Yesterday marked the release of the Akshay Kumar and Bhumi Pednekar starrer Rakshan Bandhan, helmed by Aanand L Rai. The family entertainer was expected to be highly acclaimed on its release date, Rakshabandhan, with the numbers on its Day 1 reflecting the same in double digits. To the disappointment of all, the movie underperformed by a great extent. Despite its emotive appeal, Raksha Bandhan garnered a mere Rs. 8.20 cr on its opening day. It appears that the film’s struggle could be attributed to its rivalry with Laal Singh Chaddha as well as the dearth of screens in some places.
This box office report takes a closer look at the first-day collections of Raksha Bandhan and compares it to other releases in 2022. With a box office collection of Rs. 8.20 crore, Raksha Bandhan has surpassed the earnings of Ek Villain Returns (Rs. 7.05 cr) to be the ninth-highest opening day grosser. Despite the large amount of hype and promotions around the Aanand L Rai directorial, the movie could not outpace earlier releases like KGF Chapter 2 (Rs. 53.95 cr), RRR (Rs. 20.07 cr), Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (Rs. 14.11 cr), Bachchhan Paandey (Rs. 13.25 cr), Samrat Prithviraj (Rs. 10.70 cr), Gangubai Kathiawadi (Rs. 10.50 cr), Shamshera (Rs. 10.25 cr), or even JugJugg Jeeyo (Rs. 9.28 cr). In comparison to other non-dubbed Hindi releases in the same year, Raksha Bandhan is still the seventh-highest opening day grosser.
Going forward, Raksha Bandhan which enjoys greater penetration in the mass-dominated Hindi belt is expected to see an increase in business. The lackluster advance booking and the issue of screen sharing with Laal Singh Chaddha have greatly affected the overall opening day business of the film. However, with the extended festive opening weekend of Rakshabandhan, followed by Independence Day on Monday, August 15, the business of the Akshay Kumar starrer is likely to see good growth.
Although the film has received mostly favorable reviews, predictions in the trade have indicated that its success will largely depend on strong word of mouth and ad hoc screenings. Nevertheless, those in the industry remain hopeful that the movie’s business will expand with every day that passes.
Top 10 Highest Opening Day Grossers of 2022 at a glance:
KGF – Chapter 2 – Rs. 53.95 cr
RRR – Rs. 20.07 cr
Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 – Rs. 14.11 cr
Bachchhan Paandey – Rs. 13.25 cr
Samrat Prithviraj – Rs. 10.70 cr
Gangubai Kathiawadi – Rs. 10.50 cr
Shamshera – Rs. 10.25 cr
JugJugg Jeeyo – Rs. 9.28 cr
Raksha Bandhan – Rs. 8.20 cr
Ek Villain Returns – Rs. 7.05 cr
