New Delhi, Dec 31 (IANS): Drama was the most loved film genre in India this year, not action, thriller or romantic, according to a report.

Online ticketing platform BookMyShow has come out with a report listing how Indians consumed out-of-home entertainment this year. The data was compiled after analysing the inputs between December 1, 2017 and December 18, 2018, read a statement.

In 2018, over 1780 films across languages released through the platform. Tickets of superstar Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar's multi-lingual film "2.0" sold fastest -- 16 tickets per second. Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Padmaavat", on the other hand, was the highest grossing film in Hindi.

It was also revealed that Sunday afternoon was the most preferred show time, and drama was the most popular film genre followed by action, thriller and romantic comedy.

While Hindi cinema ruled the roost, it was followed by Telugu and English. Regional cinema saw a remarkable increase, contributing 45 per cent to the total number of tickets sold on the platform. Tamil and Telugu films together formed 73 per cent of the total number.

Ticket sales in other Indian regional languages like Malayalam and Kannada also experienced growth.

Ashish Hemrajani, CEO and Founder, BookMyShow, said: "The year 2018 witnessed great demand for both movies and live events. On one hand mega blockbusters like '2.0', 'Padmaavat' and 'Sanju' entertained audiences at the box office, on the other, international experiences like Disney's 'Aladdin' and 'Cirque du Soleil Bazzar' left audiences spellbound when it came to live events."