After ‘revenge shopping’ and ‘revenge travel’, it appears that it’s time for ‘revenge movie viewing’ in theatres. At least, that is what the initial response to the Diwali releases points out.
Actor Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi , which hit the big screens on Friday, has been receiving a phenomenal response with people across the country thronging into theatres in large numbers.
The movie, which was released after nearly two-year delay due the Covid-19 pandemic, had a net box office collection of ₹26.29 crore in the domestic territory and ₹8.10 crore in gross box office collection from the overseas market on day one. The movie had a grand release in 3,519 screens across the country.
“#Sooryavanshi ROARS on Day 1… REVIVES biz… Records EXCELLENT numbers, despite 50% occupancy in the largest market [#Maharashtra]… Day 2 is SUPER-STRONG… Has potential to grow over the weekend… CINEMAS AND CINEGOERS ARE BACK… Fri ₹26.29 cr. #India biz,” movie critic and film trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted.
That’s not all. The Rohit Shetty directed film also smashed some ticket booking records. “Sooryavanshi hits a peak of 17 tickets sold per second on Nov 5th! More than 7,00,000 tickets sold in less than 24 hours making it the highest ever peak for a Hindi movie on #BookMyShow,” online ticket booking platform BookMyShow tweeted on Saturday.
Superstar’s super collection
Down south, it was Kollywood superstar Rajinikanth who is helping theatres to keep their cash register ringing. According to Box Office India portal, Rajinikanth’s latest film Annaatthe has become the highest opener of all time in Tamil Nadu with a net box office collection of about ₹24 crore. The day one collections have surpassed the previous record of ₹23 crore in net made by actor Vijay’s Sarkar in 2018.
‘#Annaatthe crosses 1 million tickets sold on #BookMyShow as of 5 Nov, becoming the first movie to hit the million mark after the second Unlock in 2021!” BookMyShow tweeted.
Adding spice to the flavour was Hollywood film Eternals . The Marvel Cinematic Universe film sold over half a million tickets during its opening weekend, BookMyShow said. “#Eternals embarks on a FLYING START… Despite facing two tough opponents [#Sooryavanshi, #Annaatthe], the #Marvel movie packs a SOLID TOTAL on Day 1… Fri ₹7.35 cr Nett BOC [1400 screens]. #India biz. ALL versions. Gross BOC: ₹8.75 cr. #Diwali,” Adarsh tweeted.