New Delhi, Jan. 14 -- For as long as movie buffs can remember, Salman Khan has been the undisputed king of the Eid box office. In 2015, however, a week before the release of his cross-border emotional drama Bajrangi Bhaijaan for the festive weekend, the unthinkable happened.

A Telugu film, dubbed in Hindi and featuring names no one had heard of, took cinemas across north India by storm, squeezing theatres and competing for eyeballs. Directed by S.S. Rajamouli, a filmmaker then unknown in the Hindi belt, Baahubali: The Beginning sparked what could only be described as madness in theatres.

With opening day earnings of Rs.5.15 crore, the larger-than-life project with its Mahabharat and Amar Chitra Katha-inspired storytelling, ended its fir...