But, equally importantly, a bunch of intelligent, off-beat movies such as Kahaani and Vicky Donor also reaped rich rewards at the cash counters. Bollywood trade expert Komal Nahta says that Rowdy Rathore has already earned Rs 135 crore and still going strong.

Agneepath raked in Rs 120 crore while Housefull 2 fetched Rs 112 crore at the domestic box office. With films also earning generous sums from satellite television rights and the foreign market these days, their overall collection is substantially more.

No surprise, actor Akshay Kumar has the widest grin in Bollywood having playing lead roles in both Rowdy Rathore and Housefull 2. The overall domestic box-office earnings of the Vidya Balan starrer, Kahaani (Rs 58 crore) and Vicky Donor (Rs 42 crore), the season's sleeper hit, are not as high as the above-mentioned mainstream masala flicks.

But these movies have deftly balanced quality cinema with cash counter jingle. "It shows that different cinema is also working at the box-office," says Nahta, who runs the trade magazine, Film Information Social scientist Shiv Visvanathan, who comments regularly on films, says Bollywood's main trunk of masala movies is robust as ever but its side branches too have become thick and healthy now.

"We are witnessing diversity. The good thing is that smaller movies have reached a degree of sophistication.

Producers seem to be more aware of the economics of a small movie nowadays," he says. Jannat 2 and Ishaqzaade are two other box-office winners this year.

The makers of Ferrari Ki Sawari, Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu and Paan Singh Tomar also have something to smile about. The critically-applauded Gangs of Wasseypur too has fared reasonably well.

Director Abbas-Mustaan's Players is one of the bigger box-office disappointments of the year (less)