excitement among people.
While the presence of Sanjay Dutt and Jackie Shroff in “Mission Kashmir” was also seen as a ray of hope. And it wouldn’t be wrong to say that at that time, these films had become a fight between the Chopras and the Roshans.
The songs of both films were already creating a buzz in the music industry. At the time of release, “Mission Kashmir” seemed to have a heavy upper hand. “Mission Kashmir” was released on 400 screens nationwide, while “Mohabbatein” was released on 315 screens. “Mission Kashmir” also had a stronger opening than “Mohabbatein.” On the first day, while “Mission Kashmir” earned 16.4 million rupees, “Mohabbatein” earned 11.9 million rupees.
That is, the first-day collection of “Mission Kashmir” was the highest at that time. And over the weekend, “Mission Kashmir” earned 48.6 million rupees. However, gradually, the collection of “Mission Kashmir” started to decline. Although “Mission Kashmir” received much praise from critics, the audience did not like the film. On the other hand, “Mohabbatein” gradually began to gain a foothold at the box office.
Where “Mission Kashmir” saw a drastic drop in collections in the second week compared to the first, “Mohabbatein,” which had earned 76.2 million rupees in the first week, managed to earn almost the same amount in the second week as well. “Mohabbatein” was a substantial film. And due to Shahrukh-Amitabh’s powerful dialogues and magnificent scenes, this film was liked by the audience. The concept of this film was also appealing to people. While the concept of “Mission Kashmir” did not resonate with the audience.
Overall, the lifetime collection of “Mohabbatein” was 418.8 million rupees, while the lifetime collection of “Mission Kashmir” was approximately 230 million rupees. And thus, Shahrukh Khan emerged as the winner of the box office battle. Hrithik had to face defeat. However, it is worth noting that although “Mission Kashmir” lagged behind “Mohabbatein” in terms of collection, Hrithik’s performance was much appreciated in “Mission Kashmir.”
Not only the audience but also the critics highly praised Hrithik’s acting. They called Hrithik the future superstar of Bollywood. After “Mission Kashmir,” Hrithik’s films “Yaadein,” “Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham,” “Na Tum Jaano Na Hum,” “Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage,” etc., were released. But none of these films did anything special at the box office.
However, after the failure of these films, Hrithik finally got success in the form of “Koi… Mil Gaya.” This film was directed by his father Rakesh Roshan. Not only did “Koi… Mil Gaya” do well at the box office, but it also won many hearts. And with this film, Hrithik Roshan finally managed to prove himself as a superstar.