'Sitaare Zameen Par', 'Ghajini 2' or Lokesh Kanagaraj's Film? Trade Bets on Aamir Khan's New Phase
Industry insiders reveal how Aamir Khan is carefully considering what to dive into next, with offers from Tamil and Telugu filmmakers as well.
What's the next Aamir Khan film that will win over everyone and effortlessly break some (or all) box office records? Is it going to be his upcoming comedy sports drama Sitaare Zameen Par? Or will he sign the Ghajini sequel that the industry was buzzing about? Has he locked the Zoya Akhtar script, for which he was reportedly approached, or is he looking to play a superhero in Lokesh Kanagraj's next? As the actor gears up to return to the big screen after three years, industry insiders and trade experts discuss the next move of the superstar.
"You know what is the silliest thing you can do with Aamir Khan?" veteran film distributor Raj Bansal asked while speaking to The Hollywood Reporter India. "Write him off. He is too big to be dented by a few flops."
Aamir has built a remarkable career on discerning script choices, often opting for socially conscious dramas with a beating heart. A leading Bollywood director, speaking anonymously, said that what set Aamir apart from his contemporaries was his awareness that his script choices, more than his personality, would take him a long way.
"And that clarity has helped him have this enviable filmography. He has successfully navigated the elusive balance between art and commerce, delivering what Bollywood terms 'meaningful cinema' while consistently yielding impressive box office returns. No other star did that with such consistency," the filmmaker shared.
If Rang De Basanti (2006), Fanaa (2006) and Taare Zameen Par (2007) gave Aamir consecutive hits, what followed next were movies where he set industry records with high-value content and then rewrote it with every consecutive film.
In 2008, Ghajini became the first film to net ₹100 crore. Aamir broke its record by delivering a bigger hit the next year with 3 Idiots, which was the first ₹200 crore hit. He balanced the decent success of Talaash: The Answer Lies Within (2012) with the record-shattering Dhoom 3 (2013). A year later, he opened the ₹300 crore club with PK, and then he finally delivered Dangal, the acclaimed 2016 sports drama that remained Hindi cinema's highest grosser for seven years before it was dethroned by Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan (2023).
"But, of course, he fumbled after that," Vishek Chauhan told The Hollywood Reporter India as he reflected on the last nine years of Aamir at the box office, where he witnessed two massive failures with Thugs of Hindostan (2018) and Laal Singh Chaddha in 2022.
"From a trade perspective, the kind of films Aamir would do earlier have all been shifted to OTT. So, when a genre or filmmaking style is available on streaming, people are reluctant to pay to watch it on the big screen. What excites me more than his Sitaare Zameen Par is the prospect of him doing a kickass commercial cinema because Amair is due for a transformation."
"We have seen him be this social crusader for a long time. Now imagine him in a heavy-duty entertainer? That would be so refreshing in the same way it was cool to see Shah Rukh in Pathaan. If the Lokesh film happens, which I read is a superhero project about a man with an iron hand, that is right up his alley. It is high time Aamir went to that zone," Chauhan said.
Bansal, on the other hand, has his hopes pinned on Sitaare Zameen Par, which is gearing up for a June release. The film, billed as a spiritual sequel to Taare Zameen Par, is the Indian adaptation of the Spanish film Champions (2018).
"He is taking time to select the right film; maybe because he wanted some time off to think what he wants to choose next. He could have taken the failures personally, especially with big films like Thugs of Hindostan and Laal Singh Chaddha, but anyone who knows him should trust his script choices. I am expecting a big blockbuster from him, he will have a return-to-form this year," Bansali added.
But it is not without pressure.
An industry source explained that Aamir is expected to deliver not just a blockbuster of his stature but also a "quality" film. Perhaps that is why it took him three years after Laal Singh Chaddha to return with Sitaare Zameen Par.
"With Shah Rukh and Salman Khan, you want mega entertainers. But with Aamir, you walk into a theatre expecting something meaningful. Now that's tricky because you don't often hit that right spot."
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Highlting the difference between the three Khans, Chauhan said, "Aamir is called a 'cerebral' actor who appeals more to the brain, while Salman is all body, he can stand and deliver a blockbuster. Shah Rukh is brain and body. This is how they also choose their films. Salman's brand is built on personality cult, while brand SRK is a mix of personality cult and quality. Aamir has been all about quality, his characters and his stories. People go to watch his films because there's a certain guarantee that they will go back home happier and maybe, at a basic level, wiser," Chauhan said.
Though Aamir hasn't announced his next film after Sitaare Zameen Par, the buzz is that the superstar is carefully considering what to dive into, with offers from the South Indian filmmakers as well.
"The offers are varied, with Ghajini 2, an action film and a comedy drama. No one knows what he is going to choose next, but one has never been able to predict his career anyway," the industry source shared.