The year so far has seen a few hits and a few misses, though the real challenge seemed to be the scarcity of both. Movies that managed to earn even a faint glimmer of appreciation clung to the screen for an extended period, driven more by necessity than choice, simply because there was a dearth of alternatives for exhibitors to showcase. Well, it won’t be a problem this weekend as the three biggest industries are all showing up.
From Bollywood, there are sequels to two highly appreciated films. One is the follow-up to the 2001 ATBB Gadar, featuring Sunny Deol and the other is Oh My God 2 with Akshay Kumar and Pankaj Tripathi. Then there is Karan Johar’s Rocky aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani among holdovers, which is holding rock steady since its release. Meanwhile, down South, the biggest stars of Tamil and Telugu film industries for decades, Rajinikanth and Chiranjeevi will be coming up with Jailer and Bhola Shankar.
The biggest of them all is Gadar 2, which has taken a killer advance and is looking for a 3-day weekend in excess of Rs. 100 crores (around Rs. 85 crores Nett). On the high end, if the film receives thumbs up from the audiences, it could fly way over that, hitting a century in NETT terms. In second, Jailer is eyeing a Rs. 40 crore plus first day in India, if reception is on its side, can go for Rs. 120 crore plus over the 4-day weekend. OMG 2 will be reliant on word of mouth, if that clicks, it can also muster Rs. 40 crores plus (around Rs. 35 crores Nett). Bhola Shankar isn’t as hot as the usual Chiranjeevi films, with quite low expectations but should be able to cross Rs. 40 crores in three days.
If all goes well, the combined box office take of these new releases and the holdovers will exceed Rs. 300 crores, preferably closer to Rs. 350 crores. There are very few weekends when the box office in India has clocked over Rs. 300 crores. Where this weekend lands will be something to look for on Monday when actuals for all these films arrive.
You can read about the prospects of these films individually in detail:
