Explore the overlooked gems of Bollywood from 2025
2025 delivered its share of blockbuster hits and festival favorites, yet several quieter, risk-taking films slipped past mainstream attention. These under-the-radar stories brought bold performances, inventive voices, and rich storytelling. Here’s a look at the underrated Bollywood films of 2025 that truly deserve recognition.
The Storyteller — Directed by Ananth Mahadevan
Starring Paresh Rawal and Adil Hussain, The Storyteller is about a Bengali man who crafts spontaneous, delightful and engaging stories to a wealthy businessman suffering from insomnia. This wealthy man uses these stories and publishes them under a pen name to gain fame and mingle within the literary circle. Unknown that these stories were lifted by the story teller from a well known collection of a famous writer, this wealthy man lands in a soup after he is slapped with a lawsuit claiming infringement of copyrights. A battle of wits trying to outwit each other and superb performances from the greats.
Tanvi the Great – Directed by Anupam Kher
Shubhangi Dutt plays Tanvi Raina, a 21-year-old woman on the autism spectrum who lives with her mother Vidya and grandfather, Colonel Pratap Raina. Motivated by the memory of her late father, Captain Samar Raina—an Indian Army officer who had dreamed of saluting the flag at Siachen—Tanvi resolves to honor his wish by joining the army and making that dream come true herself. An inventive hybrid of documentary and fiction formally daring and emotionally precise. Anupam Kher’s brilliance as a storyteller is evident. It stands out in the list of underrated Bollywood Films of 2025.
Jatadhara — Directed by Abhishek Jaiswal
An enchanting, Captivating Mythological Horror Thrille that successfully merges commercial spectacle with artistic expression. The film’s central concept, blending the ancient legends of the Anantha Padmanabha Swamy Temple’s hidden treasures with a modern-day conflict between faith and science, is undeniably intriguing. Dhan Pisachini (Sonakshi Sinha) is portrayed with chilling visuals—an owl, a crow, and a hyena—embodying a demonic spirit that hungers for sacrificial offerings, delivering genuinely terrifying moments. Sonakshi is quite impressive.
Andaaz 2 — Directed by Suneel Darshan
A sequel to the 2003 film Andaaz, Darshan introduces debutants Aayush Kumar, Aakaisha and Natasha Fernandez. The trio embodies Gen Z while remaining deeply rooted in family—honoring rituals, customs, and traditions. The film is a tender exploration of friendship, love, and familial bonds. Tackling a delicate balance, director Darshan succeeds with a fresh take on the wholesome family entertainer, buoyed by eight catchy songs composed by Nadeem (of Nadeem–Shravan fame). A delicate romantic drama exploring family values and generational expectations.
The Bengal Files — Directed by Vivek Agnihotri
The Bengal Files is based around the events of ‘Direct Action Day’, which was also known as Great Calcutta Killings centering on the communal violence in Bengal during the 1940s, which culminated in this gruesome killings during August 1946. Every scene leaves you with goosebumps, every emotion lingers in your heart, and by the end, you are left speechless, with tears in your eyes and questions in your mind. A raw, thought-provoking film that brings alive a forgotten chapter of history with such depth and honesty that it leaves you shaken.
Ek Chatur Naar – Directed by Umesh Shukla
Divya Khossla and Neil Nitin Mukesh with Chhaya Kadam feature in this thriller and it is Chhaya Kadam steals every scene as the liquor‑loving mother‑in‑law. Neil Nitin Mukesh brings steady professionalism to his character of a fund manager of a political party. Umesh Shukla’s direction effectively captures small‑town desperation, though the film take its time in narration. Divya Khosla’s Mamta is scrappy and resourceful, the Lucknow setting feels authentic, and the blackmail premise crackles with darkly comic potential. The witty girl’s film is the most underrated Bollywood Films of 2025
Why do some good films fail and vanish from theatres in days?
There are lot of other films with good content that were driven off the buzz, for several reasons. Film distribution, marketing and theatrical release itself is a complex market and the fate of a film depends on several other factors. Most of the good films are handled wrongly like incorrect marketing strategy by the PR agencies or other ones that faced negative press or bad buzz and some were positioned wrongly particularly those having a niche appeal. Other common concerns are unable to procure adequate screens or even the show timings, unfavourable release dates, changing tastes or audience mood. And finally, it could be insufficient or confusing promotion of the movie probably due to budgetary constraints.
Here are some other films worth catching up on OTT platforms –
Kedar Gaekwad’s Match Fixing – The Nation at stake that is a political thriller that exposes the false narrative of saffron terror. Boman Irani directorial The Mehta Boys is about the bonding of a father and son, and then the inspirational film Superboys of Malegaon. Another political thriller based on true events – The Diplomat and again John Abraham’s action thriller Tehran. Phule, is another low profile film that is a historical biopic on Mahatma Jyotiba Phule. The thriller which is also a sharp critique on our dependence on smartphones – Amit Golani’s Logout.
Karan Tejpal’s Stolen is about two brothers caught in a rural nightmare after a young mother accuses one of them of abducting her child from a railway station, Aranya Sahay’s Humans in the loop is about clash between traditional knowledge and technology. Finally, there is also Thamma which is a romantic comedy horror entertainer.
– Reproduced from FILMYTOWN.COM -
https://filmytown.com/rediscover-the-underrated-bollywood-films-of-2025/