Underrated Bollywood Movies: The craze for cinema has evolved in people over the past few years, and they are more likely to spend their time watching movies. Everyone tends to flock to the multiplexes whenever any Big Bollywood star’s movie comes out.
Yeah, there are Bollywood movies that are extremely good and have the power to make it big and engage the audience well but have been overlooked simply because they are low-budget or small-star movies.
So today, we’ve gathered a list of such films that may not have been able to cast their magic into multiplexes and may have earned less, but don’t let the audience hold back from watching and talking about them. Those are Bollywood’s most underrated films you should watch in 2023
Underrated Bollywood Movies That Are Highly Ignored, You Should Watch in 2023
1. Tumbbad
For this, we will probably fall short of terms!! It’s a cinematic journey that will surely startle you and scare the hell out of you!! The film was just another experience point, and it had a unique plot of the story.
It was one of 2018’s best films, but the film couldn’t perform well at the box office due to a lack of publicity.
2. Masaan (2015)
In the town of Varanasi, Masaan follows two distinct narrative threads that eventually come together. One chronicles Devi’s (Richa Chadha’s) journey as she deals with her boyfriend’s death and the remorse she feels for it. The second depicts Deepak’s (Vicky Kaushal) trip as he leaves his family’s tradition of burning funeral pyres in the Varanasi ghats. The movie received favourable reviews from reviewers and also took home a couple of prizes at the Cannes Film Festival.
3. Parched
An acute female-centred plotline that talks about sexual emancipation, female friendship, and homos*xuality, all in a very specific, neighbouring, rural sense. Filled with insightful performances, this film bears tremendous responsibility for feminism.
4. Sangharsh – 1999
Tanuja Chandra’s film is a remake of The Silence of the Lambs in part. Along with Akshay Kumar and Preity Zinta, Ashutosh Rana had a fantastic performance. A psychological horror action film was released in 1999, and it features a police officer who seeks a prisoner for assistance in order to prosecute a serial child killer and bring justice where no other officers can.
In a very intriguing underappreciated Bollywood film, Ashutosh Rana received the Zee Cinema Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role and the Filmfare Award for Best Villain.
5. Stanley Ka Dabba
Stanley Ka Dabba is a Hindi-language comedy-drama movie written, directed and produced by Amole Gupte in 2011 and featured his son Partho Gupte in Stanley’s lead role. The film revolves around Stanley’s life and hardships and pushes viewers to think about the child psyche and child labour issues.
Although a low-budget film, it was able to represent the issue well and effectively. Divya Dutta, Partho and Amole’s strong performance was truly exceptional and had the power to gaze at the audience.
However, at the box office, the film did average business, but it had a clear message and it’s worth a watch!!
6. Lipstick Under My Burkha
At the box office, the film may not have received a positive response but it was praised by the critics. Alankrita Shrivastava’s film promotes gender equality and empowerment for women.
7. Gulaal
A Masterpiece of Anurag Kashyap, Gulaal explores themes such as the struggle for power, the search for legitimacy, perceived injustices and the labyrinth of power games.
The film has risen to positive reviews from both critics and viewers and has also been shown at London film festivals, whereupon it has developed a significant cult following. Ultimately, we’d just say if you’re looking for a decent movie, then you have to watch it once.
8. Do Dooni Chaar
It was also the best film for solving a common man’s problems. The film portrays a middle-class family and their aspirations which they could never have fulfilled. After a long time, the film starred Neetu and Rishi.
Arindam Chaudhari directed this comedy-family movie. This also binds us to the real-life battle where a middle-class family struggles to meet their home needs and buy car dreams.
9. Lahore
Lahore is a 2010 Indian Hindi sports film which was released on 19 March 2010 and is loosely based on the Best of the Best American martial arts film. This tells the story of a kickboxer from India who defeats a kickboxer from Pakistan in an Asian kickboxing tournament.
The event ends in a tragedy due to the intemperance of the Pakistani players and the peace process begun by both countries’ struggles to gain momentum. This is particularly so when the brother of the Indian hero is determined to avenge his family and country during a second international bout that takes place in Lahore.
The story of a cricketer turning into a boxer to avenge the death of his brother!! Not only was the film underrated but it wasn’t even released in Pakistan because it was considered to portray Pakistan in bad light!!
10. Margarita, With A Straw
This is a story of a daring young woman embarking on a thrilling journey of self-discovery. Margarita with a Straw was one of five projects chosen for Film Bazaar’s 2013 Work In Progress Lab.
11. Shor in the City
This one is a quirky cameo on Mumbai – a city that continues to hypnotize people with its shades of a chameleon. The movie is directed by Raj and DK and was the first time Tusshar Kapoor and Radhika Apte pair starred together.
The film very beautifully depicted the crime that was prevalent in Mumbai City and was well appreciated by critics. But it’s still known as an overlooked movie and poorly performed at the box office.
12. B.A. Pass
This neo-noir movie, directed by Ajay Bahl is based on a short story, Mohan Sikka’s The Railway Aunty. It is a story that looks at the fatal promise of a new life.
When Mukesh meets Sarika at a kitty party, he knows little about the town and its ways and means of surviving. What happens is a twist of fate, a type of story that surfaces as ‘heinous acts of crime’ in the tabloids.
13. Liar’s Dice
Actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui does the best work!! Liar’s Dice was a Hindi road movie which Geetu Mohandas wrote and directed in 2013. Together with Nawazuddin Siddiqui, the film starred Geetanjali Thapa telling the story of a young mother from a remote village who is missing in search of her missing husband, the film examines the human cost of migration to cities and the exploitation of migrant workers.
The film proceeded to the 61st National Film Awards to win two National Film Awards!!
14. Shahid
We can’t afford to miss any of his films after seeing the performance and efforts of actor Rajkumar Rao in the film Trapped! Exactly right?
He has become one of Bollywood’s most versatile actors, dazzling the audience with his incredible work in blockbusters like Stree, Trapped, Newton, etc.
His film Shahid, however, stills remains an understated masterpiece. The film was based on the story of human rights activist and lawyer Shahid Azmi. The film has received the Best Actor and Based Director national award.
Also, Read 11 Times Terrible Stupid Bollywood Movies Made Way More Money Than Good Films
15. Chittagong
While the film’s name sounds somewhat strange and you may not even have heard the name before, the film was worth a watch.
It was directed by Bedabrata Pain and was based on the Chittagong uprising of British India in the 1930s. Actor Manoj Bajpayee was seen in the film in a leading role and the National Award also went on won!
16. Miss Lovely
This Nawazuddin and Niharika Singh film won Special Jury National Award. The plot was based on two brothers known for making horror movies about women.
17. Aligarh
The film directed by Hansal Mehta follows the true story of Ramchandra Siras, a professor of Marathi and the head of classical modern Indian languages suspended for his sexual orientation and gross misconduct of morality, Manoj Bajpayee, who plays a gay professor here, receives unanimous critical applause from top critics.
18. Filmistaan
Want to know the Pakistanis’ overwhelming love for Bollywood movies, watch this one out. A plain, vivid and eerie depiction of two people from India and Pakistan respectively, both victims of terrorism, ‘Bollywood films’ are the only connecting force between them live.
19. Mithya – 2008
The narrative, which Rajat Kapoor directed, is based on the underworld of Mumbai. featuring Vinay Pathak, Naseeruddin Shah, and Ranvir Shorey. The plot contains both hilarious and exciting turns.
When it was released in 2008, the film received little public attention. A must-watch overlooked film about a failing actor who, due to the similarity of their faces, ends up in the underworld.
20. Yun Hota Toh Kya Hota – 2006
This film, which was directed by Naseeruddin Shah, tells the story of a group of people who were on their way to the US when they became stuck and witnessed some terrible events.
This 2006 film features intriguing characters, including a student travelling for academic purposes and a woman who meets her husband after marriage.
21. Khakee – 2004
Khakee, which Rajkumar Santoshi directed, boasts excellent dialogue in addition to excellent music and a perfect screenplay. This 2004 film is about police escorting terrorists, but it becomes very difficult because of some officers. Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgan, and Tusshar Kapoor are the stars.
Khakee perfectly reflects the tastes of the general public, although not many people have yet seen it.
22. Waisa Bhi Hota Hai Part II – 2003
Shashanka Ghosh’s comedy-thriller Waisa Bhi Hota Hai is about a copywriter who gets caught up in a gang battle. Prashant Narayanan and Arshad Warsi both give strong performances in the film.
This 2003 film, one of many Bollywood movies, was overlooked.
23. Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year – 2009
Ranbir Kapoor played a significant role in the Shimit Amin-directed film, which had a significant impact. Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year, which was published in 2009, explains how to overcome obstacles at work by keeping a healthy balance. Despite being a fine movie, it was never really well-liked.
24. Shor in the City – 2010
The crime thriller and comic play Shor in the City, directed by Krishna DK, is based on the lives of five people and depicts the difficulties of living in Mumbai.
Sendhil Ramamurthy, Tusshar Kapoor, Nikhil Dwivedi, and Preeti Desai are among the actors who appeared in the 2011 film. Reviewers and critics gave the movie harsh praise, praising it for being brutally innovative and having a heartfelt message.
This film successfully combines good fortune, hope, and karma with a pleasant message from the characters. Although critics gave the film high marks, spectators rarely seemed to like it.
25. The Blue Umbrella – 2005
The Blue Umbrella is a film adaptation of a Ruskin Bond novel that was directed by Vishal Bhardwaj and has Pankaj Kapoor and Shweta Sharma in the key roles. It tells the tale of a young girl who, one day, discovers a distinctive blue umbrella that belonged to Japanese visitors who were staying in the village at the time. But as time goes on, the villagers start to harass her a lot because of that umbrella.
A delightful short film from 2005 that brought back sweet and endearing childhood memories was honoured in 2007 with the National Film Award for Best Children’s Film.
