Box office: Tiger 3 had a roaring opening. Bollywood has truly recovered from Covid

Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif in Tiger 3. (Image credit: Instagram/SalmanKhan).

The big guns are scoring in 2023, and how. Shah Rukh Khan started it all with Pathaan and then followed it up with Jawan. In between these two films, Sunny Deol too brought in Gadar 2 which went on a rampage. Even Prabhas' much-panned Adipurush managed a weekend of over Rs 100 crore.

Well, now Salman Khan has joined the big boys as well and has scored hugely with his Tiger 3. The film was not released on a regular Friday, and yet it has managed to find a place in the Top 3 list when it comes to the moolah gathered by a 2023 release in the first three days itself. It isn't as if it was fighting any weak competition. The fact that it has managed to go past even Gadar 2 says a lot about how it has been lapped up by the audience.

The other film that Tiger 3 was challenging in terms of top slots for first three days' earnings was Pathaan but it was a long shot in any case since the Shah Rukh Khan starrer had this big Republic Day holiday falling on its second day. As for Jawan, it was anyways going to be well out of reach since the word of mouth there was at an altogether different level despite the film releasing on a regular Thursday and no holiday.

Top 10 Bollywood films in 2023, in terms of first three days' earnings

Jawan - Rs 206.06 crore

Pathaan - Rs 166.75 crore

Tiger 3 - Rs 143.75 crore*

Gadar 2 - Rs 134.88 crore

Adipurush (Hindi) - Rs 103 crore

Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan - Rs 68.17 crore

Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani - Rs 45.90 crore

OMG 2 - Rs 43.11 crore

Dream Girl 2 - Rs 40.71 crore

Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar - Rs 36.59 crore

What’s all the more remarkable is that after Jawan, Pathaan, Gadar 2 and The Kerala Story, the film is expected to emerge as the fifth highest grosser of 2023 and that too just five days since its theatrical release. It will likely net Rs 25 crore-plus today - if that happens, it will take the film close to Rs 170 crore to surpass the lifetime score of Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Rs 153.60 crore). Already, Tiger 3 is No. 7 in the list of top Bollywood grossers of 2023.

Top 10 lifetime grossers of 2023: Bollywood

Jawan - Rs 644 crore

Pathaan - Rs 543.05 crore

Gadar 2 - Rs 525.45 crore

The Kerala Story - Rs 242.20 crore

Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani - Rs 153.60 crore

OMG 2 - Rs 150.17 crore

Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar - Rs 149.05 crore

Tiger 3 - Rs 143.75 crore*

Adipurush (Hindi) - Rs 136 crore

Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan - Rs 110.53 crore

Salman Khan has already gone past his Eid release Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan by a distance and even Adipurush (Hindi) lifetime has been crossed. In its full run, it's expected to go past The Kerala Story as well but stay below the big guns in the Top 3.

Note: All collections as per production and distribution sources