Will BO History Occur This I-Day Weekend?

‘We
believe
these
five
days
should
get
roughly
about
5
to
5.5
million
people
or
more
into
the
cinemas.’

It
has
been
a
lacklustre
year
for
theatre
owners
and
the
film
industry
this
year
so
far,
with
only

Kalki,
the
lavishly
mounted
science
fiction
film
starring
Prabhas
setting
the
box
office
on
fire.

Theatres
are
now
hopeful
that
the
long
weekend
beginning
with
the
Independence
Day
holiday
will
orchestrate
a
turnaround
and
set
the
cash
registers
ringing.

August
15
saw
three
Bollywood
films
releasing,
which
include

Stree
2,
along
with
John
Abraham’s

Vedaa
and

Khel
Khel
Mein.

Thangalaan,
a
Tamil
language
action
adventure,
also
released
on
Thursday.

“These
five
days
are
going
to
be
very
strong
for
the
(movie)
business,”
Gautam
Dutta,
CEO,
revenue
and
operations
at
PVR
INOX
told

Business
Standard.

“We
believe
that
these
five
days
should
get
roughly
about
5
to
5.5
million
people
or
more
into
the
cinemas,”
he
added.

Stree
2
topped
the
sales
for
advance
bookings
this
weekend,
with
PVR
INOX
expecting
this
film
to
generate
about
Rs
35
crore
to
Rs
40
crore
(Rs
350
million
to
Rs
400
million)
on
the
opening
day.

“This
advantage
stems
from
the
franchise’s
established
popularity
among
audiences,
as
the
original
film,

Stree,
was
a
significant
success,”
said
Devang
Sampat,
managing
director
at
Cinepolis
India.

The
recent
trend
of
horror
comedies,
exemplified
by
hits
like

Munjya,
has
further
solidified
this
genre’s
appeal
in
the
northern
market.

Entertainment
platform
BookMyShow
expects

Stree
2
and

Double
iSmart
to
have
a
slight
edge
due
to
their
existing
fan
bases
and
strong
franchise
value.

“Initial
indicators
suggest
the
potential
for
a
great
weekend,”
Ashish
Saksena,
COO-Cinemas,
BookMyShow
said.

“The
combination
of
a
beloved
franchise
and
a
genre
that
resonates
well
with
the
audience
makes

Stree
2
a
strong
contender,”
Sampat
added.

In
the
south,

Thangalaan
has
generated
the
maximum
number
of
ticket
sales,
Cinepolis
said.

“Given
the
strength
of
the
films
and
the
festive
atmosphere,
we
anticipate
this
year’s
figures
to
either
match
or
surpass
those
of
last
year,”
said
Sanjeev
Kumar,
executive
director
of
PVR
Inox.

These
films
have
a
stiff
task
in
front
of
them.

Last
year,
Independence
Day
emerged
as
one
of
the
biggest
holidays
for
the
box
office
business
with
record
collections
for

Gadar
2,
OMG
2,
the
Rajinikanth
starrer

Jailer
and
the
Telugu
film

Bhola
Shankar.

The
Independence
Day
weekend
has
historically
been
a
blockbuster
period
for
the
film
industry,
consistently
drawing
large
audiences.

This
trend
has
continued
to
strengthen
post-pandemic,
as
evidenced
by
the
phenomenal
success
of
movies
like

Pathaan
and

Gadar
2,
both
of
which
grossed
over
Rs
500
crore
(Rs
5
billion)
last
year.

These
results
underline
the
growing
importance
of
holiday
weekends
for
the
industry,
as
they
not
only
offer
a
surge
in
viewership
but
also
help
revive
and
sustain
the
momentum
of
cinema-going
culture,
Sampat
explained.

To
cater
to
the
audience
for
this
busy
movie
weekend,
PVR
Inox
has
prepared
its
multiplexes
with
special
promotions,
themed
décor,
and
snacks.