Ayushman Khurana Loses ‘Hanuman Ansh’ & ‘Obsession’ Will Explain To Filmmakers Why Its Time To Make Budget Driven Films And Cut The Costs! Ayushman Khurana Opened About The Shifting Economics Of Theatrical Film. The ‘Hanuman Ansh’ And ‘Obsession’ BO Success Will Be Rightly Said Show Why Filmmakers Should Make More Cost Effective Films To Have A Direct Connect With The Audience! ([The Times of India][1])
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Ayushmann Khurrana Felt Hanuman Ansh and Obsession Small-Budget Films Should Be Made like This
Ayushmann Khurrana has stressed on the need for the Hindi film industry to do smaller productions with good stories. The actor, who was in Mumbai for FICCI Frames 2026, cited Hanuman Ansh and Obsession as examples of films that have reached audiences without huge productions.
All IZZ Well, Phir Se Storyji! Ayushmann said the two films come from two different worlds but shared a common factor. Both worked within limited budgets and the films were heard and seen because of their content and response of the viewers.
“Right now the prime examples are ‘Hanuman Ansh’ and ‘Obsession’,” Ayushmann said in the conversation. He said: “And filmmakers need to come up with films that are more ‘budget-friendly’, more in sync with people.”
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Their comments arrive as a number of lesser films have had strong box office runs.
The most talked-about example: “Hanuman Ansh” which is based on a saint Neem Karoli Baba, by director Vishal Chaturvedi. The film was made with a very tight budget and was initially released with little fanfare.
Thefilm was reportedly made on a budget of 2 crore, according to Variety India, which revealed that Chaturvedi said theproduction took about 22 days to shoot. The filmbudget was trimmed further by cutting down on locations and thecost.
The start of the film was not very impressive. But the business gradually increased as the word spread.
How much has it made? For the first time it has crossed the 400 crore mark at the global box office in less than two months, according to the Indian Express. Different trade figures have put its collection in India and around the world at around 400 crore.
This sort of result has created plenty of buzz for Hanuman Ansh.
What Made Hanuman Ansh Different?
Hanuman Ansh came without the typical big star, a big splashy marketing effort or a high cost production.
The film’s director Vishal Chaturvedi revealed that constraints related to the film’s budget impacted the manner in which it was shot. Following one such financier pulling out the film was shot on a lower budget, though Chaturvedi chose to press ahead.
The crew also reduced the number of locations and other related costs. They also decided not to take their directing and writing fees prior to the film’s release.
According to him to Variety India, the film was finally assembled for “anywhere between 1.5 crore and 1.7 crore”.
The outcome was quite different from what the team had planned. “I was a little hopeful that people just wanted to see the movie long enough to make it profitable,” said Chaturvedi.
But it was audience reaction, instead, that propelled the film well past those expectations.
Obsession Also Gets Mentioned
Ayushmann also appreciated ‘Obsession’ another film that has piqued curiosity due to its comparatively modest budget and good run in cinema halls.
Production costs for the Hollywood production was said to be around $750,000, or 6.5 crore, according to the Hindustan Times, which added that it had a global gross of over $426 million.
As for Ayushmann, but, a push for ‘Obsession’ is not just its coins efficiency.
He referred to the unconventional emotional concept of the film as he was “obsessed” with it. He further went to state that part of what he believed made it effective was that it was ‘new’.
The actor’s remarks are part of a larger conversation about what the modern moviegoer wants from a big release.
Ayushmann Says Stories Matter More
Much of what makes up Ayushmann’s body of work is a result of his penchant for edgy topics and eclectic everyday heroes.
His earlier films like Vicky Donor and Dum Laga Ke Haisha to Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, Article 15 and Badhaai Ho have all dealt with themes that are not typically associated with the kind of commercial cinema one generally watches.
During FICCI Frames, he once more addressed that story is the key and not the size of the film.
To him the true superstar of a film has always been its story. He also talks about going back to the kind of honest, accessible cinema that first made audiences connect with him.
Also Read Udta Teer Film is also being pushed as a journey back to such a cinema. It is set to arrive on 9 October 2026.
Word Of Mouth Remains Important
The actor also emphasized on word of mouth.
Word of mouth might also play a bigger role for smaller films, which are unlikely to have comparable marketing budgets to higher-profile studio productions. A film can start off under the radar, with viewers spreading the word if those who see it like it.
That seems to have played a significant role in the Hanuman Ansh story.
According to Hindustan Times, the movie put up a poor opening week, but its collections picked up during its third week. The turnaround of the film was largely credited to audience response as explained by trade analyst Taran Adarsh.
This pattern is counter to what occurs traditionally with many films where it is believed that they will have their highest grossing numbers in their opening weekend.
# Big Films And Small Films Live Together (#6: Big Is Beautiful )
The video certainly does not imply that big-buck films are going away from theaters.
Trade analyst Atul Mohan told Hindustan Times the industry is divided. “Audiences have been exposed to so much of different content in today’s streaming and social media age. There is a big difference between the film going audiences and the audiences that consume social media content and that’s the trend,” said Atul.
This means that a huge budget does not necessarily inform audiences they should see the film.
If you find it interesting to watch, then even a small movie can have the potential to draw in its audience, and if it’s entertainment valueand story are sufficiently compelling then even a big film has the potential to find its audience.
The difference is that smaller movies have less money to recoup so that can be less risky financially when production costs are well managed.
A Changing Audience
Ayushmann’s remarks come as filmmakers and trade analysts are chalking out ways to decipher the performance of non-Bollywood movies.
Hanuman Ansh Being unusually about how it started its run for the film was very unlike what a lot of people would have thought. It kickstarted silently and then slowly built a groundswell of word of mouth.
Obsession has taken quite a different route and remains within Hollywood, yet its reported opening has contributed to the very same discussion about modestly budgeted films with decent grosses.
For Ayushmann, the lesson is that filmmakers should consider the connection between a movie’s budget, its plot and the audience it’s aiming to attract.
However, the actor’s remarks at FICCI Frames come at a time when the film industry is focusing less on its opening weekend and star value and more on how films can be sustained in theatres by building an audience and creating buzz.
[1] Ayushmann Khurrana lauds ‘small-budget’ films ‘Hanuman Ansh’, ‘Obsession’: ‘We need to be budget-friendly, connect more with people’
