This year, Indian cinema was full of hits and misses. Out of the clutter, some gems emerged across languages – Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam. We rank the best Indian films of 2024 across genres, languages, and platforms in chronological order. (Also Read – HT Rewind 2024: From Heeramandi to Freedom At Midnight, check out our picks of this year’s best web series)
Laapataa Ladies
Kiran Rao’s gentle, subversive, yet simple story of two lost women was selected as India’s entry for the Best International Film at the Academy Awards next year. Though it didn’t make it to the shortlist, Laapataa Ladies was received with open arms, thanks to Biplab Goswami’s story, Sneha Desai’s screenplay, and the breakout performances of newcomers Nitanshi Goel, Pratibha Ranta, and Sparsh Shrivastava. It’s streaming on Netflix India.
Read our review here.
Crew
Another women-led of a completely different genre and scale earned over ₹90 crore at the domestic box office. Directed by Rajesh Krishnan, the heist comedy starred Tabu, Kareena Kapoor, and Kriti Sanon, who were ably assisted by Diljit Dosanjh and Kapil Sharma. The film was a laugh riot throughout and salvaged a struggling box office. It’s streaming on Netflix India.
Read our review here.
Amar Singh Chamkila
After duds like Jab Harry Met Sejal (2017) and Love Aaj Kal (2020), Imtiaz Ali returned to form with a biopic of renowned and controversial late Punjabi singer Amar Singh Chamkila, who was played sincerely by Diljit. The film released directly on Netflix India but captured the nation’s imagination, also thanks to AR Rahman’s kaleidoscopic music and Parineeti Chopra’s restrained act.
Read our review here.
Kill
Nikhil Nagesh Bhat brought unprecedented gore to Hindi cinema with this extremely violent film, starring newcomer Lakshya, Raghav Juyal, and Tanya Maniktala. Co-produced by Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions and Guneet Monga’s Sikhya Entertainment, it was given the scale and no-holds-barred treatment that a film of this nature demands. Kill was not only picked up by Lionsgate Films for US distribution but also selected for a Hollywood adaptation produced by John Wick director Chad Stahelski. It’s streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
Read our review here.
The Buckingham Murders
Hansal Mehta’s investigative thriller starring Kareena Kapoor was made 80% in English and 20% in Hindi. Kareena channelled a desi version of Kate Winslet’s memorable character from the HBO show Mare of Easttown, but she also made the role her own. Also starring Ranveer Brar, it’s streaming on Netflix India.
Read our review here.
All We Imagine As Light
Payal Kapadia’s luminous tale of three women, set in Mumbai and a coastal Maharashtra village, might just be the most acclaimed Indian film in recent memory. It won the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival and has been nominated for two Golden Globe Awards. Starring Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, and Chhaya Kadam, it’s bilingual in Hindi and Malayalam. It will premiere on Disney+ Hotstar on January 3, 2025.
Read our review here.
Manjummel Boys
Speaking of Malayalam cinema, the industry had quite a moment in 2024. It started with Chidambram’s survival thriller Manjummel Boys. Starring Soubin Shahir, Sreenath Bhasi, Balu Varghese, Ganapathi S. Poduval, Lal Jr., Deepak Parambol, Abhiram Radhakrishnan, Arun Kurian, Khalid Rahman and Shebin Benson, it revolves around a true incident of Guna Caves rescue in 2006. Manjummel Boys became the highest-grossing Malayalam film ever. It’s streaming on Disney+ Hotstar.
Read our review here.
Aavesham
Jithu Madhavan reinvented the Malayalam action comedy with this Fahadh Faasil-starrer. Much before he played the villain, Shekhawat, in Sukumar’s Telugu blockbuster Pushpa 2: The Rule, Fahadh stole the show with his kicks and puns as local gangster Ranjith “Ranga” Gangadharan. It’s currently the fourth highest-grossing Malayalam film of all time. It’s streaming on Prime Video India.
Read our review here.
Bramayugam
Rahul Sadasivan reintroduced veteran Malayalam star Mammootty in a whole new light with this period folk horror flick. Blending sacred mystery, myth, and folklore of Kerala, Bramayugam was released in black and white. Becoming one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of the year, it was also dubbed and released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada. It’s streaming on SonyLIV.
Read our review here.
Meiyazhagan
C Prem Kumar invoked childhood friendship through a film revolving around two grown men – played by Aravind Swamy and Karthi. Produced by Suriya and Jothika’s 2D Entertainment, it may be a much smaller film than Suriya-starrer period action thriller Kanguva, yet its big heart made it a far more memorable film than Siva’s directorial. It’s streaming on Netflix India.
Read our review here.