Back in August 15th, 2012, Kabir Khan introduced us to his new project with Karishma Kapoor when he released the film ‘Ek Tha Tiger’. Five years later and people still rave about this powerful thriller! Director Ali Abbas Zafar continues the success of Tigers just one year ago when he released the latest addition to this adventurous espionage-filled serial- ‘Tiger Zinda Hai’ which went onto become one of Bollywood’s biggest hits. And now it’s just around 5 more years until we see what surprise waits for us with the release of ‘Tiger 3’, due to debut on Friday April 21st, 2023! To anticipate all our high hopes for this grand conclusion before its premiere- let’s take a retrospective look at how these films have fared so far at the Indian Box Office!
Ek Tha Tiger, directed by Kabir Khan was released in 3300 screens domestically and 550 internationally. Opening with a bang, the film earned Rs. 32.93 crore on its first day of release. Post its opening weekend, it has collected an additional amount of Rs. 100 crores according to viewership ratings from audiences who watched it in theaters. By the end of week one, Ek Tha Tiger had brought in roughly Rs 130 crore worth of earnings at Indian Box Office but after adding international theaters that number increased slightly higher – making the current estimated worldwide figure nearly 150 crore or approximately $23 million USD (as per currency exchange rates).
As weeks go by and reviews are released on this movie there appears to be less foot traffic coming through which is leading many experts to believe that this movie will not surpass 200 crores when all is said and done due to waning viewership numbers.
The second sequel to the Tiger series–Tiger Zinda Hai–helmed by Ali Abbas Zafar started off better than expected. With an Indian release of 4,600 screens and 1,100 overseas, the film succeeded in breaking records on opening day with collections totaling Rs. 34 crore. To add onto this success were two additional factors: Salman Khan’s (former) 50th year in Bollywood and Katrina Kaif returning after three years since her last appearance with the franchise. Despite not beating up its predecessor–Ek Tha Tiger–in terms of revenue, thanks to nine weeks of screening instead of six, TZH finished off with a total gross income from India alone at Rs. 339 crore.
Looking at the records of box office collections, and of course the ever-increasing number (of screens) and price (of tickets), it is safe to say that Tiger 3 will in all likelihood be much larger than the previous two films in the franchise.
