At FICCI Frames 2026, Ajay Devgn examined the distinct production challenges confronting Hindi cinema. The conversation centred on his highly anticipated thriller ‘Drishyam: The Conclusion’. During his remarks, the actor elaborated on why crafting films for Hindi-speaking audiences presents uniquely complex hurdles: “I’d not like to take the credit away from international or regional cinema; it’s as difficult to make films there. But I personally feel making a Hindi film is the most difficult. You do not know what your target audience is. When you make a Punjabi, or a Telugu or a Tamil film, you understand the audience as it’s made for a certain region. You know their tastes and hence, you’ll target accordingly. As for Hindi-speaking regions, the language changes every 80 to 90 kilometres. The thought process changes. You also need to understand the idea of mass and class audiences or cities or rural centres. So, it’s either liked by one section of the audience and the other section may not like it. As a result, the numbers don’t come. Hence, it’s most difficult to write a Hindi film.” These insights underscore the unpredictable dynamics of catering to India’s vastly diverse audience spectrum and why some lesser-known flicks go on to become hits whereas bigger ones don’t fare well at the box office.
