‘Baaghi 4’, ‘Sikandar’, ‘Jaat’, ‘Baby John’: The Reign Of South Filmmakers In Bollywood

Post-pandemic, a number of films from south Indian cinema ruled the box office leaving Bollywood behind.

However, it all changed with Shah Rukh Khan starrer Pathaan which shattered all records and then Jawan became an even bigger blockbuster at the box office.

Unlike Pathaan which was helmed by Siddharth Anand, was directed by a popular Tamil filmmaker Atlee.

Post the earth-shattering success of Jawan followed by the mega hit that was Animal by Telugu director Sandeep Reddy Vanga, the demand of south filmmakers increased in Hindi cinema.

There is a popular belief going around that filmmakers from south India, unlike Hindi directors, know how to present their heroes on-screen in crowd-pleasing mass entertainers.

And that the desi action entertainers are made better by south filmmakers as compared to Hindi filmmakers who often go for slick Hollywood-esque approach.

As a result of that, a lot of upcoming films featuring Hindi film superstars are now being helmed by the filmmakers from Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada cinema.

However, it’s not that all Hindi films made by the south directors in the last couple of years have been successes.

Some of the Hindi flops and disasters made by south directors include Sarfira directed by Tamil filmmaker Sudha Kongara Prasad, Vikram Vedha directed by Tamil filmmaker duo Pushkar-Gayathri, HIT: The First Case directed by Telugu filmmaker Sailesh Kolanu.

Despite that, some of the most-awaited upcoming Bollywood mass action films are directed by south filmmakers.

Check out the list below:

Baaghi 4

Starring Tiger Shroff, is directed by Kannada filmmaker A Harsha of Bhajrangi, Veda and Bhima fame. It is releasing on September 5, 2025.

Jaat

Starring Sunny Deol, is directed by Telugu filmmaker Gopichand Malineni of Krack and Veera Simha Reddy fame.

Baby John

Directed by Tamil filmmaker Kalees who was the assistant director of Jawan director Atlee, Baby John stars Varun Dhawan in the lead role. The film is releasing on December 25, 2024.

Deva

The Shahid Kapoor starrer action thriller is directed by Malayalam filmmaker Rosshan Andrrews. It is releasing on Valentine’s Day 2025.

Soorya

An official remake of Malayalam film Joseph, Soorya stars Sunny Deol in the lead role and is directed by Malayalam director M Padmakumar.

Sikandar

The biggest of them all is Sikandar starring Salman Khan. It is directed by Tamil filmmaker AR Murugadoss of Ghajini, Darbar, Holiday fame. The film will hit the screens on Eid 2025. Salman Khan recently shot .

While the aforementioned films are in various stages of production, there are other films as well that have been either announced or are reportedly in works. These include Ashwatthama – The Saga Continues starring Shahid Kapoor and directed by Kannada filmmaker Sachin Ravi and The Bull starring Salman Khan and directed by Vishnuvardhan.

Going Back To The ’80s?

There was a time in the ’80s when the biggest grossers were mainly directed by the filmmakers from the south.

These highly successful and blockbuster films included Jeetendra’s Himmatwala, Justice Chaudhury, and Tohfa directed by K. Raghavendra Rao, Kamal Haasan’s Ek Duuje Ke Liye by K. Balachander, Rajinikanth, Amitabh Bachchan and Hema Malini’s Andhaa Kaanoon by T Rama Rao, Rajesh Khanna and Jeetendra’s Maqsad by K. Bapaiah among many others.

It seems like we are back in that phase again for Hindi cinema where action films are ruling the box office, especially those helmed by south directors.

As long as these films continue to entertain, we aren’t complaining.