India, April 24 -- As the first four months of 2025 draw to a close, there has been a marked dearth of big films working at the box office in India. Many big releases fell flat, and apart from Chhaava and L2: Empuraan, not many were able to bring in the masses to the theatres in droves. This has only heightened the anticipation for bigger films in the remainder of the year. But surprisingly, it is a regional film with no superstar, that is topping the charts, ahead of some of the biggest films in all industries.

According to a comprehensive list of the most anticipated Indian movies of 2025 on IMDb, Kannada film Kantara: Chapter 1, the prequel to the 2022 sleeper hit Kantara, is at the top of the list. The film stars Rishab Shetty as the...