In June alone, domestic gross box office collections stood at ₹1,038 crore
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Indian box office gross collections grew by 10 per cent in the January-June period reached ₹6,398 crore over the corresponding period last year, making it the highest-grossing first half of any year post the pandemic, as per estimates released by Ormax Media. Six films crossed the ₹200 crore mark in the first half of 2026, compared to four in the same period last year.Dhurandhar: The Revenge is the highest-grossing film of the year so far at about ₹1277 crore in gross collections, contributing nearly 20 per cent to the total Indian box office in the first half of the year. Border-2, Peddi, Mana Shankara Vara Prasad Garu, Karuppu and Bhoot Bangla were among the top six in terms of gross box office collections in the first half of the year.“The cumulative box office for Jan-Jun releases stands at ₹6,398 crore , making it the highest-grossing first half of any year post the pandemic, surpassing 2025 by nearly ₹650 crore,” it added. Cumulative box office collections in January-June period in 2025 stood at ₹5749 crore.Steady FlowIn June alone, domestic gross box office collections stood at ₹1,038 crore, including projected future collections of June releases still running in theatres. Four out of six months in 2026 have grossed more than ₹1,000 crore indicating a steadier flow of films thus far in the year, the Ormax Media report noted. Telugu film Peddi emerged as the top-grossing film of June.With several big-ticket films to be released , including Ramayana: Part 1, King, Toxic, Fauzi, Jailer 2, Avengers: Doomsday, Spider-Man: Brand New Day, and The Odyssey the second half of the year is also anticipated to be robust.“Over the last three years, the January-June period has contributed about 42 per cent of annual India box office collections. If this trend continues, 2026 is on track to cross the ₹15,000 crore mark, which will make it the best-ever year at the Indian box office. The current record stands at ₹13,395 crore in 2025,” the Ormax Media report stated.While there was a growth in the number of films that crossed ₹200 crore, the number of ₹100 crore films declined from 17 to 13. The report noted that this underscored the increasing concentration of box office collections among a handful of big releases in 2026. The top 15 films accounted for 58 per cent of box office collections in H1 in 2026 compared to 49 per cent in 2025.Theatre FootfallsMeanwhile, cinema footfalls also grew by nearly 5 per cent estimated at 37.8 crore in H1 ending the three-year phase of decline and stagnation. “The growth in footfalls was driven primarily by Hindi and Marathi films. Despite the growth, footfalls remain below 40 crore-mark, which was achieved in Jan-Jun 2022, a year in which K.G.F: Chapter 2 and RRR released in the first half of the year,” the report added.The record for highest annual footfalls post-pandemic is held by 2023, at 94.3 crore. With several big-ticket films lined up in the second half of the year, the report noted that 100 crore footfalls cumulatively in 2026 seems achievable.Meanwhile, Hindi films’ share grew by 5 percentage points, from 39 per cent in the first half of 2025 to 44 per cent in the first half of 2026. Tamil language box office witnessed a sharp decline in its share to 12 per cent during this period while Marathi cinema recorded its highest post-pandemic share of 4 per cent, it added.Published on July 17, 2026
