Bollywood movies are undeniably some of the most gripping films in the world! So, it’s no wonder why the Hindi-language movie industry is the largest in the world! You just won’t find these storylines, anywhere else! Indian films excellently portray emotion onto our screens. As a stock market fan, finding a movie that turns our love for business into excitement, thrill, and drama, can be tricky. But these 5 Bollywood Stock Market Movies below will have you on the edge of your seat!
Baazaar
One of our top choices is of course Baazaar! Released in 2018, this financial thriller and drama, stars Saif Ali Khan, Rohan Mehra, and Radhika Apte. It follows Rizwan Ahmed (Rohan Mehra) a small-time stock trader from Allahabad looking to make it big in Mumbai. Initially, his luck starts off well. He bags a job in one of the city’s largest trading firms whilst also landing himself a high-profile client.
But as many know, the stock market is volatile and it doesn’t take long for things to start going wrong. As an inexperienced stock trader, Rizwan is naive and trusting. He’ll need to find some personal loans or an illegal way out of this mess! The money quickly blurs his vision and he is soon preyed upon!
Gafla
Gafla has been nominated and won plenty of awards since its release in 2006! Gafla won third at the Cyprus International Film Festival in 2008 and was nominated for The Times BFI London Film Festival in 2006. The movie is inspired by the stock market scam of 1992 which knocked the Indian economy, affecting the lives of thousands of people.
Subodh Mehta is an ambitious man from a middle-class background. Like many, he begins his journey into the stock market world believing it’ll be his ticket to fortune. By trying to become a major player in the stock market world he quickly becomes tangled in a web of crime. A suspenseful and dramatic film directed by Sameer Hanchate.
The Big Bull
This Bollywood stock market financial thriller is also based on the Indian securities scam of 1992. Released in 2021, The Big Bull scopes in on the life of Harsha Mehta, a man who allegedly pushed up stock market prices by funneling borrowed money from banks into equities on the BSE. Mehta was once a favored stock broker of the State Bank of India. Despite his ability to manipulate the police, media, and politicians, he was eventually found guilty of his crimes which spanned 10 years from the 80s into the early 90s.
Directed by Kookie Gulati, the Big Bull follows the life of Hemant Shah (Abishek Bachchan), a common man who soon rose to riches through the stock market by manipulating the loopholes of India’s banking system. Despite having the Prime Minister of India in his back pocket, Shah’s shady activities are soon ground to a halt by Meera Rao (Ileana D’Cruz). The Big Bull is a typical Bollywood film, that tells a dramatic and thrilling story based on real-life events.
Share Bazaar
If you prefer the older style of Bollywood films then you’ve got to watch Share Bazaar. Debuting in 1997, this stock market movie is based in Bombay’s business district on Dalal Street. Here, stands a multi-story building known as the BSE (Bombay Stock Exchange). Directed by Manmohan, Share Bazaar is a classic Bollywood movie so of course, it features some fantastic music composed by Uptal Biswas!
The film follows two brothers Hasmukh and Mansukh Mehta. A pair of manipulative stock traders leading other industry men into financial ruin. One of their competitors, Shekar soon watches his life crumble before him. Can Raja a man who was once a poor young beggar, put a stop to the ongoing fraud and planned scams the Mehta brothers inflict? Or will he soon become another victim? Share Bazaar is one of the first Bollywood stock market movies to be produced and is filled with drama!
Scam 1992
Unlike the above movies, Scam 1992 is a ten-part series focusing on the 1992 Indian Stock Market scam. Premiered in 2020, Scam 1992 details the life of Harshad Mehta and his financial crime spree. It became the most watched series on SonyLIV. Due to the series’ success a second season, Scam 2003, is currently in the works! The series allows Bollywood movie lovers to delve deeper into the scam that rocked the Indian economy.
Director Hansal Mehta wrote the script over three years, so it’s no surprise how this series is so popular. Starring Partik Gandhi as Harshad Mehta, Scam 1992 follows the twists and turns of Mehta’s life as he catapults himself into a top player in the Indian stock market. It makes an exciting watch for every Bollywood lover!
All of the above Bollywood stock market movies have made it onto this list for their ability to grip and entice viewers! Each is a must-watch in its own right and we hope you enjoy them as much as we did!