Last week two unique movies, Shubh Mangal Saavdhan and Bhoot Part One – The Haunted Ship, made their theatrical debut. The former was a humorous depiction of a same–sex relationship, while the latter was a horror story that unfolded in the city. Both movies appealed to multiplex-goers and had a strong opening day at the box office.
Shubh Mangal Saavdhan had a fair first week as Rs. 44.84 crores came in. Given the taboo subject, these are fine numbers for the Ayushmann Khurranna starrer. That said, the film’s opening suggested a better first week as there was stage set for good growth from there on. This didn’t quite turn out to be the case as the film found just about decent appreciation at an average, both from the critics as well as audiences. It has managed to cross the lifetime number of Shubh Mangal Saavdhan within five days itself but will fall short of Article 15, hence ironically turning out to be Ayushmann Khurranna’s lowest grosser since Shubh Mangal Saavdhan!
In contrast, Bhoot Part One – The Haunted Ship performed reasonably well in its first week with total gross earnings of Rs. 24.18 crores. Though the Vicky Kaushal-starrer had an expected opening, it lacked substantial momentum in the subsequent days of the weekend. On the positive side, the film managed to stay stable during the weekdays, though not in the highest bracket.
It was unexpected to have an offering in the Rs. 100 Crore Club range; however, something in the Rs. 40-50 crores range would have been more suitable. Nevertheless, Karan Johar’s production should surpass the Rs. 30 crores mark, and any higher figure would be an additional bonus.
