PVR INOX, Miraj see December driving profits as Dhurandhar delivers, Avatar builds buzz

Avatar: Fire and Ash

India’s multiplex majors are gearing up for a strong year-end finish on Dhurandhar's strong box office performance, along with the buzz for Avatar's new installment with soldout shows.

PVR INOX and Miraj say December is shaping up to be the biggest month of 2025, in terms of business.

December is going to be by far the biggest, Gautam Dutta, CEO – Revenue & Operations, PVR INOX, told Moneycontrol on December 18.

"The month is driving great profits for our cinema chains. With Dhurandhar's success, all cinema chains will end up with strong profits," Bhuvanesh Mendiratta, Managing Director, Miraj Entertainment, said.

Nitin Menon, NV Capital, an investment firm focused on the media and entertainment industry, calls December one of the best-performing months in the last few years.

"December has definitely helped in improving business sentiment after a softer period (around Diwali). The month has exceeded initial expectations in terms of overall momentum," said Satwik Lele, Chief Operations Officer (COO) for Mukta A2 Cinemas.

But Dutta noted that the next 15 days are pivotal with the hope of Avatar: Fire and Ash living up to expectations.

He further said that along with December releases, what is more encouraging is the movies lined up for the fourth quarter of FY26. There are tentpole releases like Border 2, Toxic and Dhurandhar 2, among others.

"There is also Mardani, Dhamaal sequel and a couple of South Indian films around Pongal. We will deliver one of the best quarter fours ever, coming ahead," Dutta added.

Why is Dhurandhar a great success story?

According to Dutta, Dhurandar is a marketing success. Its journey started with people expecting it to be a big star-led film but with time, people celebrated the film's story, its characters.

"Our second weekend for the film was bigger than the first by about 35 percent. Most of the time, the opening weekend is bigger. Also, about 78 percent of the people are wanting to watch the movie a second time. So, there is more repeat audience. Not only have audiences enjoyed the film, but they're also saying that they wish to see it again because there's so much meat in the film. There's so much research, there are so many characters, the music is fantastic and that they would like to consume it on the large screen again," he added.

It looks like people went to watch a Ranveer Singh film but came out of the theatres becoming bigger Akshaye Khanna fans.

Its footfalls. at 80-85 lakh in PVR INOX cinemas, are tracking on the same lines as Shah Rukh Khan's Jawan and Pathaan but Dutta said that one has to keep in mind that Dhurandhar is an A (Adult)-rated film.

Dhurandhar is a bigger franchise than Jawan and Pathaan because those were UA (Unrestricted Public Exhibition) rated films, he added.

Even Menon thinks that Dhurandhar will turn out to be the biggest blockbuster from the Hindi stable, even breaking Jawan's collection (around Rs 640 crore in India).

Mendiratta pointed to Chhaava being Dhurandhar's main competitor, in terms of this year's box office numbers but noted that the kind of collections the spy-drama is delivering after 12 days is phenomenal. "It is turning out to be the biggest blockbuster of 2025."

Menon expects Dhurandhar to hit the Rs 500-crore milestone at the India box office by this weekend. "Apart from Tu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri, which is releasing on December 25, it has this entire month to beef up its collections," he said. Dutta said that Dhurandhar has already collected about Rs 450 crore in India. "We see this going right up till about Rs 700-odd crore," he said.

He noted that the film is performing well in all the Tier II cities, including Ahmedabad, Pune, Nasik and Lucknow.

While Mumbai and Delhi-NCR lead, cities such as Pune, Bengaluru and Hyderabad have played a decisive role, with consistent momentum visible across a wide spectrum of markets across the country, said Ashish Saksena, Chief Operating Officer (COO) - Cinemas, BookMyShow.

Dhurandhar crossed 7.5 million tickets sold on BookMyShow. "It now stands as Ranveer Singh’s highest-grossing film on the platform, surpassing the milestone set by Padmaavat at 6 million," he added.

Additionally,  Dhurandhar is  driving food and beverage (F&B) sales. "It is a long film and it has worked to our advantage because people are consuming F&B. Because of the long duration, food sales are up," Dutta said.

Why do cinemas expect a strong finish?

It is turning out to be a happy new year for cinemas because they are seeing high demand for another upcoming venture--- the biggest from Hollywood-- Avatar: Fire and Ash.

Dutta estimates its opening weekend collections at Rs 100 crore. "Avatar: Fire and Ash will open on similar lines as Dhurandhar, which has done about Rs 32 crore. Avatar should be in the region of Rs 32-35 crore. Also, PVR INOX will have the lion's share."

The multiplex chain is also scheduling morning shows as early as 6.30-7 am.

Mendiratta noted that IMAX shows of the movie are sold out.

Lele said that the advance bookings for Avatar: Fire and Ash are tracking positively and reflect strong audience anticipation.

"The year (2025) will end on a high note because of Avatar. It is dubbed in five languages. If there are two big films along with many smaller films, we are in for a massive growth in terms of admission upsurge," Dutta said.

He added that the two films are also driving cinema advertising.

"The duration of advertising is all sold out on both Dhurandhar and Avatar. We do about 17-18 minutes of advertising and it is all gone because corporate India wants to ride the Dhurandhar and Avatar wave," he said.