The 2-year-long dry spell at the box office came to an end, thanks to the wide range of films offered to the audience who craved big-screen entertainment and cinematic escapism. While some films failed to light up the box office, some made new records. Offering a blend of content with entertainment, Bollywood bounced back and how. 

From Alia Bhatt's biographical film Gangubai Kathiawadi, Anupam Kher's heartbreaking The Kashmir Files, Tabu-Kartik Aaryan's blockbuster Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 to Ayan Mukerji's much-awaited Brahmastra and Dulquer Salmaan-Sunny Deol- Shreya Dhanwanthary's Chup, we saw many stories unfold on the silver screen.

As 2022 comes to an end, here's celebrating films that kept us entertained, motivated and inspired.

Gangubai Kathiawadi-February

Gangubai Kathiawadi ended the dry spell at the box office caused due to the COVID-19-induced lockdown. Directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, the film was headlined by Alia Bhatt. Gangubai Kathiawadi told the real-life story of a brothel madam from Mumbai's red light area, Kamathipura. Sanjay has already started a British Academy Film Awards (BAFTA Awards) campaign for his biographical film.  

The Kashmir Files-March

Vivek Agnihotri's The Kashmir Files made headlines throughout the year for multiple reasons. It was based on the exodus of Kashmiri Pandits in the 90s. The Kashmir Files starred Anupam Kher, Mithun Chakraborty, Darshan Kumaar, Bhasha Sumbli, Pallavi Joshi, Puneet Issar, Chinmay Mandlekar, Prakash Belawadi, Atul Srivastava and Mrinal Kulkarni. It was a box office winner.

Major-May

Adivi Sesh headlined the biopic of Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan who lost his life during Mumbai's 26/11 blasts. The film traced Major Unnikrishnan's personal life as well as his contribution to the country's safety. Major won critical acclaim and was received well at the box office too. 

Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2-May

Many had doubts when Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 was announced. Speculated as the sequel of Akshay Kumar-Vidya Balan's much-acclaimed horror-comedy, all eyes were on it. Proving naysayers wrong, the film was lauded by the audience and it went on to become one of the year's biggest and quickest blockbusters. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 starred Tabu, Kartik Aaryan and Kiara Advani in the lead. 

Jug Jugg Jeeyo-June

Raj Mehta returned to the big screen with yet another winner. Jug Jugg Jeeyo dealt with a poignant topic sensitively but without compromising on humour and entertainment quotient. The film revolved around characters played by Neetu Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Kiara Advani and Varun Dhawan. It was commercially successful. 

Rocketry-July

R Madhavan was a one-man army on Rocketry: The Nambi Effect. His dream project revolved around Indian aerospace engineer Dr. Nambi Narayanan, who worked for the Indian Space Research Organisation. The film focused on the roller coaster ride he went on after being falsely accused of espionage.

Laal Singh Chaddha-August

Aamir Khan and Kareena Kapoor Khan's Laal Singh Chaddha had its own unique voice despite being the remake of Tom Hanks' Forrest Gump. Amid much backlash, the film carved its own path and made the audience fall in love with simplistic storytelling and earnest performances. 

Brahmastra-September

Brahmastra was one of the most awaited films. After being in the making for almost a decade, the Ayan Mukerji directorial exploded at the box office and created many new records. Amitabh Bachchan, Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt and Mouni Roy played central roles in the mythological fantasy. Brahmastra is a trilogy and the first part which released this year was titled Shiva. 

Chup-September

Sunny Deol, Dulquer Salmaan, Shreya Dhanwanthary and Pooja Bhatt took everyone by surprise with R Balki's spine-chilling thriller, Chup. The story was about a serial psychopath killer on a spree to murder film critics who were unfair and biased in terms of ratings. The film gave the right amount of chills with dashes of humour and thrills. 

Vikram Vedha- September

A hot Hrithik Roshan and a dashing Saif Ali Khan united for the remake of Pushkar-Gayatri's Vikram Vedha. Despite being an almost frame-to-frame adaptation, the Hindi version was well-made and impressed even those who had watched the original one. 

Goodbye-October

Goodbye made the toughest person break down. Thanks to Amitabh Bachchan's impactful performance, Neena Gupta's charm and Rashmika Mandanna's confidence. Vikas Bahl returned to direction with Goodbye, a film revolving around the loss of a dear one and all the events that unfold after the person has passed away. 

Mili-October

Mili, once again a remake, explored a different and a spine-chilling story of a young girl who gets locked inside the cold storage of a food joint where she worked as an employee. Janhvi Kapoor played the titular role and gave her career-best performance. 

Uunchai- November

Uunchai was home to many surprises. The Sooraj Barjatya directorial managed to bring back the family audience to theatres. Its simple and effective storytelling struck the right emotional chords with the audience. Uunchai starred Amitabh Bachchan, Anupam Kher and Boman Irani along with Neena Gupta, Danny Denzongpa and Sarika. 

Drishyam 2-November

Drishyam 2 was a complete entertainment package. Starring Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Akshaye Khanna, Shriya Saran, Ishita Dutta, and others, the Abhishek Pathak directorial was just the perfect sequel and box office booster. The twists, turns and thrills left the audience wanting for more. Drishyam 2, despite facing competition from major releases, continues to work well at the box office. 

Bhediya-November

Howling into the woods of entertainment, thrill, chills and humour, Varun Dhawan, Kriti Sanon, Abhishek Banerjee, Deepak Dobriyal and others made people go crazy over Bhediya. With spectacular visuals, humour-laced content-driven plot, hilarious one-liners and a few jump scares, the creature comedy directed by Amar Kaushik received a thumbs-up from critics as well as the audience.  

An Action Hero-December

Ayushmann Khurrana, in his first action-thriller, kicked the ball out of the park. He played the role of an action hero who accidentally killed the younger brother of an influential political person. Jaideep Ahlawat took the cat-n-mouse chase a level higher with Ayushmann.