Bollywood's 'most unsuccessful' director has 26 flops, no hit since 1998; is still considered a legend

If success in cinema is measured at the box office, then the way to decide who is the most successful or unsuccessful should logically be based on who has delivered the most (or least) hits. By that logic, the Khans and Amitabh Bachchan come out on top as having given the most hits (in proportion to releases). Among directors, names like Rajkumar Hirani, Yash Chopra, and Hrishikesh Mukherjee have almost a 100% success rate. But at the other end of the spectrum are actors and filmmakers who have seen more failure than success. One of these names - the director with the most flops - is still considered a cine icon. And that is due to one of the most puzzling careers in Hindi cinema history.

Bollywood's most unsuccessful director

Ram Gopal Varma holds the dubious distinction of having delivered the most number of flops as a director in Hindi cinema. In a career that has stretched 35 years, Ram Gopal Varma has directed 36 Hindi films and over a dozen more in Telugu and Tamil. But of these 39 films, 26 have been flops or box office disasters. His last three releases have not even grossed ₹1 crore at the box office. Of the other 10 films RGV has made, six have been average or below-average grossers, and one is a semi-hit. This means Ram Gopal Varma has only three clean hits at the box office in his career.

Quite unsurprisingly, the 90s was the era when RGV delivered all those hits - Shiva, Rangeela, and Satya. The last of these, the sleeper hit from 1998 starring JD Chakravarthy, Urmila Matondkar, and Manoj Bajpayee, is the last hit in Ram Gopal Varma's Bollywood career.

Ram Gopal Varma's bad luck at the box office

While the 90s were clearly the creative and commercial peak of RGV's career, it's not as if the filmmaker stopped making 'good films' afterwards. Many of his films in the 2000s were critically acclaimed but did not do wonders at the box office. A few films like Company, Jungle, and Sarkar managed to just about break even and avoided the flop tag. But even the last 'semi-hit' of RGV's career came way back in 2005. His last two releases - Ladki: Dragon Girl and Khatra Dangerous - were panned by critics and audiences as soft porn. Neither made over ₹2 lakh at the box office. Since Sarkar in 2017, none of his directorials have crossed ₹1 crore at the box office.

Why Ram Gopal is still considered a cine icon

This high number of flops and misfires in his career would finish anyone's career. But RGV's legacy is beyond just the box office. Right from his Bollywood debut - Shiva - he has created a new cinema niche. Films like Rangeela, Company, Sarkar, and Mast are considered cult classics. Their box office collection notwithstanding, all these films have contributed significantly to Bollywood's storytelling styles. RGV's proteges and finds, including Anurag Kashyap, Manoj Bajpayee, and Urmila Matondkar, have gone on to contribute heavily to Indian cinema. Even at his lowest, RGV was appreciated for a bold take on storytelling in experimental films like Nishabd and Darna Mana Hai. All this has ensured that RGV's legacy remains more than just the sum total of his films' box office earnings.