Shah Rukh Khan and Samantha Ruth Prabhu have emerged as the most popular Indian stars of 2023 in Ormax Media’s annual report released on Thursday.
Last year, Shah Rukh delivered three blockbusters— Pathan, Jawan, and Dunki— to revive Bollywood, which was suffering from post-pandemic blues, and extend the reach of Indian cinema to global audiences.
Hot on the heels of Shah Rukh are Vijay and Prabhas. While Vijay’s Leo minted over Rs 600 crore worldwide, Prabhas-starrer Salaar: Part 1 — Ceasefire went on to set the box office on fire in December with a worldwide gross of approximately Rs 700 crore.
Samantha’s inclusion on top of the list, which is considered a barometer of influence and popularity in the world of Indian entertainment, is more of a surprise. She beat Alia Bhatt in the race to become the most popular female Indian star despite taking a long break after her September release Kushi.
Deepika Padukone came out as the third popular female Indian star, riding on the success of Pathaan and Jawan. Nayanthara bagged the fourth spot, just ahead of Kajal Aggarwal who impressed the audience with her performance in Bhagavanth Kesari.
Thunivu star Ajith Kumar and Tiger 3 star Salman Khan also made it to the top five positions in the list, which also includes Akshay Kumar, Jr NTR, Allu Arjun, Suriya and Mahesh Babu, reflecting the rich tapestry of talent in the Indian film industry.
Trisha Krishnan, Katrina Kaif, Kiara Advani, Rashmika Mandanna and Anushka Shetty were the other actresses who secured a spot in the Ormax list.
