New Delhi, Aug. 7 -- Dubbed versions of southern films, especially Tamil and Telugu movies, appear to be losing their fizz in the Hindi-speaking belt. Recent titles including Kamal Haasan-starrer Thug Life (Tamil) and Game Changer (Telugu) have performed below par, raking in less than a 10th of earlier blockbusters from the south.

With the exception of Pushpa 2 and Kalki 2898 AD, there haven't been any major dubbed hits in the past year. Experts said there is unnecessary hype over the dubbing trend and too many films have jumped on to the bandwagon without adequate content or marketing efforts.

The Hindi version of Mani Ratnam's Thug Life, released in June, made Rs.1.56 crore. Kannappa, a Telugu-language Hindu epic starring Vishnu Manch...