Movies Are Becoming Events Again: The Rise of the “Must-Watch” Film

Theatrical Cinema Is Becoming More Selective

The way audiences experience movies is changing. With streaming making films more accessible than ever, consumers have become more selective about which releases deserve a theatrical visit rather than a wait for OTT. Going to the cinema is increasingly reserved for films that offer something beyond convenience — spectacle, scale, emotion, social relevance or the excitement of being part of a shared cultural moment.

Yet this selectivity does not mean audiences are moving away from theatres. 81% of surveyed Indian cinemagoers say they prefer watching films in theatres over streaming platforms, highlighting that the theatrical experience continues to hold strong appeal when the film feels worth leaving home for.

The bigger shift is therefore not from cinema to streaming, but from routine moviegoing to event-driven moviegoing.

The Box Office Is Growing Even as Footfalls Decline

India’s theatrical market delivered a record performance in 2025, with gross box office collections reaching ?13,395 crore, making it the first year to cross the ?13,000 crore mark. However, the growth came despite theatrical footfalls declining to 83.2 crore, down 6% from 2024. The difference is being driven partly by ticket pricing. The average ticket price increased by 20%, from ?134 to ?161, allowing stronger-performing films to generate higher revenues even with fewer overall visits.

This creates an important distinction for industry: audiences may be going to theatres less frequently, but they are increasingly willing to pay more for films they consider unmissable.

More Films Are Breaking Into the “Must-Watch” Zone

The strongest evidence of this shift is the widening base of commercially successful films. 37 films crossed the ?100 crore mark in 2025, compared with 22 films in 2024 — an increase of more than 68%. This suggests that theatrical success is no longer being driven exclusively by a handful of mega-blockbusters. More films are finding audiences willing to pay for the theatrical experience, creating a broader pool of films capable of becoming cultural and commercial events.

At the same time, the concentration of the box office among the biggest films has reduced. The share contributed by the top 10 films declined from 41% in 2024 to 33% in 2025, while collections from films outside the top 10 increased significantly. The “must-watch” category is therefore expanding beyond traditional tentpole releases.

The Audience Is Becoming More Diverse and More Selective

Understanding this audience requires looking beyond simple demographic categories. The Hindi theatrical market represents 28.5 million regular Hindi moviegoers, defined as people aged 15+ in urban India who watched at least three Hindi films in theatres during 2025.

These audiences are not uniform. They differ in their movie-going frequency, content preferences, motivations and the factors that determine whether a film is worth watching in theatres. Theatrical audiences are increasingly shaped by specific viewing habits rather than simply age, gender or geography.

The broader theatrical audience also demonstrates meaningful scale, with 164 million Indians forming the theatrical audience around mid-2025. However, the average regular Hindi theatrical member watched around 3 films during the year, reinforcing the importance of convincing audiences that an individual release deserves their time and money.

Theatrical Windows Can Influence the “Must-Watch” Mindset

The timing of a film’s move from theatres to streaming is also becoming an important part of audience decision-making.

A longer theatrical window can strengthen the perception that a film needs to be seen in cinemas rather than watched at home. This was reflected in audience buzz for Housefull 5, where perceived buzz increased from 67% to 73% when audiences believed the theatrical-to-OTT window would be eight weeks. At the same time, shorter windows can encourage audiences to wait. 81% of cinemagoers believe films reach streaming platforms within eight weeks, while 34% say they are willing to wait when the streaming window is short. This makes windowing more than a distribution decision; it can influence how urgently audiences perceive a theatrical release.

The Future of Cinema Will Be About Creating Reasons to Go

The theatrical market is entering a phase where simply releasing a film is no longer enough. Audiences need a reason to choose the cinema over the convenience of their own homes.

That reason could come from scale, franchise strength, star power, storytelling, cultural relevance, visual spectacle or strong audience buzz. Films that successfully create anticipation can turn a release into an experience, while those that fail to establish urgency risk being postponed until their streaming debut.

For studios and exhibitors, the challenge is therefore shifting from maximizing movie availability to maximizing movie relevance.

What This Means for Businesses

The rise of the “must-watch” film makes audience understanding increasingly important. Success depends on identifying which consumer segments are most likely to watch a film theatrically, what motivates them, what prevents them from visiting cinemas and which marketing touchpoints can convert awareness into intent.

As audiences become more selective, content decisions, positioning, release strategies, pricing and theatrical windows will increasingly need to be informed by behavioral insights rather than broad assumptions about moviegoers.

How HBG^TM Insights Can Help

HBG^TM Insights helps organizations understand evolving entertainment audiences through market research, audience segmentation, behavioral research, consumer profiling, content testing, competitive intelligence and customer experience measurement.

For the theatrical ecosystem, research can help identify who is most likely to become a “must-watch” audience, what drives theatrical intent, which content attributes create urgency, how audiences perceive competing releases and what factors influence the decision to watch in theatres versus waiting for streaming.

The future of cinema may not depend on getting audiences to watch more films. It may depend on giving them more reasons to believe that certain films simply cannot be missed.

About The Author

Ankur Malhotra Vice President – Business Intelligence

Ankur is a research and knowledge leader with 20+ years of experience in business and financial research, serving clients across investment banking, consulting, accounting, and advisory. He has expertise in establishing global knowledge centers, delivering business intelligence solutions, and driving thought leadership. Before joining HBG^TM Insights, Ankur worked with Forvis Mazars, Korn Ferry, and was part of the founding team of Acuity Knowledge Partners. He is a CFA charterholder from ICFAI, Hyderabad, and a graduate of Delhi University.

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