‘Dangal’ Is Now The 5th Highest Grossing Non-English Movie in Film History

The Nitesh Tiwari-directed sports drama has made movie history by surpassing $300 million at the global box office.

Director Nitesh Tiwari and Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan have made movie history once again with sports drama “Dangal.” The movie became the highest grossing Indian film worldwide when it surpassed the $120 million made by “PK” in 2014, but it officially surpassed the $300 million mark this week to become only the fifth non-English movie in history to do so. According to a report from Forbes, global ticket sales for “Dangal” now stand at $301 million, with $179.8 million coming from China and $84.4 million from India.

“Dangal” tells the true story of Mahavir Singh Phogat, an amateur wrestler who trains his two daughters to be world-class wrestlers despite societal oppression. Disney opened the inspirational drama in U.S. theaters last Christmas, and it earned over $12 million at the domestic box office. Sakshi Tanwar, Fatima Sana Shaikh and Sanya Malhotra co-star.

Only four other non-English movies in history have earned more than $300 million worldwide: China’s “The Mermaid” ($533 million) and “Monster Hunt” ($386 million), France’s “The Intouchables” ($427 million) and Japan’s “Your Name” ($354 million). “Dangal” currently sits in the #5 position, but it could surpass “Your Name” in the weeks ahead as it’s still playing in China, Taiwan and more territories.

“Dangal” is also the first and only Indian film with an overseas gross exceeding $100 million. Between “Dangal” and “PK,” Kahn now has two titles in the top three biggest Indian movies ever made.



IndieWire