Bollywood’s once-dominant romantic comedy era may officially be over — at least according to one of the genre’s biggest stars. Saif Ali Khan, whose early-2000s films helped define urban romance in Hindi cinema, has described Bollywood romcoms as a “failed experiment,” arguing that modern audiences no longer connect with the genre’s traditional formula.
Speaking during promotions for his latest Netflix drama Kartavya, Saif reflected on the changing tastes of Indian moviegoers and how romantic comedies have gradually lost cultural relevance. In an interview with Hindustan Times, the actor said romcoms may have “started and finished” with him in Bollywood.
“I loved doing romcoms, but I feel they were like an anomaly in Indian cinema,” Saif said. “A romcom is technically this confused privileged guy who has everything on his plate, but is still confused, so people don’t really connect with it now.”
Why Bollywood romcoms are struggling today
For nearly two decades, Bollywood romcoms thrived on glossy storytelling, urban relationships, and light-hearted emotional conflicts. Films such as Hum Tum, Salaam Namaste, Kal Ho Naa Ho, and Love Aaj Kal became cultural milestones and helped shape multiplex-era Hindi cinema.
But audience preferences have dramatically shifted. High-intensity action dramas, crime thrillers, and larger-scale spectacles now dominate the box office, leaving little room for softer relationship-driven narratives.
Saif also suggested that the emotional stakes in storytelling have fundamentally changed. According to coverage from Bollywood Hungama, the actor believes audiences today demand stories that feel more urgent, emotionally raw, and socially grounded.
That shift has become increasingly visible in recent years as films rooted in violence, survival, and psychological conflict outperform romantic entertainers. Mid-budget love stories that once sustained Bollywood’s urban market have struggled to generate theatrical success.
The rise and fall of Bollywood romcoms
Ironically, Saif Ali Khan himself was once considered Bollywood’s most reliable romcom star. His easygoing screen presence and comic timing made him central to the genre’s golden period during the 2000s.
Back in 2014, while promoting Happy Ending, Saif had defended romantic comedies and insisted he was not “playing safe” by returning to the genre, according to an older report by The Indian Express. At the time, Bollywood still believed urban relationship dramas could thrive theatrically.
Even in the late 2010s, films like Luka Chuppi, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan, and Bareilly Ki Barfi managed to keep the genre alive by blending romance with social commentary. However, the pandemic era accelerated audience migration toward streaming platforms and high-concept spectacles.
A 2023 industry analysis by Film Companion noted that Bollywood’s romcom decline was tied not only to changing audience expectations but also to shrinking theatrical windows and rising production risks.
Streaming changed audience expectations
The OTT boom has also transformed how viewers consume romance-driven stories. Younger audiences increasingly prefer long-form relationship dramas and Korean-style romantic storytelling on streaming platforms rather than traditional theatrical romcoms.
Trade analysts have repeatedly pointed out that Bollywood’s classic “urban confusion” formula no longer resonates in a post-pandemic market shaped by realism, social anxiety, and darker storytelling trends.
An earlier feature by Firstpost similarly argued that modern Hindi cinema audiences now seek emotionally layered characters instead of aspirational metropolitan fantasies.
Saif Ali Khan still isn’t giving up on romance
Despite calling Bollywood romcoms a failed experiment, Saif clarified that he still loves the genre and remains open to returning to it under the right circumstances.
The actor reportedly joked that the next generation — including his son Ibrahim Ali Khan — may now carry the romcom legacy forward.
“I would love to do a love story, or even a comedy that ends in romance,” Saif said during the interview. “There is still one there in me.”
Whether Bollywood romcoms can reinvent themselves for a new generation remains uncertain. But Saif Ali Khan’s remarks underline a growing industry reality: the genre that once defined multiplex-era Hindi cinema is now fighting for relevance in a market driven by intensity, spectacle, and streaming-era storytelling.
