Best Bollywood Comedy Movies: 20 Films That Still Land

Comedy ages faster than any other genre. Jokes date, references die, and half the films that had theatres roaring in their year are unwatchable a decade later. The ones below did not do that. Some are close to sixty years old and still land.

This list is ordered roughly by how well each film has survived, not by box office. Release years, directors and casts are as per the films'' credits.

The all-time top tier

1. Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro (1983)

Kundan Shah''s only real classic, and arguably the sharpest satire Hindi cinema has produced. Naseeruddin Shah and Ravi Baswani play two broke photographers who stumble into municipal corruption. The Mahabharata-crashing climax is still the most anarchic ten minutes in Hindi film comedy. It flopped on release and became a cult film on video.

2. Hera Pheri (2000)

Priyadarshan''s remake of the Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking. Akshay Kumar, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal as three men in a Mumbai chawl who intercept a ransom call. Paresh Rawal''s Baburao Ganpatrao Apte is the most-memed character in Indian cinema, twenty-five years on. The 2006 sequel Phir Hera Pheri is broader but has its own fanbase.

3. Andaz Apna Apna (1994)

Rajkumar Santoshi''s film with Aamir Khan and Salman Khan as two layabouts chasing an heiress, plus Paresh Rawal in a double role as Teja and Ram Gopal Bajaj. A commercial failure in 1994 that became a generational touchstone through television reruns. "Aila" and "Teja main hoon, mark idhar hai" entered the language.

4. Chupke Chupke (1975)

Hrishikesh Mukherjee, working from the Bengali film Chhadmabeshi. Dharmendra plays a botany professor who poses as a driver to prank his wife''s brother-in-law, played by Om Prakash. Amitabh Bachchan and Sharmila Tagore round out a cast doing nothing louder than a raised eyebrow. Proof that Hindi comedy did not always need shouting.

5. Padosan (1968)

Jyoti Swaroop''s film with Sunil Dutt, Saira Banu, Mehmood and Kishore Kumar. The "Ek Chatur Naar" duel between Kishore Kumar and Mehmood is the single most replayed comedy sequence in Hindi cinema. Some of its gender politics have not survived; the musical timing absolutely has.

The Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Gulzar shelf

6. Golmaal (1979)

Amol Palekar as a young man who invents a moustachioed twin to keep his hockey-loving boss (Utpal Dutt) happy. Nothing to do with the later Rohit Shetty Golmaal series. Won Palekar the Filmfare Best Actor award.

7. Angoor (1982)

Gulzar''s adaptation of Shakespeare''s The Comedy of Errors, with Sanjeev Kumar and Deven Verma each playing twins. Precision-engineered farce; not one scene is wasted.

8. Chashme Buddoor (1981)

Sai Paranjpye''s Delhi student comedy with Farooq Shaikh, Deepti Naval and Rakesh Bedi. The gentlest film on this list and the one that most rewards a rewatch in your thirties.

9. Khubsoorat (1980)

Rekha as the free spirit who dismantles a rule-obsessed household run by Dina Pathak. Mukherjee again, and one of Rekha''s best comic performances.

The modern classics

10. Munna Bhai M.B.B.S. (2003)

Rajkumar Hirani''s debut. Sanjay Dutt as a Mumbai don who fakes his way into medical college; Arshad Warsi as Circuit. Its sequel Lage Raho Munna Bhai (2006) is arguably the better-written film.

11. 3 Idiots (2009)

Hirani again, with Aamir Khan, R. Madhavan and Sharman Joshi. Loosely based on Chetan Bhagat''s Five Point Someone. One of the highest-grossing Hindi films of its time and still the default engineering-college comedy.

12. Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006)

Dibakar Banerjee''s debut. Anupam Kher as a retired Delhi man whose plot of land is grabbed by a builder played by Boman Irani. Dry, specific, and the best Delhi film on this list.

13. Bheja Fry (2007)

Sagar Ballary''s low-budget adaptation of the French film Le Dîner de Cons. Vinay Pathak as Bharat Bhushan, an income tax clerk and aspiring singer, is a career-defining performance.

14. Delhi Belly (2011)

Abhinay Deo''s film, written by Akshat Verma, produced by Aamir Khan. Released with an A certificate and an unapologetically crude script — which is exactly why it still plays fresh.

15. Stree (2018)

Amar Kaushik''s horror-comedy set in Chanderi, with Rajkummar Rao and Shraddha Kapoor. Launched the Maddock horror-comedy universe that has since produced Bhediya, Munjya and Stree 2.

The loud, unapologetic crowd-pleasers

16. Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007)

Priyadarshan''s remake of the Malayalam Manichitrathazhu, with Akshay Kumar and Vidya Balan. More thriller than comedy for most of its runtime, then Akshay arrives.

17. Hungama (2003)

Priyadarshan, with Paresh Rawal, Akshaye Khanna and Rimi Sen. Mistaken-identity farce done at full volume.

18. Welcome (2007)

Anees Bazmee''s gangster comedy with Nana Patekar, Anil Kapoor, Akshay Kumar and Feroz Khan. Uday Shetty and Majnu Bhai are permanent meme fixtures.

19. Dhamaal (2007)

Indra Kumar''s treasure-hunt comedy, riffing on It''s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, with Sanjay Dutt, Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, Javed Jaffrey and Aashish Chaudhary.

20. Gol Maal era to Fukrey (2013)

Mrighdeep Singh Lamba''s Delhi hustler comedy with Pulkit Samrat, Varun Sharma and Richa Chadha as Bholi Punjaban. The best of the newer ensemble comedies and now a three-film franchise.

Frequently asked

Which is the funniest Bollywood movie of all time?

By fan consensus and rewatch value, Andaz Apna Apna and Hera Pheri top most lists. Critics usually put Jaane Bhi Do Yaaro first for its satire.

Which Bollywood comedy movies are on OTT?

Streaming rights rotate. As a rule, the older Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Gulzar titles sit on the free and catalogue tiers, while Hera Pheri, 3 Idiots, Stree and Delhi Belly move between the major subscription platforms. Check the platform search before planning a watch night.

Who is the best comedy actor in Bollywood?

Paresh Rawal has the deepest run — Hera Pheri, Andaz Apna Apna, Hungama, Awara Paagal Deewana. Historically the title belongs to Mehmood, and among current actors Varun Sharma and Rajkummar Rao carry the most comedies.

If you want more Hindi cinema lists, our iconic Bollywood dialogues piece and the best Hindi web series guide cover the same rewatch territory. Fancy testing yourself? Try the Bollybakar quiz hub.