Pan-Indian film

Pan-Indian film is a cultural and media term related to Indian cinema originating primarily within Telugu cinema. The term is used to describe mainstream commercial films that aim to appeal to audiences across the nation while also extending their appeal to international markets.
S. S. Rajamouli pioneered the pan-Indian film movement with his duology of epic action films, Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017). These films marked a significant shift in the Indian film industry, redefining its demographic reach and appeal.
A pan-Indian film is typically marketed and released in multiple languages across India, including Telugu, Hindi, Tamil, Kannada, Malayalam, and other regional languages. Such films aim to transcend linguistic, demographic, social, regional, ethnic and cultural barriers, seeking to resonate with a wide audience.
Indian cinema is composed of various language film industries. Films are often remade in other languages, examples being Anuraga Aralithu (1986, Kannada, remade in 7 languages), Nuvvostanante Nenoddantana (2005, Telugu, remade in 9 other languages) and Chachi 420 (1997, Hindi). Films are also dubbed into other languages and released with localised titles either on the same release date or at a later date. Films such as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and Enthiran, were dubbed in other Indian languages and were released along with their original versions.
The 1959 Kannada movie Mahishasura Mardini is retrospectively identified as the first pan-Indian movie. It was dubbed and released in seven other languages but since then no other film was released in more than five languages.
Indian Cinema industries often remake each others works, Between 2000 and 2019, one in every three successful films made in Hindi was either a remake or part of a series. And most of the star actors, have starred in the hit remakes of South Indian films. Since 2010s, dubbing and telecasting of South Indian films (primarily Telugu and Tamil) in Hindi became a regular practice by which films from Telugu cinema and Tamil cinema gained popularity in the Hindi speaking regions. Majority of these films were dubbed after few weeks or months of the original version release. Similarly, Hindi films were frequently dubbed in Telugu and Tamil languages, but didn't gain as much popularity in Telugu and Tamil speaking regions as Telugu/Tamil films received, except a few like Dangal (2016), M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story (2016).
S. S. Rajamouli's duology of epic action films, Baahubali: The Beginning (2015) and Baahubali 2: The Conclusion (2017), became huge critical and commercial successes. Baahubali 2 became the highest grossing Indian film of all time. The film was released in various languages worldwide. This success led to a new trend in filmmaking, where rather than remaking the same film in multiple languages, filmmakers began dubbing the same film and releasing it simultaneously on a national level. Srivatsan S of The Hindu noted that Telugu cinema excelled in marketing pan-Indian films, primarily using two strategies: promoting films outside their home territory and collaborating with regional stars for increased visibility.
Kannada film KGF: Chapter 1 (2018) directed by Prashanth Neel also released in five languages, thereby becoming the first major Pan-Indian film from Kannada cinema. Success of other films like 2.0 (2018), Saaho (2019), Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy (2019) made Pan-Indian films widespread to other major Indian film industries. Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea (2021) is the first major Pan-Indian film from Malayalam cinema.
Following the success of the Telugu films Pushpa: The Rise (2021) and RRR (2022), Rahul Devulapalli of The Week identified "Content, marketing, [and] indulgent overseas audience" have led to the rise of pan-Indian films from Telugu cinema.
Actors like Prabhas, Yash, Allu Arjun, Ram Charan, and N. T. Rama Rao Jr. enjoyed nationwide popularity among the audiences after the release of their respective Pan-Indian films. Film critics, journalists and analysts, such as Baradwaj Rangan and Vishal Menon, have labelled Prabhas as the "First legit Pan-Indian Superstar". India Today states Prabhas as "a flagbearer of introducing the trend of Pan India films in the nation".
Pan-Indian films also employ actors from different language industry to increase their visibility and bring a universal appeal. In an interview with Film Companion, filmmaker Karan Johar said: "Pan-India is a phenomenon we cannot diminish or dilute."
Several actors, filmmakers and critics have criticise the term Pan Indian film. In an interview with Deadline Hollywood, actor N. T. Rama Rao Jr expressed his disapproval for the term: "I hate referring to it as 'pan-Indian', it sounds like a frying pan. We just mean it is a film that can travel into all the Indian languages". Speaking with PTI, Dulquer Salmaan said: "The word pan-India really irks me. I just don't like hearing it. I love that there is so much exchange of talent happening in cinema, it's great, but we are one country. I don't think anyone says pan-America." Kamal Haasan felt the concept of Pan-Indian cinema always existed, and criticised the term as a new "coinage".
Prabhas, who played the protagonist of Baahubali series, opined that the industry should make "Indian" films instead of "pan-Indian" films. Actor Siddharth echoed the same. He felt the term pan-Indian was a "very disrespectful word" as its use was limited to non-Hindi films. Writer-actor Adivi Sesh felt that "the word is somewhat abused," and used like a euphemism for dubbed film.
Bharti Dubey and Hemachandra Ethamukkala of The Times of India stated that the pan-Indian films have mostly been action films and criticised the perceived violence in such films. Writing for The Swaddle, Rohitha Naraharisetty feels pan-Indian films glorify toxic masculinity and the "angry young man" archetype, while suffering from underdeveloped and heavily objectified female characters.