Mumbai, Sept. 2 -- On Independence Day weekend in 2024, Maddock Films' 'Stree 2,' starring Rajkummar Rao and Shraddha Kapoor, stormed theatres and shattered records, earning over 625 crore at the box office. This was followed by 'Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3' (283.80 crore) and Rohit Shetty's 'Singham Again' (268.35 crore) during Diwali. And then came the real game-changer, 'Pushpa 2: The Rule,' in December, which rewrote box office history by grossing 715.75 crore in Hindi alone, making it the highest-grossing Hindi film ever.

These four sequels together accounted for more than 50% of the total Hindi box office earnings last year. Their commercial victory fueled a pervasive herd mentality among Bollywood producers, convincing them that sequels and...