Some movies are considered classics today but were big failures when released. Slowly when people start watching these movies on TV, DVDs, etc then they realise and also wonder why these movies were considered flops when released. One of the main reasons for them not doing well is because some of these cult movies were ahead of their times and audiences at that time could not relate to the movie but slowly when people rediscover these movies, these movies became cult classics. Here we have curated a list of five such movies which were ahead of their times.
- Kaagaz Ke Phool
A classic by the maverick director Guru Dutt, Kaagaz ke Phool tells the story of the rise and fall of a filmmaker and how ruthlessly the film industry works. Today Kaagaz ke Phool is not only considered a classic but one of the best movies that came out of Bollywood ever. But when it was released way back in 1959, it was thrashed by critics and became such a big flop that Guru Dutt decided not to direct any more movies in his life. Starring Guru Dutt and Waheeda Rehman, Kaagaz ke Phool is considered today as a movie that was ahead of its time and people then could not resonate themselves with such a personal movie.
- Mera Naam Joker
Mera Naam Joker was the most ambitious movie of Raj Kapoor and it’s said that he even mortgaged his house to make his dream project. A four-hour-long movie, Mera Naam Joker had big names like Raj Kapoor, Manoj Kumar, and Dharmendra associated with it. The movie revolves around the character of Raju played by Raj Kapoor who works as a joker in a circus. The movie shows his journey from his adolescence years to later adulthood, how a joker has to make people laugh even at the cost of his sorrows, and how the women who came to his life and shaped it. It was a big flop when released in 1970 and Raj Kapoor lost most of his invested money. He then had to make a commercial love story – Bobby ( a big success) to get his investments back. Still, Mera Naam Joker was the movie closest to Raj Kapoor’s heart and today it’s considered a classic.
- Andaz Apna Apna
It’s for sure that anyone has missed this Aamir Khan-Salman Khan starring laugh riot but you will be surprised to know that it was a disaster when released. Directed by Rajkumar Santoshi, Andaz Apna Apna also featured Karishma Kapoor and Raveena Tandon in female leads along with Paresh Rawal and Shakti Kapoor in supporting roles. Who can forget the iconic character of crime master Gogo played by Shakti Kapoor? Maybe the times were different when the movie was released when only action movies were ruling the chart but today Andaz Apna Apna has become a cult movie with a large fan following.
- Lakshya
After the resounding success of Farhan Akhtar’s directorial debut Dil Chahta Hain, everyone was waiting for his next movie starring big names like Hrithik Roshan, Preity Zinta, and Amitabh Bachchan. Laskhya released in the year 2004, tells the story of an aimless boy born in a rich family and how he finally founds himself and his inner calling after joining the Indian Army. The critics praised the movie but surprisingly it didn’t do well at the box office back then. After years, when in an interview Farhan Akhtar was asked if he gets a chance what will change in the movie Lakshya and he said, “the audience” so rightly. Today Lakshya is considered one of the best movies of the 2000s with one of the best performances by Hrithik Roshan till now.
- Swades
The combination of Ashutosh Gowarikar after the blockbuster and Oscar-nominated Lagaan and Shahrukh Khan who was at the peak of his career then in 2004, Swades was a highly anticipated movie of that year. Swades tells the story of Mohan Bharghav ( Shahrukh Khan), an NRI working in Nasa who comes back to India to find his nanny and take her to the USA but he slowly realizes his roots and discovers what he was lacking back in the USA. Swades was a big flop when released but slowly when people rediscovered the movie on TV, the Internet, etc it became a cult classic and many consider Shahrukh Khan’s performance in Swades as his best performance.
