EXCLUSIVE: PVR INOX’s Kamal Gianchandani on Hollywood’s record-breaking India run: “People are tired of consuming films at home”; predicts Avengers Endgame: Encore will “SMASH all re-release records”; CONFIRMS India releases of Godzilla Minus Zero, Artificial

The performance of Hollywood films at the Indian box office this year has been exceptional. As per an Ormax Media report, Hollywood films collected Rs. 1,424 crores between January and July 2026, already surpassing the Rs. 1,403 crores earned during the whole of 2025. The industry is now eyeing the all-time record set in 2019, when Hollywood films amassed Rs. 1,595 crores at the Indian box office. In an exclusive interview with Bollywood Hungama, Kamal Gianchandani, Chief Business Planning & Strategy at PVR INOX Limited and CEO of PVR INOX Pictures Limited, the motion picture arm of PVR INOX Limited, analyzed Hollywood’s exceptional performance in India in 2026. He also shared his expectations from the upcoming Hollywood biggies and how they could fare at the box office.

How do you react to the way Hollywood films have performed at the Indian box office this year? Interestingly, it’s not just the big-ticket films; even titles like Obsession and Project Hail Mary, which may appear niche on the face of it, have put up huge numbers… This was always expected. India has always been a very strong market for Hollywood films. Unfortunately, over the last four-five years, the Hollywood industry faced a lot of challenges. There were strikes, and studios also experimented significantly by releasing several films directly on streaming platforms. All of that has now stopped and is behind us. Studios are consistently churning out films and putting a lot of marketing muscle behind them. The message to the audience is very clear – come out and watch these films in theatres. At the same time, there is also streaming fatigue. People are tired of consuming films at home and want to step out. They enjoy going out with their family or friends and having a wholesome theatrical experience. So, all these factors put together are resulting in a significant uptick in the business of Hollywood films in India this year compared to last year. And I believe this trend will continue.

You’ve been in the field for many years, and every now and then, a film is labelled a ‘sleeper hit’ or ‘sleeper super-hit’. However, in the last 12 months, films like Laalo – Krishna Sada Sahaayate, Obsession and Hanuman Ansh have done historic business. How do you look at this phenomenon, especially considering that these films were made on minuscule budgets? We keep getting surprised every quarter! Every quarter, there’s one film that performs way beyond anyone’s expectations. This is a business where you’re constantly learning. There’s no set formula for anything. Beyond a point, no one really knows how the business will behave.

We approach this as a portfolio business. We keep an open mind and treat every film with respect. After all, no one could have predicted that Hanuman Ansh would become the biggest film of the quarter. At times, the film expected to be the biggest film of the quarter may underperform. That’s the nature of the beast.

Avengers Endgame: Encore will release this Friday, September 25 and is expected to open with a bang… The advances are fantastic. It’ll smash all re-release records without a doubt.

Does that mean that Avengers: Doomsday can also put up a huge number on the first day? It’s a foregone conclusion. If Endgame is having this sort of a response, you can imagine the response that Doomsday will have. It’ll be a monstrous December with Doomsday, Dune: Part Three, Jumanji: Open World and King. December is shaping up to be absolutely massive this year.

PVR INOX Pictures has released some interesting films this year, like Backrooms, The Drama, The Invite, Hokum, The Furious, etc. How’s it going and what can we expect from the motion picture arm of PVR INOX Limited in the last three months of 2026? It’s going very well. PVR INOX Pictures is having a strong year. We are also releasing Primetime, which will be out in cinemas this Friday. In fact, almost every week, we have a PVR INOX Pictures film releasing.

Besides Hollywood, we also have Mauja Hi Mauja with Akshay Kumar, which is coming out towards the end of November. We are also releasing Mr Salman Khan’s Monster, which will release on Eid 2027. These are two of our anticipated releases from the Bollywood slate.

A film that many are waiting for is Godzilla Minus Zero. Will it release in India? And if yes, will it clash with Ramayana on Diwali? Godzilla Minus Zero will release in India. Most likely, it’ll come out in the same week as Ramayana, but we’ll know for sure within the next week or 10 days.

During Christmas, Neon will release Artificial, and its teaser and subject have already aroused a lot of curiosity. Since PVR INOX Pictures has released Neon films in India in the past, will it be releasing Artificial as well? Yes, we will definitely be releasing it in India.

You are a part of not just PVR INOX Cinemas but also PVR INOX Pictures. You also hold the prestigious position of President of the Multiplex Association of India. How do you manage all these responsibilities? What’s the secret? (Smiles) I’ve been doing this for a while. I have no secret. I’m used to it. I enjoy it and I love this business. Coming to the office in the morning gives me joy. We have a great team and fantastic leadership under Mr Ajay Bijli and Mr Sanjeev Bijli. So, it’s absolutely no problem. It’s a pleasure, and I’m actually happy that I have these responsibilities. I hope I continue to be in these roles for as long as possible.

Also Read: EXCLUSIVE: Kamal Gianchandani ECSTATIC as Deadpool & Wolverine is the second biggest ‘A’ rated grosser of all time; also speaks on Stree 2-Vedaa-Khel Khel Mein’s clash: “There’s enough capacity to accommodate them. We don’t see any problem”

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