Since the 90s, Shah Rukh Khan has been the flagbearer of Indian cinema overseas. His films, from Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge and My Name is Khan to Jawan, have all worked well in the US and Europe, with some even eclipsing local releases. Similarly, Aamir Khan has ruled the roost in China. But in 2001, an independent film with no stars and a budget of just ₹5 crore managed to outdo the biggest hits of both these stars.

How a tiny film became India's highest-grossing film overseas

In 2000, screenwriter Sabrina Dhawan wrote a screenplay about an Indian family in Delhi during her time in the MFA film program at Columbia University. Director Mira Nair came on board to direct, and the film came to be known as Monsoon Wedding. Produced internationally between companies from India, the United States, Italy, France, and Germany, Monsoon Wedding had a modest budget of $1.2 million ( ₹5.5 crore at the time). It starred theatre and TV actors like Naseeruddin Shah, Lillette Dubey, Parvin Dabas, Vijay Raaz, Shefali Shah, Rajat Kapoor, Soni Razdan, Roshan Seth, and Kulbhushan Kharbanda. Three newcomers were also part of the cast - Vasundhara Das, Randeep Hooda, and Ram Kapoor. The film was not expected to break the bank at the box office, but Monsoon Wedding defied all expectations.

The film was a success in the North American market, grossing over $13 million there, which stood as the record for an Indian film in the US-Canada for years, before being overtaken by Baahubali in 2017. Monsoon Wedding earned $30.8 million ( ₹145 crore) worldwide, with the bulk of it coming from North America and Europe. It became the highest-grossing Indian film overseas, a tag it enjoyed till Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Dangal overtook it 15 years later.

How Monsoon Wedding beat hits of the Khans

Shah Rukh Khan was at the peak of his career in 2001 when Monsoon Wedding was released. That year, he had two releases—Asoka and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. Both films were successes overseas, but their combined overseas collection was just $14 million ( ₹60 crore), lower than Monsoon Wedding. Even Aamir Khan's Lagaan, which was also released the same year and went to the Oscars, earned just $3 million ( ₹13 crore) overseas.

Monsoon Wedding is currently available to stream on both Netflix and Amazon Prime Video.

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