Since the start of the pandemic, we have done numerous articles asking trade experts how much digital films would earn at the box office if they were not restricted and had been released in theaters. Following a fantastic reception to all our writings so far, we’re coming back again with another one. This time, however, it’s about Atrangi Re – a Bihari girl who is trying her best to be successful but feels discouraged when she finds out her family arranged for her to marry another man; especially when she falls head over heels in love with someone else.
Directed by Aanand L Rai, the film starred Dhanush, Sara Ali Khan and had a dynamic appearance by Akshay Kumar. This AR Rahman musical’s shoot began before the pandemic. The film’s last leg was completed after the first lockdown was lifted. In early 2021, it was announced that Atrangi Re would release in cinemas on August 6th 2021. Sadly, the second lockdown caused havoc in the release schedule for Bollywood. With no other option but to cancel its cinema release due to virus containment measures and fear of spreading misinformation about what actually happened, the makers were left with only one solution; releasing it through Disney+ Hotstar on December 24th 2021
Probable Theatrical Box Office Lifetime: Rs. 45 to 50 crores If Atrangi Re had been released in cinemas, it would have had a decent start due to the casting and the song Chaka Chak. Unfortunately for the film, there were several negative reviews about its content which meant that even though Akshay Kumar had a limited screen time, it largely appealed to only people from big cities because of the lack of mainstream appeal.
Trade Verdict:
According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, factors like Akshay Kumar’s stardom, Dhanush’s excellent performance, Sara Ali Khan’s natural acting, AR Rahman’s unique soundtrack etc would have helped Atrangi Re consolidate its position at the box office. And for this reason, it appeals most to families who’ll find a lot of humour mixed in with some dramatic scenes; plus star power to round it off nicely.
Film Business Analyst Girish Johar agreed: Akshay Kumar has built up an enormous fan base. Likewise Sara Ali Khan and Dhanya too are hugely popular among audiences down south while Aanand L Rai films always seem to work well in Northern India. He added that word-of-mouth seemed positive as people were giving encouraging feedback on social media even before the film released.
Trade analyst Atul Mohan said, The movie did well with its female audience and overall has a colorful look. There are some disadvantages though such as the main character who does not face any problems after moving in to the women-only hostel or the Dean for Women being absent. Taran Adarsh stated that under normal circumstances, it would have been expected to collect over Rs. 75 crores at theaters but given its Hindi debut when Maharashtra was shutdown due to general unrest (Maharashtra Bandh), made less than Bellbottom (Akshay Kumar’s first release) which collected Rs. 30.63 crores.
Taran Adarsh made a few cogent points about these movies failing to make a mark at the box office. Atrangi Re stars people who have considerable fan following but failed to cross past hundred crores in collections. However, Atrangan R is considered less of an established star pair than many others and had only opened to around Rs 25 Crore- this compares favorably with other lower budget releases which ranged from Rs 20 – 22 Crore on the higher end of earnings.
He also said that because many theaters were closed during this release window and it wasn’t likely they’d be open anytime soon, Atrangi Re went straight onto online platforms instead, whereas other films usually chose such release strategies only after theater exhibitor concerns subsided (and/or as stop-gap measures).
He continued, You will always get a set number no matter where you upload your film and there might even be some profits gained from doing so. However, if you want to capture audiences overseas, or in India for that matter – which is why most films are created – then you will suffer losses. Girish Johar opined,It seems like they were making calculated decisions based on how much money the production needed or could afford.
He proceeded with,If you plan on releasing your film only online, it has its costs too – such as internet speed and other aspects of marketing such as advertisements. But if all those factors can be taken care of somewhere else without having to pay extra then obviously filmmakers would take up this option because it seems like this film was very suitable for an online release.
It has been a passion project for me, agreed Akshay. Of course, we are out there looking at how to make this an even bigger success. As a producer- turned-actor, he felt fully invested in his films. But working so closely alongside Tara and Disney+, which sought excellence from him every time? He became less interested in what they wanted; after all, the world would know if they watched one of his films or not – whether it was on Netflix or YouTube.
As businesspeople who care about numbers, Hotstar gave them a good deal – likely considering that this way their production company could avoid the hassle of distribution when releasing movies digitally. Weighing pros against cons carefully (and without forgetting to include him!), they came to this decision together.
