With bated breath, cinema-goers and Bollywood enthusiasts await these superb releases of the next year… will they live up to the hype created by their trailers and power-packed cast? We can only guess! and Bollywood enthusiasts await these superb releases of the next year… will they live up to the hype created by their trailers and power-packed cast? We can only guess!

Cheat India

The film features Emran Hashmi as a sly con man, who decides to take advantage of an academic world where there are very few opportunities and too many aspirants. From rigging examinations to forging certificates, his schemes aim to both exploit and expose the failings of an education system fraught with problems. The film focuses on existing malpractices in country's education system, the whole concept of buying your way through education, jobs and earnings. It tries to shift the attention of people to understand the vulnerability of hardworking and gifted students who get left out.

Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi

The film is amongst the most anticipated from the lot releasing in 2019 and is based on the real life story of the warrior queen, Manikarnika – The Queen of Jhansi, portrayed by Kangana Ranaut. She was the first woman in history to fight against the British and started the first war for Independence. The 22-year-old queen refused to cede Jhansi to the British. Dressed as a man, she fought a fierce battle and was killed in combat but her inspiring life story and fight against the British is an inspiring tale of bravery, valor and women's strength that has inspired generations after her and will inspire generations to come.

Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga

Featuring the father-daughter duo, Sonam Kapoor and Anil Kapoor in leading roles, ELKDTAL has already won the masses with its trailer which takes up an instrumental topic, helping push a queer conversation forward in India. The film revolves around a family which is enthusiastically looking for a groom for their daughter, unaware of the fact that she harbours a secret that “might not find acceptance in her family and society”. The film, even before its release is being celebrated for bravely going where few Hindi films have gone before – same-sex love. The film also stars Rajkummar Rao and Juhi Chawla. 

Brahmastra

Boasting a star-studded cast of Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, Amitabh Bachchan and Dimple Kapadia, Brahmastra is set to become the first film in an intended trilogy by Karan Johar. Although not much is revealed about the film except for its ensemble cast, fans can’t wait to see the real-life couple of Ranbir and Alia on reel for the first time. Ranbir in an interview revealed howBrahmastra is a 'romantic-fairytale in a supernatural format' and not just another superhero film. Ayan, who has not only directed by also written the story of Brahmastra, has spent over 6 years on this film which he considers to be his most ambitious project.

Bharat

Yes, it is the very film that saw Priyanka Chopra walk out of it ‘in the nick of time’ to marry her beau. Now starring Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif (who replaced PC), Tabu and Disha Patani, Bharat has Salman-Khan fans frazzled with anticipation. But the makers of the film are not poised on revealing much. The director explained in a tweet that it was a 'conscious decision' and added that they will zero in on a 'special date' to reveal details about the film. Bharat is currently in the work-in-progress stage. "We are still shooting for the film. Naye saal mein nayi film ki baat karenge. Naam Bharat hai, date bhi special hogi," added Ali Abbas Zafar.

Kalank

Said to be the biggest multistarrer of the year, Kalank features an ensemble cast of Bollywood’s best names, namely Madhuri Dixit, Sonakshi Sinha, Alia Bhatt, Varun Dhawan, Aditya Roy Kapur and Sanjay Dutt.  ‘Kalank’ is set in 1940s and will be shot on an epic scale. This was visualized by late filmmaker Yash Johar around one-and-a-half decade ago and he even visited Pakistan to pick up the nuances from the place to recreate Pakistan for the shoot. He had conducted a deep, hands-on research on the subject of the film which goes beyond borders. According to some reports, Sanjay Dutt and Madhuri Dixit may be seen as Varun Dhawan’s parents while Aditya Roy Kapur may be seen as his brother in the film.