There have been some small films which have done extremely well over the last twenty five years or so and Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety is among them. The horror blockbuster of 2002 Raaz tops the list followed by Satya (1998) which was a washout in most of India but Maharashtra (Tax Free) and South were phenomenal.
There are four films crossing 1 crore footfalls and its still a huge achievement. It was a bit easier in the past as if the film had merits it would continue to run for a long time and a small film could compete with a big film if it had the content. Today the multiplexes are ready to replace the holdover with a new film as even if the holdover is doing well, its a good bet the newer film will give better occupancy over the weekend.
The top small films over the last 25 years or so are as follows. The likes of Chak De India, Taare Zameen Par and OMG! Oh My God have been left due to star presence while a Grand Masti is not there due to brand value. All these films clocked over 1 crore footfalls and are small films but due to the above points cant really be called small.
1. Raaz (2002) - 1,28,40,000
2. Satya (1998) - 1,12,17,000 (Note Mumbai / South Blockbuster, washout at many places)
3. Vivah (2006) - 1,02,41,000
4. Raazi (2018) - 1,00,16,000
5. Aashiqui 2 (2013) - 98,54,000
6. Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na (2008) - 94,16,000
7. Sonu Ke Tito Ki Sweety (2018) - 91,26,000
8. Kya Kehna - 76,71,000 (2000)
9. Malamaal Weekly (2006) - 76,08,000
10. Fukrey Returns (2017) - 74,59,000
