In a year marked by shifting audience tastes and a reshuffling of Bollywood’s power corridors, Google’s list of the most searched films of 2025 has delivered a headline-making twist with films of all three
Khans including Shah Rukh, Salman and Aamir, entirely missing from the top 10. An emerging duo, meanwhile, has stolen the national spotlight with a film that had neither marquee names nor lavish promotions.
Google unveiled its annual roster of top trending searches across categories, listing familiar personalities such as Aneet Padda, Ahaan Panday, Saif Ali Khan, Ranveer Allahbadia and Dharmendra among the most searched celebrities. But it was the film rankings that sparked the loudest conversation, revealing which titles captured the public imagination through sustained search interest.
A Debut Surprise Steals Top Spot
At the very top sits Saiyaraa, a modestly mounted film that became the year’s biggest digital talking point. The drama marked the big-screen debut of Aneet Padda and Ahaan Panday, both newcomers who entered the year without star baggage or a fanbase to rally behind them. Their film, released with minimal promotions and no superstar backing, went on to ignite the box office and dominate search queries throughout 2025.
Industry watchers say the film’s rise, from a quiet release to a nationwide conversation, reflects a shifting dynamic among cinema-goers, who increasingly reward novelty and fresh storytelling.
The list paints a telling picture of the evolving entertainment landscape; 5 Hindi films and five South Indian films feature in the top 10, underscoring the deepening pan-India appeal of southern cinema.
Google’s Most Searched Films 2025
- Saiyaraa
- Kaantara: Chapter 1
- Coolie
- War 2
- Sanam Teri Kasam
- Marco
- Housefull 5
- Game Changer
- Mrs
- Mahaavatar Narasimha
Among the year’s major money-spinners, Saiyaraa, Kaantara: Chapter 1, Mahaavatar Narasimha, and Marco all made strong commercial impressions, fuelling much of their search traffic.
One notable entrant is Mrs, a Sanya Malhotra–led drama released directly on OTT platform Zee5, proving that theatrical releases no longer monopolise online curiosity.
Perhaps the most intriguing entry is Sanam Teri Kasam. Originally released in 2016, the Harshvardhan Rane-starrer returned to cinemas this year for a re-release, and, against industry expectations, found a new lease of life. The film drew packed houses, revived its musical legacy and generated enough chatter to secure a place in Google’s top searches for 2025.
In a striking departure from long-standing trends, none of the Khans, once the unshakeable pillars of Bollywood search traffic, feature anywhere on the list. The absence has triggered conversations about whether 2025 marks a tipping point in public sentiment and box office power.
Even Akshay Kumar, one of the most prolific actors of the past decade, failed to find favour this year. Housefull 5, the sole Kumar film in the rankings, made the list only because it trended for the wrong reasons; the comedy franchise’s latest installment failed to recover its budget, drawing heavy online scrutiny.
The 2025 search trends signal a broader churn within Indian cinema. With new faces rising, older franchises faltering and audiences embracing content from across regions, Google’s list reflects a year in which expectations were overturned and stardom itself seemed to be in flux.
