Salaam Venky tells a tragic tale about a mother and her terminally ill son, played by Vishal Jethwa, who fights for an important cause.
Though tragic stories traditionally been avoided by Bollywood, there have been a few instances of this genre resulting in audiences making them commercial winners as well.
Joginder Tuteja lists the stories that love to make us cry.
Kesari
Box office collection: Rs 154.41 crore/Rs 1.54 billion
What could be the fate of 21 soldiers, who battle it out against 10,000 invaders?
The end is imminent and it’s just about how long they would actually hold out.
That was the real life tale of the Battle of Saragarhi, told in this Anurag Singh directorial, spearheaded by Akshay Kumar.
While it was an action film in its storytelling, at its core, it was a tragedy waiting to unfold.
Goliyon Ki Raasleela Ram-Leela
Box office collection: Rs 118.70 crore/Rs 1.18 billion
The tragic love story of Romeo and Juliet has been told for centuries and adapted in different formats and avatars.
Director Sanjay Leela Bhansali gave it his own spin in Goliyon Ki Raasleela: Ram Leela.
Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone played a lovelorn couple belonging to warring families, who had no choice but to die in each other’s arms.
Barfi!
Box office collection: Rs 112 crore/Rs 1.12 billion
A love triangle, Barfi was a heartfelt tale by Anurag Basu with lilting music by Pritam.
The film boasted of some solid performances from Ranbir Kapoor, playing a deaf-mute boy, who forms a special relationship with a beautiful girl (Ileana D’Cruz) and his autistic childhood friend (Priyanka Chopra).
By the time the end credits started rolling, there were quite a few heavy hearts.
Ek Villain
Box office collection: Rs 106 crore/Rs 1.06 billion
What does a man do when the love of his life is killed by a psychopath?
Well, Sidharth Malhotra played a man who is out to avenge the death of his ladylove (Shraddha Kapoor), who gets killed by Riteish Deshmukh.
Even though Director Mohit Suri treated the film as an action drama, there was an inherent sadness in it. The song Teri Galliyan made it even more soulful.
Kaabil
Box office collection: Rs 103.84 crore/Rs 1.03 billion
A blind couple falls in love, only to be separated by the tragedy of the lady love committing suicide after going through a horrific tragedy.
What does the man do?
Well, he defies his handicap and brings all his other senses to use to extract revenge.
Hrithik Roshan was wonderful in this Sanjay Gupta directorial where Yami Gautam gave him solid support.
Talaash
Box office collection: Rs 91 crore/Rs 910 million
Aamir Khan played a cop in this thriller, where a brutal tragedy plays out with Kareena Kapoor’s character.
Director Reema Kagti put together a thriller with elements of action, drama, suspense and supernatural.
But at the core, it was really the tragedy of losing a child and coming to terms with it.
Aashiqui 2
Box office collection: Rs 78 crore/Rs 780 million
Aashiqui 2 told the story of a man losing the love of his love due to his shortcomings.
Director Mohit Suri added soulful music to the narrative and made everyone in the audience cry.
Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor gave life to this tragic tale.
Neerja
Box office collection: Rs 75.65 crore/Rs 756.5 million
The real life story of Pan Am flight attendant Neeraj Bhanot, who was killed by terrorists in a deadly hijack attack, this Ram Madhvani directorial gave life to what had unfolded in 1986.
Everyone knew what would happen at the end of the story, but audiences still queued up for this dramatic and emotionally-charged thriller.
Dhadak
Box office collection: Rs 74.19 crore/Rs 741.9 million
Yet another film inspired by the legend of Romeo and Juliet, this remake of the Marathi blockbuster Sairat was the launch pad for Ishaan Khatter and Janhvi Kapoor.
Director Shashank Khaitan had made predominantly happy films in the form of Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania and Badrinath Ki Dulhania before this, but he took a sensitive route with Dhadak.
The Karan Johar production was a success and put these youngsters on the Bollywood map.
