Bollywood has always been fascinated by patterns luck and superstition—and sometimes the numbers feel too eerie to ignore. Over the years one film title has quietly earned the reputation of being “cursed”. It has been used nine times across decades featured some of the biggest stars from Bollywood to the South and yet every single attempt ended in financial trouble for the makers. That title is Karz. Why is the title ‘Karz’ considered unlucky? In the last 45 years three films were made with the exact title Karz. Shockingly all three failed at the box office. Add to that six more films with Karz in their titles and the result remains the same: commercial disappointment losses and in some cases career setbacks. Despite repeated failures filmmakers kept returning to the title hoping to rewrite its fate. The outcome however never changed. What happened to Rishi Kapoor’s ‘Karz’? The first Karz was directed by Subhash Ghai in 1980 and starred Rishi Kapoor Raj Kiran and Simi Garewal. With a strong cast and a big director expectations were high but the film flopped badly on release. Rishi Kapoor later revealed in his autobiography that the failure pushed him into depression. He feared his career was slipping away and admitted to feeling emotionally shattered at the time. Ironically Karz went on to achieve cult status years later but the damage had already been done. Where did actor Raj Kiran disappear? Another unsettling chapter linked to Karz is actor Raj Kiran who played a key role in the 1980 film. He disappeared from the public eye over three decades ago. While reports once claimed he was admitted to a mental health facility abroad his family dismissed those stories as rumours. His sudden absence only added to the film’s dark legacy. Did the curse spare later stars? Not really. In 2002 Karz: The Burden of Truth starred Sunny Deol and Shilpa Shetty. The film failed to impress audiences and reportedly earned just around Rs 15 crore falling short of expectations. In 2008 Himesh Reshammiya attempted to revive the title with Karz even stepping in as the lead actor. Made on a budget of about Rs 24 crore the film earned only Rs 16 crore. Reports later suggested that the financial setback pushed Himesh into serious monetary trouble and dented his acting ambitions. What about films with ‘Karz’ in the title? Six other films Karz Tere Khoon Ka Pyaar Ka Karz Karz Chukana Hai and both versions of Doodh Ka Karz (1990 and 2016)—also failed to make an impact. Coincidence or curse Karz remains one title Bollywood just can’t seem to recover from.