10 Iconic Bollywood Movies That Still Rule the Indian Film Industry

Bollywood being the main hub of Indian cinema has given birth to several great movies. However, some movies changed the course of such industries and still receive accolades many years later. Below are the 10 most popular Bollywood Movies to this day that still dominate the Indian film Industry.

1. Sholay (1975)

This is an action genre with two criminals in the main roles ordered by a former policeman to catch an aggressive bandit who kidnapped his villagers. The movie introduced Gabbar Singh; such dialogues as “Yeh haath humko de de Thakur”, “Tera kya hoga Kaaliya?”, “Jo Darr Gaya, Samjho Mar Gaya,” and much more.

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Dharmendra, Hema Malini, Sanjeev Kumar, Amjad Khan

Director: Ramesh Sippy

Rating: 8.1/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

2. Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995)

DDLJ is a romantic drama in which two Indians, living in the US, meet, and fall in love with each other while on a holiday in Europe. The movie is based on love, family, and Indian culture where a couple tries to unite against their parents’ wishes which makes it sets a new trend in Bollywood movies.

Cast: Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Amrish Puri

Director: Aditya Chopra

Rating: 8.0/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

3. Mughal-e-Azam (1960)

This dramatic historical correlates to Mughal Prince Salim’s affair with Anarkali, a court dancer. Admittedly, the historical epic is on Mughal India and is popular for its sets, cast, and music; the movie stands as one of the most significant Indian films.

Cast: Prithviraj Kapoor, Dilip Kumar, Madhubala

Director: K. Asif

Rating: 8.1/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

4. Lagaan (2001)

This historical movie, and a sports movie at that portrays the villagers of an area in colonial India rising against the British rulers by playing a cricket match in order to avoid paying the high taxes imposed on them. Combining elements of sports drama and aspects of social relevance Lagaan turned into a critical hit that grossed good money and was even nominated for an Oscar.

Cast: Aamir Khan, Gracy Singh, Rachel Shelley

Director: Ashutosh Gowariker

Rating: 8.0/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: YouTube

5. 3 Idiots (2009)

This comedy movie revolves around three engineering students dealing with the stress of the education system in India. Thus, the humor and warm-heartedness of the film illustrate to the viewers that there is no need for rote learning and tough adherence to social expectations.

Cast: Aamir Khan, R. Madhavan, Sharman Joshi, Kareena Kapoor

Director: Rajkumar Hirani

Rating: 8.3/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

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6. Mother India (1957)

This epic movie describes the suffering of a poor village woman, Radha, who is raising her sons under very difficult circumstances. We can identify many themes in it such as mother, morality, and rural area which makes it a symbol of a newborn India and it remains part of the Indian Movie industry.

Cast: Nargis, Sunil Dutt, Rajendra Kumar

Director: Mehboob Khan

Rating: 8.0/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

7. Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001)

This is a family drama that tells the Indian family’s terrible reality of conflict between the young and the old generations and between tradition and modernity. As a musical, based on love, tradition, and reunion, K3G, popularly known, was a cultural distributor, popular with its incredible star cast and powerful script.

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Jaya Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Hrithik Roshan, Kareena Kapoor

Director: Karan Johar

Rating: 7.4/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Netflix

8. Gangs of Wasseypur (2012)

This crime movie shows the story of power struggles between three coal mafia families of Wasseypur over three generations. Due to the gritty portrayal of crime and political and political revenge, the film remapped the gangster genre of Bollywood and received acclaim for its performances and director.

Cast: Manoj Bajpayee, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Richa Chadda

Director: Anurag Kashyap

Rating: 8.2/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Amazon Prime Video

9. Dil Chahta Hai (2001)

This movie revolves around three boys who are very close friends, as they experience love, job, and life. Due to it reflecting more on the emotional path that a new generation of urban youth and its approach to relationships in the contemporary world, the film offered one of the new directions in which Bollywood could be taking.

Cast: Aamir Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Preity Zinta

Director: Farhan Akhtar

Rating: 8.1/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Netflix

10. Black (2005)

This is a high-voltage movie revolving around Michelle a deaf-blind girl and her teacher Debraj. For their message of the communicative and personal odyssey the movie is about disability, determination, and education so successfully embarked on by Kolya and his friends while providing an excellent performance and direction, this picture received all the audiences’ accolades.

Cast: Amitabh Bachchan, Rani Mukerji

Director: Sanjay Leela Bhansali

Rating: 8.2/10 (IMDb)

Where to Watch: Netflix