Meet Bollywood's ‘most unsuccessful’ director with 26 flops despite working with Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan, Nagarjuna

Success in Bollywood is often defined by box office numbers. While critic reviews may shape initial perceptions, it's the audience turnout in theatres that ultimately decides a film’s fate. In the industry, financial success is celebrated just as much as critical acclaim as money remains the silent force behind every blockbuster, whether led by the Khans, Amitabh Bachchan, or other stars.

Most unsuccessful director in Bollywood

A filmmaker’s success is too measured in a similar way. Directors like Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Rajkumar Hirani, Yash Chopra, Hrishikesh Mukherjee, and David Dhawan are often regarded as one of the most successful filmmakers in the industry. On the flip side, a report of Hindustan Times dubbed Ram Gopal Varma as the director with the most number of flop films.

Ram Gopal Varma's films

Ram Gopal Varma made his directorial debut in 1989 with the Telugu film Shiva. In a span of 36 years, Ram Gopal Varma has directed 36 Hindi films and even more films in Telugu languages. He also has more than a dozen releases in Tamil.

As per the report, 26 films of RVG failed at the box office, so much so that even his last three releases did not rake in ₹1 crore at the ticket window. This leaves only a handful of films of Ram Gopal Varma which actually were hit at the box office.

The report claimed that Ram Gopal Varma only gave ‘three clean hits’ in his career.

Ram Gopal Varma is best known for his hits in the 90s. It includes his iconic films-- Shiva, Rangeela, and Satya. Satya in the report has been dubbed as the ‘last’ and ‘sleeper hit’ by the director. The film also starred JD Chakravarthy, Urmila Matondkar, and Manoj Bajpayee.

Reportedly, his films such as Company, Jungle, and Sarkar which were critically acclaimed, did not fetch much of a success at the box office. 

Ram Gopal Varma's recent works

His most recent releases include Vyuham, Ladki: Dragon Girl and Khatra Dangerous failed to make a mark at the box office business and among critics. His next will be Police Station Mein Bhoot.

Despite no solid films in the pipeline, Ram Gopal Varma continues to be one of the most celebrated directors in India. There's no denying that he created a niche for himself in the industry with his bold and experimental storytelling style. 

He has worked with A-listers including Amitabh Bachchan (Sarkar, Sarkar Raj, Rann, Department, Nishabd), Abhishek Bachchan (Sarkar, Sarkar Raj), Ajay Devgn (Company, Bhoot), Aamir Khan (Rangeela), Manoj Bajpayee (Satya, Kaun, Shool), Nagarjuna (Shiva), J.D. Chakravarthy (Shiva, Satya, Darna Zaroori Hai), Suriya (Rakht Charitra 2), Urmila Matondkar (Rangeela, Kaun, Bhoot, Daud) and Anurag Kashyap.