Which Khan will rule the 2012 box office?

Shah Rukh Khan goes back to doing what he does best -- romance his heroine in a Yash Raj movie. Salman does the same -- he goes back to being Chulbul Pandey in the Dabangg sequel. Aamir plays a no-nonsense cop in his next, and the film looks just as interesting. But which Khan is going to emerge box office winner this year? We take a look.

Lately, Salman Khan seems to be leading the Khan trio where box office success is concerned. His last few releases have gone on to being the year's biggest blockbusters.

And he may be the winner this year as well, feels media professional and industry observer Abhijit Mhamunkar.

Last year, the three Khans, including Shah Rukh and Aamir, grossed more than Rs 900 crores worldwide at the box office together -- Ready (Rs 185 crores), Bodyguard (Rs 230 crores), Ra.One (Rs 200 crores), Don 2 (Rs 205 crores) and Delhi Belly (Rs 57 crores).

This year, the actors have a slew of interesting movies coming up -- Aamir Khan has Talaash, Salman Khan has Ek Tha Tiger and Dabangg 2 and Shah Rukh Khan has Yash Chopra's yet-untitled film.

In the past six years, the three Khans have not only acted in movies but they have also started producing their own films, which helps them control almost every aspect of their films.

To understand the dynamics, Abhijit gives a detailed analysis: "Talaash has a budget of Rs 40 crore. The satellite rights have already been sold to Zee TV for an estimated Rs 33 crore.

"The cost of the film includes Aamir's fee but as he is a co-producer of the film, so he will take a percentage from the profits made by the film," he adds.

The film also stars Rani Mukerji and Kareena Kapoor. The first promo of the film will be out with Agneepath, which releases on Republic Day.

"The anticipation is huge as Aamir hasn't had a commercial release since 3 Idiots," says Abhijit.

Salman Khan will be back as Chulbul Pandey. The sequel to the 2010 blockbuster Dabangg has been confirmed for a Christmas release. 

"The film is expected to go on the floors in a couple of months. The budget is not yet decided but I am sure it will not be very big as Salman's character will now move to Lucknow, which won't require him to shoot in big cities and multiple locations," Abhijit reasons.

The budget of Salman Khan-Katrina Kaif starrer Ek Tha Tiger is around Rs 60 crores.

"It is the most expensive film to come out of the Yash Raj Film's stable," Abhijit says. "When the film is ready for release, a few more crores will be pumped in for promotion."

The Salman Khan-Eid combination has worked wonders at the box office. The actor has had a hat trick of successes on Eid over the last three years with Wanted (2009), Dabangg (2010) and Bodyguard (2011).

"I feel Ek Tha Tiger will have a bigger opening than any other of Khans films in 2012," says Abhijit. "The reason is Shah Rukh Khan's film comes in Diwali, which has its own disadvantages. The film is releasing on Laxmi Puja, which is traditionally not good for business since in almost every house, the puja takes place in the evening so the collections will definitely take a beating. Secondly, other big films like Son of Sardar (Ajay Devgn and Sonakshi Sinha) and Khiladi 786 (Akshay Kumar) are eyeing a Diwali release. So somewhere, the collections of SRK's film will be affected."

Of course, since it is Shah Rukh Khan's film, it is already creating a buzz for the right reasons.

Yash Chopra is coming back as director after eight years and the film co-stars successful actresses like Katrina Kaif and Anushka Sharma.

As if that is not enough, maestro A R Rahman has been signed on as the music composer and the lyrics are penned by Gulzar.

"The cost of this film is around Rs 40-45 crore. Shah Rukh Khan doesn't charge a fee from Yash Raj Films, as he takes a percentage from the film's profits. This automatically reduces the budget of the film," explains Abhijit.

As Abhijit sums up, 2012 will see a mother of all battles at the box office between the three Khans.

"Aamir Khan is coming back in a commercial film after a long time. Shah Rukh Khan will be seen in a romantic Yash Raj film. Romance is his forte and to add to that, it is directed by Yash Chopra. But when we do a tally at the year end, Salman Khan will emerge strongest as he has two films strongly positioned during the holidays," he says.