10 exciting Hindi films that will hit the screens in the second half of 2022

This year was supposed to herald the audience's return to cinema halls, but the first six months of 2022 have been anything but ordinary for the Hindi film industry, which has been gravely impacted by COVID-19.

Many trade pundits were hoping that the industry would make a solid comeback but the third wave of pandemic threw another spanner in the works in January 2022. And it seems that the Hindi film industry has still not managed to get back on its feet. 

However, all our favourite stars, from Ranbir Kapoor, Ranveer Singh, Ajay Devgn and Aamir Khan, have unique films lined up for release, and there are other interesting indie smaller-scale projects that can help the Hindi film industry claw its way back to at the box office, after registering poor collections and being put in the shade by a Southern surge. These are some of the films we can’t wait to see in the second half of 2022.

Shamshera

The historical action extravaganza marks the return of Ranbir Kapoor to cinemas after more than four years. This is enough for Shamshera to make it to our list of top 10 anticipated films in the second half of 2022. But there are a few other reasons. The Yash Raj Films epic is set in 1800 and narrates the story of a dacoit tribe and a man who rose to be their leader and fought for independence during British rule. This is the first time Ranbir will be seen in a double role — the titular tribal chief and his son Bali, who is a scavenger.

Co-written and directed by Karan Malhotra, the film will see Sanjay Dutt in the role of the antagonist, which is also interesting.

Shamshera is due to be released on 22 July.

RK/RKay

Rajat Kapoor's independent film RK/RKay is an unusual and off-beat comedy with a bit of mystery and thrills. Writer-director Rajat Kapoor stars as RK, a filmmaker who is making a new movie, a homage to the cinema of the 1960s, in which he also plays the lead character of Mahboob. But suddenly something weird happens; he receives a disturbing phone call from the editing room saying the protagonist is missing from the film. He has somehow entered the real world.

Also starring Ranvir Shorey, Manu Rishi, Aanchal Munjal and Mallika Sherawat, this crowd-funded movie has been screened at several international film festivals including the Shanghai International Film Festival, the River to River Film Festival, the Bucheon International Fantastic Film Festival and the Austin Film Festival.

RK/RKay will be released in theatres on 22 July.

Laal Singh Chaddha

This remake of the Hollywood classic Forrest Gump (1994) is one of the most awaited films of the year despite multiple delays. Adapted by Khan’s Rang De Basanti (2006) co-star Atul Kulkarni, and helmed by his Secret Superstar (2017) director Advait Chandan, the film will see Khan in a Punjabi avatar. The film also marks the third collaboration between Khan and Kareena Kapoor after 3 Idiots (2009) and Talaash (2012).

Since Laal Singh Chaddha is an adaptation, comparisons will be inevitable, but the recently released trailer suggests the makers have ensured that the film is its own thing and could be the comeback Khan has been looking for since the dud Thugs of Hindostan (2018).

Laal Singh Chaddha is due to be released in theatres worldwide on 11 August.

Dobaaraa

Taapsee Pannu and Anurag Kashyap’s second collaboration, Dobaaraa, has been in the news since its announcement in 2021. The supernatural thriller, which is said to be an adaptation of the Spanish film Mirage (2018), directed by Oriol Paulo, had its premiere at the London Indian Film Festival recently. 

Not much has been revealed about the film's plot but given that it is being helmed by Anurag Kashyap, we can be assured that we will get to see something out of the box. The film also marks the second collaboration between Pannu and Pavail Gulati after Thappad (2020).

Jointly produced by Ektaa R Kapoor’s Cult Movies and Sunir Khetarpal’s ATHENA, Dobaaraa is due to be released on 19 August.

Brahmastra Part One: Shiva

This epic action fantasy superhero film has been in the making for over seven years. The intriguing trailer promises a breathtaking visual spectacle.

Brahmastra Part One tells the story of Shiva (Ranbir Kapoor), a young man who is in love with a girl named Isha (Alia Bhatt). But their world is turned upside down when Shiva finds out that he has a mysterious connection to the mythical Brahmastra and a great power within him that he doesn’t understand just yet, the power of fire.

This Ayan Mukerji directorial mixes Indian mythology with fantasy to pioneer a whole new chapter in Indian cinema. The film also stars Amitabh Bachchan, Nagarjuna and Mouni Roy.

Brahmastra Part One: Shiva, the first part of a planned trilogy, will be released theatrically on 9 September in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada.

Vikram Vedha

This remake of the critically acclaimed 2017 Tamil film of the same name marks the return of Hrithik Roshan to the big screen after three years. The film will see Hrithik in the role of dreaded gangster Vedha while Saif Ali Khan will play the role of no-nonsense cop Vikram.

Directed by Pushkar and Gayathrie, who also helmed the original Tamil film, the movie sees Vikram set out to capture Vedha. After a few failed attempts, one fine day, the criminal himself walks into the police station and surrenders to Vikram. But all is not as simple as it seems. There has been a lot of excitement about this film since the makers unveiled the first looks of Hrithik and Khan's characters. And since it is being helmed by the same duo, we can be pretty sure that the remake will remain true to its source material.

Vikram Vedha is due to be released on 30 September.

Drishyam 2

Since the release of Jeethu Joseph's 2021 sequel to his Malayalam thriller Drishyam (2013), the Hindi audience is eagerly awaiting its Hindi remake. The upcoming film will see Ajay Devgn, Shriya Saran, Tabu, Ishita Dutta and Rajat Kapoor, who starred in the 2015 Hindi remake of the 2013 movie, reprise their roles. Akshaye Khanna is the sole newcomer to the franchise.

Helmed by Abhishek Pathak, the remake will see Devgn's Vijay Salgoankar put everything on the line to protect his family as they once again get entangled in a police investigation.

Drishyam 2 is due to be released on 18 November.

Pippa

After last year's critically acclaimed Shershaah (2021), Hindi cinema lovers will get to see another biopic of a war hero in Raja Krishna Menon's war drama Pippa (2022). The film will see Ishaan Khatter play Brigadier Balram Singh Mehta of the 45th cavalry tank squadron, who fought in the Indo-Pakistan war of 1971 along with his siblings, in a conflict that is known as the Battle of Garibpur.

Adapted from the book The Burning Chaffees, authored by Mehta himself, the film also tells the coming-of-age story of a young Mehta. The film also stars Mrunal Thakur, Priyanshu Painyuli and Soni Razdan. Another exciting thing about this war drama is that its music has been composed by AR Rahman.

Pippa is due to be released in theatres on 9 December.

Cirkus

Any project involving Ranveer Singh is noteworthy.  And this time, he is reuniting with his Simmba (2018) director Rohit Shetty, one of the most successful filmmakers of the past two decades. Cirkus will be an adaptation of Shakespeare’s classic comedy The Comedy Of Errors.

The film has an ensemble cast of Varun Sharma, Siddharth Jadhav, Johnny Lever, Sanjay Mishra, Vijay Patkar, Sulbha Arya and Mukesh Tiwari, who are known for their comical roles.

Cirkus will arrive in cinemas on Christmas.

Merry Christmas 

Fans and industry members alike were left surprised when director Sriram Raghavan announced that Katrina Kaif and Vijay Sethupathi would be headlining his next film, Merry Christmas. The unique casting is enough for this film to make it to this list.

Not much is known about the film's plot but we are confident that Sriram, a master of thrillers like Badlapur (2015) and Andhadhun (2018), will once again bring something unique to the table.

The film is due to be released on Christmas.