Director Siddharth Anand's Fighter has got off to a flying start at the box office. Starring Hrithik Roshan, Deepika Padukone and Anil Kapoor, among others, this is one of the most expensive films to have come out of Bollywood. Anand began shooting Fighter during the pandemic, and a lot of time, money and energy has been invested in making it.
Hrithik Roshan, as it is, does few films. While this is Roshan's third film with Anand after Bang Bang and War, it is his first big-screen appearance in more than a year after the release of Vikram Vedha. A lot was riding on this film for the Hindi film superstar and he needed a win with Fighter.
The film released on Thursday (January 25, 2024), ahead of the Republic Day long weekend. So, the stage was set for a mighty score. The film made Rs 24.60 crore on Day 1, and then grew spectacularly on Friday (Day 2) as critical acclaim and positive word of mouth helped the film make the most of the Republic Day holiday. A jump was always on the cards, but to go from Rs 24.60 crore to Rs 41.20 crore is really commendable, and now it’s all about gaining momentum from this point on.
The film has to do well on Saturday and Sunday - the hope is it will breach Rs 30 crore and Rs 40 crore, respectively, to take the first weekend (four days) total in the vicinity of Rs 140 crore, up from the current score of Rs 65.80 crore.
Of course, everyone associated with the film would be hoping that the big milestone of Rs 150 crore is crossed by the close of its extended four-day weekend, but then for that kind of trending, Fighter needed to open in the Rs 30-35 crore range on Thursday - and with that not happening, the expectations have been reset.
Other films in theatres right now: HanuMan (Hindi) and Main Atal Hoon
Meanwhile, HanuMan (Hindi) looks set for a lifetime score of Rs 50 crore. It has netted Rs 41.44 crore so far and the push that came on Friday really benefitted it. On Thursday, the film had come down to making Rs 75 lakh in ticket sales which indicated that the film could fall short of the Rs 50 crore mark eventually. However, with Republic Day holiday falling on a Friday, collections zoomed by more than Rs 1 crore to reach Rs 1.85 crore and that has added fuel to its overall run. Today and tomorrow should be good again for the film which should find itself in the Rs 44-45 crores range by close of its third weekend in theatres.
As for Pankaj Tripathi starrer Main Atal Hoon, it has flopped at the box office. The film did have its moments, however lacklustre promotion and marketing campaign coupled with sudden release and no follow up buzz resulted in the graph of the film going down at the box office. Yes, there was some push in the opening weekend with the momentum gaining but follow through was not there and as a result the film’s lifetime will wrap up under Rs 10 crore mark.
Note: All collections as per production and distribution sources
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