Neither HIT – The First Case nor Shabaash Mithu experienced a successful weekend at the box office, as neither films garnered significant numbers. Additionally, there was very little progress seen over the weekend. Consequently, the current theatrical performance gives us a clear idea that both of these films will be out of theaters within a week and its reception on streaming platforms will be watched closely, as that is where their core target audience lies.
The Rajkummar Rao starrer achieved an impressive feat by crossing the Rs. 5 crores mark over the weekend, but unfortunately it barely managed to reach the Rs. 2.23 crores mark on Sunday. This huge difference is indicative of the difference in movie–goers’ interest between content-driven films of the past and those of the present, when a 2-3 crore opening day was commonplace, with Sunday collections even reaching Rs. 5-6 crores. After a full weekend, the movie currently stands at Rs. 5.59 crores, a somber reminder of the new standards set by the public.
Conversely, Shabaash Mithu has been an unmitigated failure since its initial weekend. Its numbers stayed inconsequential throughout, even on Sunday grossing just Rs. 0.90 crores*. Not surprisingly, for a film starring Taapsee Pannu, this was not the desired outcome at the box office. One can’t help but wonder if the producers were prescient of the limited theatre business that awaited them, seeing as the marketing and promotional activities surrounding the movie lacked any enthusiasm, which has now amounted to a total of Rs. 2.10 crores*.
Surprisingly, the box office figures for both of these movies were even lower than for a few other releases featuring a common element. Rajkummar Rao’s Badhaai Do, which released in 2021, had a more impressive weekend collection of Rs. 7.82 crores while Janhit Mein Jaari, starring Nushratt Bharucha, fared even better at Rs. 2.69 crores over its opening weekend!
*Estimates. Final numbers awaited
Note: All collections as per production and distribution sources
