In Bollywood Blockbuster, players become directors of their own Bollywood movie productions. They hire actors and cast them in roles that match the genre aptitudes shown on their cards, such as Comedy, Romance, Action, and Drama. Extras are also available. They add only a small value, but they can fill any role without counting as a miscast.

During the game, actors are displayed in a casting area and can be hired with money. Players may pay to refresh the available actors before hiring a new actor or producing a film. Since money is often tight in movie production, a completed production can also be used to take out a loan.

To produce a movie, the director assigns actors from their hand cards to the required roles. Actors who fit their roles add their points to the production, while miscast actors add nothing. A production without any miscasts receives a bonus. Some of the game material is adjusted during play, as the value of a completed movie production is written on its tile and reduced by hand if that production is later used for a loan.

The movie productions take place in the major Bollywood movie cities Mumbai, London, L.A., Berlin, and Cannes. The chosen city matters, because each production is ranked against the others at the same location and scores victory points based on its position. After all players have completed their productions, they add up their victory points. The player with the highest total has created the biggest Bollywood blockbuster and wins the game.

—description from the publisher