Your favourite offbeat Bollywood films may not have been possible without films like Dilwale, PRDP & Singh is Bliing

The film industry and its products make for one of India's best loved sources of entertainment. Crores are spent on flashy, commercial films - which are often looked down upon by a number of viewers.

It is a myth that a commercial film - with an impressive budget and a well-planned release strategy may not always win over critics but will rake in the numbers. While it is true that an excessively-marketed commercial film has an edge over other films in terms of the initial audience reception, this is not enough for a film to succeed.

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Let's take any flashy entertainer from recent times. Be it films like Himmatwala, Action Jackson, Boss, Jai Ho and more recently Dilwale - all of these failed to impress the box office. On the other hand, films like Queen, Mardaani, Dum Laga K Haisha, NH10 and Talvar won over audiences - proving that content is king and that the Indian audience will not compromise quality for entertainment.

That being said, Bollywood needs its Action Jacksons and Dilwales in order to produce films like Queen and Highway. How? Despite the flak Kick and 2 States received from critics, Sajid Nadiadwala used the profit from these films to produce Highway and Rangoon.

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Aamir Khan's PK helped UTV fill its coffers - a feat that allowed the production house to produce a film like Filmistan.

Production houses invest in commercial films to reap rich dividends - but not at the cost of churning out one mindless entertainer after another. Commercial cinema may just be the fuel that keeps Bollywood going.

Although actors and directors get most of the credit for a good film, remember that every film - no matter how terrible - is the cumulative hard work of a number of people - ranging from makeup artists to spotboys to marketers.

Sanjay Leela Bhansali reportedly took 200 days to shoot Bajirao Mastani. Sooraj Barjatya reportedly wrapped up the shooting for Prem Ratan Dhan Payo in 210 days. How long did it take you to review both films?