Both the major releases of this week, viz. DO AUR DO PYAAR and LOVE SEX AUR DHOKHA 2, opened to such dismal houses yesterday (April 19) that one could be jailed for even hinting that the films would do anything worthwhile at the turnstiles. The woes of exhibitors, therefore, continue. Many cinema owners are at their wits’ end, unable to comprehend how they would tide over the coming weeks as no film promises heavy footfalls in the near future.
Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, as expected, faced rejection at the box-office in the first week, underlining that it would entail huge losses to all concerned. After a dull start on Thursday (April 11) at Rs. 10.50 crore, collections dropped on Friday which closed at Rs. 6 crore only. The net collections for Saturday and Sunday were Rs. 7.25 crore and Rs. 7.50 crore respectively, taking the first 4-day weekend’s total to Rs. 31.25 crore. Collections for the weekdays were even more horrifying: Monday – Rs. 2.25 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 2.05 crore, Wednesday (in spite of Ram Navami holiday) – Rs. 2.25 crore, Thursday – Rs. 1.50 crore. In this way, the total for the weekdays was a paltry Rs. 8.05 crore. Hence the first 8-day week closed at Rs. 39.30 crore. The film will lose breath after touching Rs. 50-55 crore, a far cry from Rs. 225 crore which was required for the film to break even. It is expected to entail a loss of more than Rs. 100 crore because the prices for digital and satellite rights will very likely be renegotiated by the OTT and satellite channels due to the miserable fate of the film in the cinemas. Viewed differently, a film in which one hero charged more than Rs. 100 crore and the other hero, almost Rs. 35-40 crore will not even fetch a share of Rs. 25 crore from Indian cinemas!!
Despite appreciation for the second half, Maidaan performed dismally at the ticket windows in the first week, sealing its box-office fate. After netting only Rs. 2 crore in paid previews on Wednesday (April 10) and Rs. 3.75 crore on Thursday (April 11), it netted Rs. 3.10 crore on Friday. Collections on Saturday and Sunday were Rs. 4.50 crore and Rs. 5 crore only, taking the 5-day weekend total to Rs. 18.35 crore. Collections for the weekdays were miserable: Monday – Rs. 1.50 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 1.60 crore, Wednesday (in spite of Ram Navami holiday) – Rs. 2 crore, Thursday – Rs. 1.20 crore. Hence the total for the weekdays was Rs. 6.30 crore. In this way, the first 9-day week closed at Rs. 24.65 crore. The film will not even be able to touch the Rs. 50-crore mark. It is expected to entail a loss of over Rs. 100 crore, assuming that the prices for satellite and digital rights will be revised downwards because of the disastrous theatrical performance of the film.
Crew did ordinary business in 3rd week. It started its third weekend with a take of Rs. 1.10 crore on Friday. Collections on Saturday jumped to Rs. 2.10 crore and further to Rs. 2.25 crore on Sunday. After a third weekend total of Rs. 5.45 crore, collections for the weekdays were: Monday – Rs. 0.70 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 0.65 crore, Wednesday (Ram Navami holiday) – Rs. 0.85 crore, Thursday – Rs. 0.55 crore. In this way, the total for the weekdays was Rs. 2.75 crore. Therefore, the third week closed at Rs. 8.20 crore. Grand total for 3 weeks: Rs. 73.90 crore.
Godzilla X Kong: The New Empire (dubbed and the original English versions) fell around 60% in its third week. The third weekend started with a net collection of Rs. 1.42 crore on Friday. Collections jumped to Rs. 2.44 crore on Saturday. The Sunday total was even higher at Rs. 2.76 crore. After a third weekend total of Rs. 6.62 crore, collections for the weekdays were: Monday – Rs. 0.86 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 0.87 crore, Wednesday (Ram Navami holiday) – Rs. 1.10 crore, Thursday – Rs. 0.78 crore. Hence the total for the weekdays was Rs. 3.61 crore. In this way the third week closed at Rs. 10.23 crore. Grand total for 3 weeks: Rs. 89.38 crore.
Swatantrya Veer Savarkar could not do much in 4th week. It netted only Rs. 1.40 crore in 4th week, taking its grand total for 4 weeks to Rs. 23.77 crore.
Madgaon Express managed to remain afloat in the fourth week. The fourth weekend started with a take of Rs. 0.44 crore on Friday. Collections jumped to Rs. 0.80 crore on Saturday. The total for Sunday was Rs. 0.92 crore. Therefore, the total for the fourth weekend was Rs. 2.16 crore. Collections for the weekdays were steady at low levels and were as follows: Monday – Rs. 0.31 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 0.38 crore, Wednesday – Rs. 0.47 crore, Thursday – Rs. 0.30 crore. Hence the total for the weekdays was Rs. 1.46 crore. In this way, the fourth week closed at Rs. 3.62 crore. Grand total for 4 weeks: Rs. 29.95 crore.
Kung Fu Panda 4 (animation; dubbed and the original English versions) managed average collections in 5th week. It netted Rs. 0.20 crore on Friday, Rs. 0.46 crore on Saturday, and Rs. 0.53 crore on Sunday, taking the total for the fifth weekend to Rs. 1.19 crore. Collections for the weekdays were as follows: Monday – Rs. 0.11 crore, Tuesday – Rs. 0.11 crore, Wednesday – Rs. 0.17 crore, Thursday – Rs. 0.11 crore. With the total for the weekdays being Rs. 0.50 crore, the fifth week closed at Rs. 1.69 crore. Grand total for 5 weeks: Rs. 34.69 crore.
Shaitaan is in its last lap. It did ordinary business in 6th week, adding only Rs. 1.85 crore to its kitty. Grand total for 6 weeks: Rs. 150.04 crore.
Alibaba Aani Chalishitale Chor (Marathi) did well in 3rd week too in Maharashtra.