We last published our list of Top Actors in Bollywood at the beginning of the year. Since then, big films like Jai Ho, Holiday: A Solider Is Never, Kick and Singham Returns have released in theatres. Interestingly, there have been quite a few films from the younger stars who have delivered 100 crore grossers like Ek Villain and 2 States.
While the Top 5 is proving to be difficult to break into even for stars like Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar, it’ll be interesting to see if the likes of Ranveer Singh, Varun Dhawan, Sidharth Malhotra and Arjun Kapoor make it to the Top 10.
We have decide to make our ranking system the most comprehensive in the industry. We will be analysing the box office collections of the Top 15 actors. The ranking system will also be divided into three; Top Actor in India, Overseas and Worldwide. The list below is for the Top 10 Actors in India i.e the domestic market only.
- The list would be based on the net box office collections of an actor’s last five movies. For younger actors, the minimum number of films is 3.
- Only lead roles would be considered. Cameos, special appearances and guest appearances won’t be taken under consideration. Non-commercial and art films like ‘Dhobi Ghat’ have also not been considered.
- Dated movies that released before 2007 have not been considered.
- Only domestic box office collections is being taken into account. Collections from all regional versions have been taken into considering as this list is for the top actors in India and regional language releases affect Hindi business in their respective states. For example, Tamil version will affect business of Hindi version in Tamilnadu / Kerala circuit.
Top Actors In Bollywood
Salman Khan – Kick (234 cr), Jai Ho (112 cr), Dabangg 2 (160 cr), Ek Tha Tiger (199 cr), Bodyguard (141 cr)
Salman Khan Total Movie Collections: 846 crore (Average per film: 169.2 cr)
Rank 1. The average collections of Salman Khan’s last five films has gone up from 152 cr to nearly 170 crore per film! The superstar is quite clearly way ahead of the competition in the domestic markets and has dominated the box office in India like no other actor in the history of Indian Cinema. Salman now has one 200 crore grosser (nearly two because Ek Tha Tiger collected 199 cr). His success ratio is incredible too - all his films since Dabangg (2010) have done well. His blockbuster ratio is even better – 6 out of 7 films have been blockbusters or all time blockbusters!
His nearest rival in the domestic markets is Aamir Khan, who should beat him after the release of PK..
Aamir Khan – Dhoom 3 (283 cr), Talaash (90 cr), 3 Idiots (202 cr), Ghajini (115 cr), Taare Zameen Par (63 cr)
Aamir Khan Total Movie Collections: 753 cr (Average per film: 150.6 cr)
Rank 2. In India, the competition is quite clearly between Salman and Aamir, as the two have consistently been delivering more 150 cr+ grossers than any other stars in the country. If Rajkumar Hirani’s PK collects 157 cr or more, Aamir would nudge ahead of Salman for the first time in 3 years to take the top spot at the domestic box office. While Salman holds the record for the highest number of 150 cr+ grossers (3 of them), Aamir holds the record for highest opening day, single-day, first weekend, first week and also the fastest film to the 100 and 200 cr club. Deserves to top, doesn’t he?
Shahrukh Khan – Chennai Express (227 crore), Jab Tak Hai Jaan (122 cr), Don 2 (112 cr), Ra. One (125 cr), My Name Is Khan (73 cr)
Shahrukh Khan Total Movie Collections: 659 crore (Average per film: 131.8 cr)
Rank 3. Shahrukh Khan has a chance to beat Salman Khan and also take the top spot if ‘Happy New Year’ collects Rs 260 cr or more. His last release was Chennai Express which managed to collect 227 cr and with last year’s Diwali release amassing 244 crore net, Happy New Year has every chance to be the highest grosser of all time. The average business of his last five releases is Rs 131.8 cr.
Hrithik Roshan – Krrish 3 (244 cr), Agneepath (120 cr), Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobara (90 cr), Guzaarish (30 cr), Kites (49 cr)
Hrithik Roshan Total Movie Collections: 533 cr (Average per film: 106.6 cr)
Rank 4. Bang Bang is his big release this year, the teaser of which has generated huge buzz in the trade. While Salman and Aamir are out of his reach this year, he could topple SRK to take the 3rd spot before the release of Happy New Year. For that, Bang Bang would have to collect 175 cr or more when it releases with Haider on October 2nd 2014. Hrithik’s average per film is 106.6 cr. He is one amongst only 4 actors in the country to average 100 cr or more per film, even though two of those include disasters like Kites and Guzaarish.
Ranbir Kapoor – Besharam (59 cr), Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (189 cr), Barfi! (110 cr), Rockstar (68 cr), Anjaana Anjaani (40 cr)
Ranbir Kapoor Total Movie Collections: 466 cr (Average per film: 93.2 cr)
Rank 5. Besharam was expected to take a good start at the box office and it did, what with the film collecting close to Rs 20 crore on its opening day. But the response was so bad that the film ended with lifetime business of less than 60 crore. It was arguably the worst received biggie of the year, as even a film like Himmatwala held up better over the weekend.
Ranbir has just one release this year Anurag Kashyap’s Bombay Velvet, which is scheduled to release in November. To beat Hrithik, his film would need to collect significantly more than Bang Bang – which is difficult because of the genre of the two films.
Rank 6: Interestingly, Ajay Devgn could beat Ranbir Kapoor and make it to the Top 5 if Singham Returns collects 157 cr or more by the end of its run. The film has collected around 101 cr in 5 days. It still has a long way to go, so for now, Ajay will be under Ranbir. If Singham collects more than 157 cr, we will update the list in the first week of September.
Assuming that Singham Returns collects around 155 cr, the collections of Ajay’s last 5 films are as follows:
- Singham Returns (155 cr expected)
- Satyagraha (62 cr)
- Himmatwala (45 cr)
- Son of Sardaar (102 cr)
- Bol Bachchan (101 cr)
- Forthcoming film: Action Jackson
- Total: 465 cr (Average per film: 93 cr)
Rank 7 Akshay Kumar: He does more than 3 films every year, yet averages 76 cr per film. Akshay has films like Gabbar, Singh Is Bling and Warrior which could take him to the Top 5. So far, he was competing with Ajay Devgn for the 6th spot, but the latter has overtaken him with the release of Singham Returns.
- Entertainment – 75 cr expected
- Holiday: A Solider Is Never Off Duty – 113 cr
- Boss – 59 cr
- Once Upon Ay Time In Mumbaai Dobaara – 63 cr
- Special 26 – 69 cr
- Fortchoming film: Gabbar
- Total Collections: 379 cr (Average per film: 75.8 cr)
Rank 8 Sidharth Malhotra: Quickly emerging as one of the most popular stars in the country, Sidharth Malhotra commands a huge following on social media websites like Twitter and Facebook. His last release, Ek Villain, was a huge success at the box office. He deserves credit even though the presence of Mohit Suri as director, Ritiesh Deshmukh and chartbuster music helped big time.
- Ek Villain - 103 cr
- Hasee Toh Phasee - 35 cr
- Student Of The Year - 70 cr
- Forthcoming film - Bhavesh Joshi
- Total Collections – 208 cr (Average per film: 69.3 cr)
Rank 9 Varun Dhawan: We said it after Main Tera Hero, we say it again. Varun is one of the most promising stars in the industry, a superstar in the making. In just 3 films, he has established himself in the industry. A film like Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, released 2 weeks before Salman Khan’s Kick and during the Ramadan period, has collected nearly 80 cr at the domestic box office. Huge!
- Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania – 77 cr
- Main Tera Hero - 54 cr
- Student Of The Year - 70 cr
- Forthcoming film: Badlapur
- Total Collections – 201 cr (Average per film: 67 cr)
Rank 10 John Abraham: John is no longer a solo star. Multi-starrers like Race 2 and Housefull 2 are his biggest grossers. In an ensemble star cast like the upcoming Welcome Back, he is still a force to be reckoned with.
- Madras Café - 45 cr
- Shootout at Wadala - 62 cr
- I, Me aur Main - 9 cr
- Race 2 - 102 cr
- Housefull 2 - 114 cr
- Forthcoming film - Welcome Back
- Total Collections – 332 cr (Average per film: 66.4 cr)
Rank 11 Saif Ali Khan: Fairly popular with audience in big cities, but has absolutely no following in smaller towns. He has been consistent over the years, but relies too heavily on other factors like trailer, music and director to bring audience to theatres.
- Humshakals - 63 cr
- Bullet Raja- 36 cr
- Race 2 - 102 cr
- Cocktail - 76 cr
- Agent Vinod - 45 cr
- Forthcoming film - Happy Ending
- Total - 322 cr (Average per film: 64.4 cr)
Rank 12 Arjun Kapoor: Not quite as popular as Sidharth, Varun or Ranveer. Nor is he as charismatic as Varun or Ranveer. But Arjun has given us a few good films and more importantly he is improving with every film. An actor to watch out for!
- 2 States - 102 cr
- Gunday - 78 cr
- Aurangzeb - 23 cr
- Ishaqzaade - 49 cr
- Forthcoming film - Finding Fanny
- Total Collections - 252 cr (Average per film: 63 cr)
Rank 13 Ranveer Singh: A star who deserves to be much higher up the list, Ranveer has quickly established himself in the industry. He has a fairly good following in smaller centres too.
- Gunday – 78 cr
- Ram Leela - 109 cr
- Lootera - 31 cr
- Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl - 38 cr
- Band Baaja Baaraat - 24 cr
- Forthcoming film - Kill Dil
- Total Collections - 280 cr (Average per film: 56 cr)
Rank 14 Emraan Hashmi: A couple of years ago, Emraan threatened to compete with the likes of Ajay Devgn and Akshay Kumar, but a few poor film choices has resulted in 2 or 3 failures at the box office. We haven’t included his much-delayed film ‘Rush’ in the list. Raja Natwarlal looks very promising. Will the film be his highest grosser to date and also push him higher up the list? Time will tell.
- Ghanchakkar - 39 cr
- Ek Thi Daayan - 27 cr
- Jannat 2 - 54 cr
- Raaz 3 - 74 cr
- Shanghai - 24 cr
- Forthcoming film - Raja Natwarlal
- Total collections - 218 cr (Average per film: 43.6 cr)
Rank 15 Shahid Kapoor: The fact that Shahid Kapoor is at the bottom of the list is extremely hard to digest. He has everything to be in the Top 5 – incredible acting talent, fantastic dancing skills and he is one of the most good looking actors too. What he probably lacks is good script sense. His poor choices have let him down time and again. This year, his much-awaited release Haider is set to clash against a big film like Bang Bang. It would need to collect a little more than Raja Natwarlal for Shahid to go one up and push Emraan to the bottom.
- R.. Rajkumar - 65 cr
- Phata Poster Nikhla Hero - 39 cr
- Teri Meri Kahaani - 29 cr
- Mausam - 33 cr
- Badmaash Company - 34 cr
- Forthcoming film - Haider
- Total Collections – 200 cr (Average per film: 40 cr)
Below we have two graphs. The first is the average collections per film, which just goes to show that the Top 5 – 6 actors are in the league of their own. Each Salman films collects more than 4 times than that of a Shahid Kapoor film. The second chart is even more staggering. Shahid would need to release 21 films to collect as much as 5 Salman films since Bodyguard (2012). The comparison between Shahid and Salman is just because one happens to top and the other is at the bottom of the list. Salman was probably not in the Top 10 before the release of Wanted, but has made one of the biggest comebacks in history. Shahid could too, who knows?
Average Per Film in crore
Total Collections in crore
There you go then. Our most comprehensive ranking of the Top 15 stars in the industry. Even after 20 plus years, the Khans – Salman, Aamir, SRK – still dominate the industry and are by far the most dependable stars. Hrithik has always been in the Top 5 since he made his debut in 2000. He temporarily took the top spot in 2006, but was pushed back after the release of Kites and Guzaarish. Ranbir is the most popular actor amongst the newer bunch of actors who made their debut after 2006. The likes of Ranveer, Varun, Sidharth and Arjun are the stars to watch out for in the future. Akshay and Ajay will continue to churn out 3-4 films every year. Akshay has a strong lineup, Ajay has Rohit Shetty!
The list will be updated after the release of Bang Bang and Haider – most likely on the 15th of October.
Stay tuned for the two big articles though – Top Bollywood Actors in the overseas markets and the worldwide ranking. It will be interesting to see who comes out on top.
We hope you liked the article. Do post your thoughts in the comments section below and follow us on Twitter or Facebook or more updates!
Only big movers from the top guys after next releases could be the following:-
Aamirs next will replace TZPs collections and judging by the intrigue n curiosity PK is causing then at a bare minimum PK will do 200cr more than TZP- 265cr plus at a good WOM scenario but with repeat value of a 3 idiots then 300cr plus is possible…. He should be numero uno star as a result…!
Hrithiks next Bang Bang will replace his Kites 49cr fogure so the swing for him also could be 150-175 cr at a conservative guess of mine that Bang Bang should be his first non-controversial 200 cr grosser…! Then again optimists may say it should gross more but with such a huge swing in his favour Bang Bang should propel him to the Top 3…!
SRKs and Salmans next are replacing high grossers already so swing for them wont be that big as the aforementioned stars so their averages of last 5 films may not go up by as much as a default of their good recent consistency levels…!
we have talked about box office a lot of time.bollywood being so big cant have a Oscar till now where movies of other countries have it.it is shame for us.lets talk about the stars of bollywood who have the guts to give india its maiden oscar.indicine publish an article on this,bros.
@indicine you are wrong rajesh khanna in his prime had delivered 13 superhits in a row, and that too in just 3 years, his stardom is unmatchable, so please do not sate that salman khan has dominated box office like no other star, word superstar was invented for rajesh khanna, the original superstar. At times his two movies ran at the same time in cinemas and both ran to packed houses. No one can achieve that today. He was a phenomenon.
@vikram Since indicine wont allow name calling I have to think of another way to ridicule your buffoonery and I have come up with the following conclusion…!
Let me remind you that Don 2 didnt rely on an iconic brand, recall value or profitable release period like Christmas or an award winning director but it simply ran on Thakurs name exclusively which is why it ended up collecting less than the 3 month earlier release Ratoon Point One..,!
God forbid if Aamir does the same as Srk and releases his next brand inspired movie on Christmas with an award winning director and it failed to light up christmas trees the world over then we would all be lynching him saying he has ruined Christmas n new year holidays etc etc etc
Just wait n Watch . Hrithik will be on Top coz ” Champion sirf ek hota hai aur uski jagah koi bhi nahi le sakta ” not even God ! HRITHIK RULES
@trooper
Message of Jai Ho was not to say thank you (which any tom dick and harry can say) but to help 3 people and so on n so on….
Great message but end result was his lowest grosser in 4 years…!
Audiences clearly prefer the masala entertainers- they want to be entertained which is why crappy films like Ready, Agneepath, Housefull 2 and Chennai Express collected what they have…!
@Great Work, Indicine. To me, overseas ranking will be:
1) SRK
2) Aamir
3) Salman
4) Hrithik
Worldwide Ranking will be:
1) Aamir
2) SRK
3) Salman
4) Hrithik
Tell me if I am wrong. Or you want to keep your articles in suspense??
-Had there not been a certain Aishwarya and unethical media to dent Salman’s image, legal cases against him,
-Had not he done films for the sake of friendships without good scripts,
-Had he been a bit choosy like he today is and not done many movies like Akki,
You would not imagined the position of Salman Khan. He would have been untouchable.
However, being a man of strong mind and soul, he has managed to top all his contemporaries.
With the upcoming films like Kabir Khan’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan, Sooraj Barjatya’s PRDP, Anees Bazmi’s No Entry Mein Entry, Karan Malhotra’s Shuddi, Shitmit Amin’s Sultan and Mahesh Manhrekar’s Untitled Film, it doesn’t seem Salman will slip off the No.1 position but grow further.
@Arjun Kapoor2,3,4 is a new SSS in the making. OK we accept that Arjun Kapoor is the most charistamic and popular in India.
@Babaji Ka Thullu, you don’t understand the economics. Salman follows the case of Demand and Supply. He does not experiment Indians by serving Potatoes but tries to serve Roti and Rice as usual. He does films for the people, not for himself.
You have to be a bit open-minded to improvise yourself. See the world without any hindrance in your mind. I too try to accept the reality.
Salman Recent Films-
Dabangg- Masala Entertainer
Ready- Comedy, Family Drama
Bodyguard- Masala Entertainer
ETT- Spy Thriller, Romance, Action
Dabangg 2- Masala Entertainer
Jai Ho- Action, Social Drama, Masala
Kick- Thriller, Masala
It shows how broad your mind is when you comfortably put all Salman’s one masala entertainment category. But for others, you tried to differentiate. Lame! One to two action scenes in a movie doesn’t make a movie a masala entertainer.
@SRK fans, be open-minded and accepting the truth. As I mentioned above, I will accept if Indicine mentions SRK to be No.1 at the overseas boxoffice.
Salman made the Eid Releases Grand with the Release of Wanted. He sowed it. Why should not he reap the benefits? Thanks to him, he gave over 2013 Eid Release to your star. Else, you know what I mean.
And tell me what SRK is without Diwali, Yash Chopra or Yash Raj. Should we name him Diwali Khan?
Salman has given BBs like Ready and Partner without releasing them on festive periods and strong scripts.
SRK and Aamir Khan ??
very nyc article indicine…theres no point of complain in dis u ve explain it well
First of oll tnq Indicine for providing best article n good work..
Salman on top spot juz bcz his hard work .. juz look b4 2007 he at no.4 after amir srk n othr bt now he is King of bollywood n khans… nxt five years cmpttn bwn amir n srk for no. 2 spot n sallu remain no 1 …
Gud article and hope after HNY SRK will reclaim number 1 spot ISA
# BangBang will cross 300 crore at box
office !!
200 cr is very easy target for this film–
# Komal_Nahta (film critic )
Why we indians and all the media always talks about domestic collection not worldwide and they ranked movie/actor according to domestic collection…
have you all ever noted that ,why Hollywood has 10 times revenue of bollywood ,because they talks about worldwide collection as compared to U.S.Market and thats why hollywood movies dominate the all over the world…..
because they know that’apne ghar me to kutte bhi sher hote’ and they are sher in their own country as well as in all over the world….
@Alex, I dont think you read the entire article. We will be publishing Top Actors in overseas markets and worldwide pretty soon. Having said that, domestic market is most important for Indian movies.
@Indicine , i want to tell u fact between Taare zameen par and dhobi ghaat, and thats in both movie Aamir played 2nd lead, then how becm dhobi ghaat is non aamir film and Tzp is aamirs?
clearing the Khans Fact, wen movie gotta flop @BO, they put their name in special appearance, like Aamir did for dhobi ghaat, shahrukh did for Billu (is comeo can b 30+ min), bhootnath first part, dulha mil gaya, he promote all movies by saying his films.. He didnt promote bhootnath bt others are…
But here Dhobi Ghaat is major fact..
if u did same observe for last 10 movie for those actors then we can found long lead runner..
@Tiger, hr fans nvr cmpare star power, dfntly salman is ahead from 2010 l0l
but we can say hr is btr actor, stylo, hottest, sexiest, most charming, only most handsome Indian in list of top 100 handsome in world not by magzines n fake blogs l0l,
best dancer ever, his craze in gals best ever for any actor he got dis b4 2006, has 3 guiniss records, 1 of them for recieving most no. Of gals proposals on valentine for marriage after knph in 1 day in no. 30k + proposals, he never face long years failure, have btr success ratio… What other actor needs?? He is hearthrob of nationwide after debut in 1year..
@Indicine….you should post a article in which worldwide collection will be considered.
regards
Alex Thomas
No probzz.. soon shahrukh wil topple dese khans wid his hny…
At the end of the year I want the ranking to b as follow…
1. Shahrukh
2. Hrithik
3. Salman
4. Aamir
5. Ranbir
6. Akshay
7. Saif
8. Emran
9. Shahid
10. Ranveer
11. Ajay
12. Varun
13. Siddharth
14. John
15. Arjun
Note: this is ma wishlist not to b confused wid bo collections at the end of year.. I knw saif shadid wil not go that high in rankings butvi want dem too.. also ajay wil not slip to 11th spot but stil I want
lets see wen indicine publishes this article at the beginning of 2015 who stands wer.??
and indicine, if kites is disaster the what u call to veer starring salman? And guzaarish is disaster? Then what u call londom dreams?? There is many more name of movie…
akshay kumar & ajay devgan on the way…according to me akshay kumar is best actor because his all movies are non-holiday release…if he get holiday movie release then he will on the top…and this time ajay proves it he is similar like khans with SR good opening..
it is true not only khans but also kumar,devgan or any youngsters will get holiday like eid,diwali,christmas they also shatters all record…holiday is big reason for every succesful movie….
Take collections aside for a minute and look at the movies.
Clearly Aamir khan is THE WINNER.
Taare Zameen Par and 3 Idiots are classics. Talaash is an offbeat movie while Ghajini and Dhoom 3 are mass entertainers (For me, Dhoom 3 was the worst Aamir khan movie of the decade)
Next is Hritik tied with Srk.
With Guzarrish, Zindagi Na milegi Dobara Hritik has two really good movies to his name.
For Srk,critically acclaimed My Name is Khan and the action packed Don 2. All the other movies are quite ordinary.
Clearly we can see, Salman, Ajay, Akshay are doing the same thing. Fan in has made 2 good movies like Rockstar and Barfi but it wouldn’t be right to compare him with the mighty Khans and Hrithik. We’ll have to wait and see if he manages to handle his stardom neatly.
gud job indicine….i lv this rank list….Sallu bhai in Top…i know it …..Sallu alws in top 4m 2009
Navin- don 2 collection at that were huge… Don 2 was the highest non holiday opener(15 cr)… Trend that was continued by Salman with dabangg 2(19 cr)… Then aamir with dhoom 3(35 cr) … Every year box office business increases… It is unfair to compare 3 idiots to dhoom 3 n same way for don 2
@Babaji : ETT wasnt a Masala genre movie n it was Salman’s highest grosser until Kick. What more you want him to prove ??
SRK’s next
Happy New Year-280cr
Raees-300cr
FAN-300cr
Rohit Shetty’s next-350cr
DON3-350cr
Entire the world North South East or West Akki is the best…
kyaa faidaaa re tum logo ka itna pessa banany ka saalay top 5.
ham ko new dialogues new entertain toh Akki hi karta hai aaj kal thanda hai khairr hai but achanak hi akki ka dhamaka hoga 1 saal mai 5 Superhits wala phirrr haters ke bhonktey raho ge aisa nahi waisa tha movie deserve nahi karti thi bla bla bla……..
Our Akki sir do not need to be in Top spot Rankings he wants to entertain his audience and his truly fans Akki Sir Rocks. Waiting for Gabbar, Singh is Bling & Warriors.
Hello SRK fans in my mentions. Aamir’s Ads > SRK’s movies. Please burn as much as you want. Aamir is SRK’s dad in acting
Excellent work again.. but if you consider Ranveer’s last 3 films only (like for Sid & Varun) he raises past them to take 8th spot
Not feeling sad for hrithik, akshay, ajay, etc because even if they are not in top 3 or top 5, they still make much more money and also they are very rich. So there is no point in arguing for fav stars.
Dhobigat is not counting hahaha LOL, if it was succeeded then it would count. Shame on you indicine, more and more you are a Aamir fan. @Indicine now one update of non domestic and one of the wordl if you have the guts. Some people are shameless, betting on two horses like aamir and salman and bashing up others like SRK, Hritik and Akshay…..Shame on you.
@indicine u shd b ashamed of ur bhvr!I still can’t blv thst that how cn a john Abraham b put ahead of arjun and ranveer?abhishek and ritesh are much bigger star than john and better actors also.housefull series,masti series,villain and many other hits ritesh has been part of and similarly abhi has dhoom series,bol bachan,kank,paa,sarkar like multi starrer hits and guru,bunty aur babli like main hero hits but wat about john-just 6 double hero hits and 1 solo hero hit and zero performance acclaim xcpt for madras cafe still he is ahead of abhi and ritesh