India, Feb. 28 -- For decades, Hollywood films have sat atop the box office food chain. of the soft power of American pop culture and the wide reach of most major studio-backed Hollywood films, these movies make significantly more money than any other industry on the planet. The biggest blockbusters rake in over a billion dollars each every year. And yet, this year, a tiny $80-million movie is not just the highest-grossing film of the year, but the highest-grossing animated film ever.

Chinese film Ne Zha 2 has set the box office ablaze with record-breaking collections. A fantasy adventure film directed by Jiaozi, it is the third film in Enlight Pictures' Fengshen Universe after Ne Zha (2019) and Jiang Ziya (2020).

Made on a budget of $8...