If at all the makers of 'Shaitan' have anyone to blame for below average response that it has garnered at the box office, it is their own self. A well made film which has seen good critical acclaim coming from critics and appreciation from the select audience that has seen it, 'Shaitan' hasn't managed good moolah for itself. At the end of the first week, the film has seen just a little over 5 crores in collections. Now that's quite low for a film which was high on content and deserved a far better response for itself. So why should the makers be blamed? Well, they chose to release it a week after 'Ready', a decision that was not just debatable but in fact deserved a complete dismissal at the very mention.

However there must have been some thought process for the makers who believed that this decision would pay off in any ways whatsoever. Perhaps they believed that the Salman Khan starrer would fizzle away after a one week run and then audience would look at 'Shaitan' as their next obvious choice. Well, this was a far fetched thought for sure, as evidenced in the footfalls that 'Shaitan' saw. Yes, there was audience trickling in but that was quite minimal. First choice of audience still remained 'Ready' which means despite good word of mouth, there weren't many who were willing to give the film a chance. Result? A film that will certainly become quite popular on home video or satellite but would go down as a barely coverage affair at the box office.

Om Puri starrer 'West Is West' can't even expect that as it has been discontinued from theaters within a week's run. Audience have rightly given this film a cold shoulder that saw just a few lakhs entering its kitty. The film saw a couple of good reviews here and there but by and large audience appreciation was totally missing. As for 'Love Express', it has given competition to 'A Strange Love Story' that had released a week earlier when it comes to near-zero footfalls. The film is an unmitigated disaster.