Pathaan: The Shah Rukh Khan-starrer is directed by Siddharth Anand and also features Deepika Padukone and John Abraham in the lead.
(Source: Yash Raj Films poster for Pathaan)
Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan has become the biggest release with highest number of screen count, said Yash Raj Films (YRF), the makers of the movie on January 24.
After the first show of Pathaan, exhibitors have increased 300 shows of the film across India, said YRF.
"The total screen count now is 8,000 screens worldwide across Hindi, Tamil and Telugu formats. Screen count is 5,500 screens in India and 2,500 screens overseas. It is the biggest ever release for a Hindi film ever in the history of Indian cinema," the studio added.
Indian films that had widest release so far include KGF 2 with a screen count of 7,000 followed by Rajinikanth-starrer 2.0 that was released 6,900 screens in 2018. Other wide releases include Baahubali 2: The Conclusion, RRR and Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt-starrer Brahmastra with a screen count of 6,500, over 6,000 and 5,000 screens respectively.
"Pathaan is a part of Aditya Chopra’s ambitious spy universe and has the biggest superstars of the country Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone and John Abraham in it. The hype around Pathaan is unprecedented," said YRF.
Pathaan is the first Shah Rukh film to open in over 100 plus countries, the highest for any YRF film so far, the studio said in a release. "It is the widest release for an Indian film globally," said Nelson D'Souza, vice president, international distribution, YRF.
Pathaan has opened to strong advances with 4.19 lakh tickets sold till January 24. The film is recording 80 percent occupancy.
Multiplex operators like PVR and INOX expect the movie to record highest opening numbers between Rs 45-50 crore.
Along with multiplexes, single screen cinemas are also betting big on Pathaan. About 25 cinemas, which were shut down due to Covid, are reopening for Pathaan. These include Kohinoor Cinema in Suratgarh, (Rajasthan), Lajwanti Talkies in Bishrampur, (Chhattisgarh) and Prabhat Talkies in Bina, (Madhya Pradesh).
Pathaan is expected to help the Hindi film industry, which has seen collections dip by 28 percent in 2022 at Rs 3,481 crore versus Rs 4,817 crore in 2019.
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