First weekend performance of latest release

Expectation of 60-70% opening for CASH was quoted in this very column last week. It was also mentioned that if that happens, it should be a happy scenario for this Anubhav Sinha directed film since the film was arriving at an enormous 700+ prints just in India. The opening for this action caper was exactly on the same lines as the film took a very good opening all over with collections falling under the same bracket as predicted. Though the audience reaction for the film is mixed while ranging from good to bad, the opening weekend promises to take the film past the safety mark.

GANDHI MY FATHER was promoted heavily but couldn't get the houseful boards on it's release. It wasn't expected anyways but still a decent start in the vicinity of 50% was expected. Sadly that didn't quite happen as the film has seen a disappointing beginning at the box office. Though the reviews for the film have been fair to very good, audience reaction is yet again mixed. No one hates the film but the serious theme has made many stay away from the theaters and instead wait for August bonanza to bring on more entertainers in the coming weeks.

NAYA DAUR is not been patronized at all and has failed to create any buzz around it even after it's release. There was no point expecting repetition of a MUGHAL E AZAM here but a poor opening means that this experimentation of re-coloring the film won't quite pay the expected dividends.

Last week's movies

There was no notable release in the previous week.

From the past

CASH postponement by a week meant an additional 'cash' for David Dhawan's PARTNER. The film held on amazingly well in spite of a record print count in the second week for a Bollywood film. In spite of majority of multiplex screens showing PARTNER the film took less than 40% fall in it's second week and went on to collect more than 18 crores. While Mumbai continued to be strongest at 3.5 crores, Delhi was superb too at 2 crores. Both NCR and Ahmedabad held on well at 90 lakhs each.

At 48 crores and still counting mega bucks, PARTNER is now a blockbuster and the biggest ever success for everyone associated with the film.

It's time now for preparation of NAQAB DVDs to be out on stands as the film took another mighty fall in it's 3rd week in spite of PARTNER being the only competition. With collections dropping by 70% and only 75 lakhs coming in, it's a miserable end for a film which tried to tell a new story. With 15 crores as the current total for the film, the losses may not be huge for it's investors but this is the maximum distance that the film would have traveled now.

APNE did quite well to hold on for one more week before the film's DVDs arrived at the stands just recently. After a 65% fall last week, it stabilized to collect 70 lakhs more with only 40% fall in collections. Standing close to 27 crores, it should end up around 27.5 crores in it's overall run and be certified as a semi-hit. The film's DVDs though may as well earn a super-hit tag for themselves since their low price [just around Rs. 50/=] would mean huge sales and further reach to the audience. A smart move!

AAP KAA SURROOR also earned 20 lakhs more though it too is now on it's way out after collecting close to 19 crores. A hit for Himesh, it has resulted in announcements of two more biggies from the actor/composer/singer - KARZ remake and AAP KAA SURROOR 2 - AY HIMESH BHAI. Kya baat hai bhai!

In the future

Two biggies and one small film are going to be different flavors to choose from this weekend. While everyone is but naturally expected to watch CHAK DE INDIA, loyal Sunny fans are expected to ensure that KAAFILA takes a decent start at the least. CHAK DE INDIA is surely expected to rake in big moolah throughout the week, especially due to 15th August holiday falling mid-week but the real surprise could be KAAFILA.

It's a kind of film which could turn out to be a dark horse. With Sunny regaining a lot of ground with the success of APNE, he may surprise the audience once again. Between the two biggies, BLUE UMBRELLA comes ready to be sandwiched. The film's promotion was at peak earlier this year but for certain reasons the release was kept on hold. Now when it is eventually being released, it virtually arrives unsung. Sad!