The first half of 2013 is over. It’s monsoon time. And it’s raining hits in Bollywood with film after film crossing the success barrier. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s astounding biopic “Bhaag Milkha Bhaag”, releasing Friday, already seems to have the potential of being the first certifiable blockbuster during the second half of 2013. Here’s looking at the films of 2013 that that made it, and the ones that didn’t so far:“Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani”: Ayan Mukerji’s second film was charming, warm and sometimes tender. But it didn’t have much to say about the man-woman thing, except that guys who are popular in college, can get away with murder in future life. And yes, girls who are repressed, just need to throw off their spectacles and make a spectacle of themselves to prove they have reached the nirvana of liberation. Thanks to Ranbir Kapoor’s growing popularity, the film escalated to beyond the Rs. 100 crore profit mark, leaving everyone including producer Karan Johar stumped. “Aashiqui 2”: Stars sell, right? Then how do we explain the phenomenal success of this Mohit Suri-directed drama about a girl who wants to be a known singer, a guy who wants to be drunk all the time, and a relationship that hits a dead end just when the hero hits the bottle with enhanced vengeance? Audiences loved the story of a girl who is willing to give up her fame for love. This film turned Aditya Roy Kapur and Shraddha Kapoor into saleable stars. “Race 2”: Well-toned girls and guys dancing and conning one another is all I remember of this year’s first blockbuster.

Deepika Padukone and John Abraham competed to show us who could wear their pants more distant from the navel, while Saif Ali Khan scowled as though the last shot of the bourbon turned out to be not so neat. But would someone please explain the plot?“Raanjhanaa”: By far the most deserving success of 2013 so far. Aanand Rai’s Varanasi-based love story gave us an unlikely couple in Sonam Kapoor and Dhanush, besides a love story which made obsessive passion more a crime of the heart than a libelous offence. The film’s exuberant celebration of love took filmy romance away from the metropolis into the heartland. One USP: A.R. Rahman’s best music in Bollywood since “Dil Se..” and “Taal”. “Jolly LLB”: Subhash Kapoor’s astonishingly well-written film on the loopholes of the legal system was a delight. There were no stars in the film. There were Arshad Warsi and Boman Irani, who are far more gifted than some of our A-listers who do the same thing over and over again. A true triumph of a relatively small, socially relevant film worthy of a standing ovation. “Special 26”: Here was superstar Akshay Kumar doing what he seldom does - playing a real-life conman, and that too in an ensemble cast where at least 15 to 18 other characters got equal prominence. Director Neeraj Pandey broke all the rules of mainstream cinema with this heist story, which was unadorned by half-naked girls swimming in a sea of champagne. He still got audiences hooked. Other successes: “ABCD: AnyBody Can Dance”, “Kai Po Che!”, “Saheb Biwi Aur Gangster Returns”, “Chashme Buddoor”, “Shootout At Wadala”, “Fukrey” and “Go Goa Gone”.