Aamir Khan says need more cinema halls to get good numbers at box office: ‘Had Dhurandhar released in 15000 screens, it would have been massive’

Aamir Khan says need more cinema halls to get good numbers at box office: ‘Had Dhurandhar released in 15000 screens, it would have been massive’

• Aamir Khan says India needs more cinema halls to boost box office numbers
• India has 9000 screens, far fewer than China's 100,000
• Distributor Akkshay Rathie says content must appeal beyond urban areas for more screens.

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Bollywood superstar Aamir Khan has spoken about lesser number of theatres across India and said that the country needs more cinema halls to yield good numbers at the box office.

While talking about the need of more cinema halls, Aamir Khan said that if Dhurandhar had received a wide release that Chinese films do, it would have done more numbers at the box office.

In an interview with Variety India, Aamir Khan said the country has just 9000 screens currently as compared to around one lakh in China.

"The country has just 9000 screens currently, compared to around one lakh in China. What is the comparison? We are one-tenth their size in outlets. Which is why one big film when in China does huge business; it does two billion US dollars. Just in China, not in the rest of the world. Just in China, big films do that kind of business. The big films over there do business worth billions of dollars. I am talking of US dollars. So, when we increase our number of screens, you'll see the business expand at the grassroots level. The base of your pyramid will go wide,” he said.

According to the available data, Ne Zha 2, the highest-grossing Chinese film of 2025, collected $2 billion in China.

Dhurandhar, which emerged as India’s highest-grossing film of 2025, collected $115 million India nett and under $150 million worldwide.

He further said: “Let's take the example of Dhurandhar, which has done around Rs 1,000 crore. Now, imagine if it had been released not in 5,000 screens but in 15,000 screens. Massive! So, this is what I'm trying to say. The real change will come when the number of screens goes up. Because there are so many districts in India right now that don't have a single screen."

Dhurandhar emerged as one of the biggest films on 2025 and is now gearing up for the release of its second part. Dhurandhar 2 will release in theatres on March 19, 2026.

But distributor Akkshay Rathie doesn’t seem to agree with Aamir Khan and he sai, "With due respect, Mr @AKPPL_Official, which is the last film you made, which warranted a release in each of the 9000 + screens in India? Or even in the 4500 odd screens in the Hindi speaking markets? Happy Patel, Laapata Ladies, Sitaare Zameen Par etc have had very limited metro focussed releases & been completely irrelevant for the long tail of the existent exhibition sector."

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He added, "Trust me when I say this, sir - Indian business entities are enterprising enough to build the infrastructure you're talking about in record time, but the fuel for it is content that finds appeal with the grassroots of our markets, being made & released with some consistency. You spoke about Dhurandhar & its potential business if it had released in a hypothetical 15000 screens. How many films in an year do the kind of numbers that Dhurandhar did? Or have as wide a geographical impact in terms of footfalls in cities, towns & villages that have a cinema hall today? Can cinemas, which require crores of rupees in capex to be built & have high operating costs be made and maintained for 3-4 such films in an year which create significant impact on the P&L?"

He shared, "What you've said is cute theoretical jargon, given the kind of content that is being dished out. As an exhibitor, I assure you, my fraternity will leave no stone unturned in building more screens, if content creators like you can start making films that find appeal beyond urban India, which is already super saturated with screens. I promise, I respect you from the bottom of my heart for the amazing films you've made back in the day, many of which continue to be my all time favourites."

"However, this statement needed to be called out, because it has been stated and repeated illogically over the years. Yes, we need thousands of more screens, but before that, we need films that can enable them to be built! Hope to see you play your part in it. We'll definitely do our bit. Best wishes for Ek Din, Lahore 1947 & whatever you choose to make next," Akkshay Rathie concluded.

Talking about Aamir Khan, he was last seen on the big screen in Sitaare Zameen Par (2025). The movie collexted Rs 265 crore worldwide and was a moderate box-office success. He was seen in cameo roles in Happy Patel and Rajinikanth’s Coolie.