<span class=normal>As year 2008 comes to a close, its time to sit back, rewind and take a look at the year gone by. Bollywood has had a mixed year. While some films which were eagerly awaited with bated breath did well at the B.O. (e.g. Race, Jodhaa Akbar, Singh Is Kinng, Ghajini etc.) a striking feature of Bollywood this year was the fact that some of the most looked forward to films tanked badly, while on the other hand, films which one didnt expect much from came quietly and took everyone by surprise.<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>Heres taking a look at The Dudes (films which surprisingly did well with no great expectations) and The Duds (films which were supposed to do well but shockingly sank without a trace)<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>The DUDES<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>Jannat<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>There is no denying the fact that Indians are passionate about cricket and films. It was this very aspect that the Bhatts decided to cash in on when they went ahead with Jannat. So you had Bhatts blue eyed boy Emraan Hashmi playing a small time gambler who goes on to control the cricketing world as a high-profile bookie.<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>Debutant director Kunal Deshmukh (who is a cricket fanatic himself) did his homework well and newcomer Sonal Chauhan showed that theres more to her than just good looks and a curvaceous body. <BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>End result: - The film which released bang in the middle of the IPL cricketing extravaganza went on to rake in some real big money.<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>Aamir<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>Many television actors have tried their hand at Bollywood but apart from a few like SRK, not many have been able to make a mark. So when UTV decided to make a small film under their newly formed division UTV Spotboy with a new director Rajkumar Gupta and T.V.s wonder boy Rajeev Khandelwal, not many people gave them a chance. In fact the makers released the film along with a biggie like Sarkar Raj which many thought was hara-kiri. However, nothing can be more unpredictable than the Box Office. Rajeevs act as the middle class Muslim guy who gets unknowingly caught in a terrorist plan was appreciated by the critics and the janta-janardhan.<BR><BR><br><p class=clear>&nbsp;</p>End Result:- This small film went on to be a profitable venture for UTV Spotboy and finally T.V. had given us yet another actor to look forward to - Rajeev Khandelwal</span>