10 Best Bollywood Biographical Films Of Recent Times

Biographical films have become the newest trend in Bollywood. With movies like Mary Kom, Jodha Akbar and Sarabjit, Bollywood has given us some of the most beautiful biographical films on Indian famous personalities of different genres. Whether it’s in the field of sports, historical events or any other, through these movies, we have got to know about many legendary persons of our country more closely.

Many of these personalities have also been a great source of inspiration for us through their narration of how they overcame hurdles in their path through continuous struggle, which ultimately led them to achieve glorious success. Here is a list of top 1o Biographical movies which we have witnessed in Bollywood in the last few years. The list also includes some of the upcoming releases which are most awaited by the audience.

1. Mary Kom

The film is based on five-time World Amateur Boxing champion, Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom, also known as MC Mary Kom, who fought all odds (including her father’s disapproval of her joining the sport) to achieve her dream of becoming a successful boxer. She is the only woman boxer to have won a medal in each one of the six world championships. Priyanka Chopra played the role of Mary Kom in the movie and did full justice to her role.

2. Bhaag Milkha Bhaag

Bhaag Milkha Bhaag is based on Milkha Singh (also known as “The Flying Sikh”), one of the most popular Indian athlete who was a national champion runner and an Olympian during his times. The film depicts Milkha’s painful journey and how he faced a lot of obstacles in his life due to the India-Pakistan partition in those days. In the movie, his role is played by Farhan Akhtar who has given his best shot to play Milkha Singh’s role with perfection.

3. Jodha Akbar

Jodha Akbar is based on the epic love story of Mughal emperor, Abu’l-Fath Jalal ud-din Muhammad Akbar and Jodha Bai who were obliged to marry each other for political reasons. With mutual respect and admiration, they eventually fell in true love with each other. Hrithik Roshan and Aishwarya Rai who played the roles of Akbar and Jodha Bai looked totally convincing in their respective roles. Moreover, Ashutosh Gowariker’s direction and A.R. Rahman’s music made the movie just perfect.

4. Bajirao Mastani 

The historical saga is based on Maratha Peshwa Bajirao who fell in love with Mastani, a Muslim warrior princess in distress, while being married to Kashibai. The story revolves around Bajirao and Mastani’s struggle to make their love successful even after strong opposition from Bajirao’s conservative family. With Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s direction and Ranveer Singh (as Bajirao), Priyanka Chopra (as Kashibai) and Deepika Padukone’s (as Mastani) great acting skills, the movie was a treat to watch.

5. Bandit Queen

Bandit Queen is based on the life of Phoolan Devi, who was an Indian bandit and later became a Member of Parliament. The film shows the torturous life of Phoolan Devi who belonged to a lower caste and had to face sexual abuse and severe discrimination in the society and how the sequence of events made her an admired leader of a gang. The film starred Seema Biswas and got critical acclaim for dealing with such a sensitive topic.

6. Mangal Pandey: The Rising

The film is based on the life and times of Mangal Pandey, an Indian soldier who is known for his role in the Indian Mutiny of 1857 and his fight against the British rule. The movie is directed by Ketan Mehta and Aamir Khan being the perfectionist he is, played the lead role as the sepoy with utmost perfection.

7. Guru 

Guru is loosely based on the life of Dhirubhai Ambani, an Indian business tycoon who is the founder of the renowned Reliance Industries. The story revolves around a simple yet ambitious villager, Gurukant Desai who arrives in Bombay along with his wife in the year 1958 and rises from the streets to become the biggest business magnate of India. The film is directed by Mani Ratnam and features Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya Rai in lead roles. The movie received critical as well as commercial success.

8. The Dirty Picture

The Dirty Picture is inspired by the life of late Silk Smitha, a South Indian actress who was known for her erotic roles in movies. The film revolves around the story of Reshma, who starts her journey as an extra in the movies and eventually turns into a successful actress of the early eighties. Among a series of infidelities, the film also shows her love story with a director. Vidya Balan plays the lead role of ‘Silk’ and the movie also features Naseeruddin Shah, Emraan Hashmi and Tusshar Kapoor in major roles. The film received critical reviews and three national awards among many other important awards.

9. Neerja

Neerja is based on the life of the courageous flight attendant, Neerja Bhanot who saved the lives of 359 passengers with her heroic deeds on the Pan Am flight 73 in the year 1986 when the flight was hijacked by terrorists. She sacrificed her life fighting the hijackers when she was just 22 years old. Sonam Kapoor looks convincing as ‘Neerja’ and  the film also features ace actors Shabana Azmi, Yogendra Tiku and Shekhar Ravjiani in supporting roles.

10. Azhar

The film is inspired from the life of Indian cricketer and former national team captain Mohammad Azharuddin.  Emraan Hashmi plays the lead role of Azhar and the film also stars Nargis Fakhri, Prachi Desai and Lara Dutta in crucial roles.

Recently Released:

Sarbjit

The movie is a biopic of Sarabjit Singh, an Indian farmer living at Bhikiwind, Punjab, near the Indo-Pak border, who unknowingly crossed the border after having a couple of drinks. He was falsely declared to be an Indian spy and was sentenced to capital punishment.  He was tried and convicted by the Supreme Court of Pakistan for a series of bomb attacks in Lahore and Faisalabad. The film is narrated through the perspective of Sarbjit’s sister, Dalbir Kaur who fights for 23 years to clear her brother’s name from the false charges on him. Randeep Hooda stars as Sarabjit Singh, Richa Chadda as his wife and Aishwarya Rai plays the role of Sarabjit’s sister in the film.

Upcoming Releases: 

Dangal

Dangal is a upcoming biographical film based on former Indian wrestler Mahavir Singh Phogat who taught wrestling to his daughters Babita Kumari and Geeta Phogat. The story revolves around Mahavir and his daughters’ struggle towards glory at Commonwealth Games in spite of societal oppression. Aamir Khan plays the role of Mahavir Singh Phogat and the film has already created a lot of buzz due to Aamir’s tremendous body transformation. From being 30 kgs overweight to gaining a perfect physique back in order to fit into the role, Aamir has left no stone unturned to do justice to the role.

M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story

M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story is another upcoming biographical movie based on the life of Indian cricketer and the current ODI and T20I captain of the Indian national cricket team, Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The film depicts the untold story of the world cup winning captain, Dhoni from being a ticket collector to a trophy collector of the Indian Cricket Team. The movie stars Sushant Singh Rajput in the leading role of Dhoni and is directed by Neeraj Pandey.

Sachin: A Billion Dreams 

Sachin: A Billion Dreams is one of the most awaited upcoming biopic which is based on the life of cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar. The movie shows the story of a small boy with big dreams and his journey to becoming the God of Cricket and one of the most celebrated sportsperson not only in his own country but also across the world.

So which among these Indian biographical films is your personal favorite? You are most welcome to share with us in the comments section below. Also feel free to tell us which upcoming biopic are you waiting eagerly?