Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer Bharat is all set to hit the theatres on 5 June. Considering it’s a Salman Khan film releasing on Eid, the expectations at the box office are high. Also, it will get a 5-day long weekend and 4000 plus screens, with no big Hindi film releasing right after or before.
Movie business analyst, Atul Mohan says that if everything goes well the film could make “Rs 20-25 crore on the opening day” and around “Rs 125 crore on the opening weekend. And if Eid falls on the day of the release (which it is very likely to) then the film could make “around Rs 35 crore”.
But the film faces a few hurdles in the form of Cricket World Cup 2019 and X-Men: Dark Phoenix, and slightly low buzz.
In the latest episode of Reel Deal, we look at Bharat’s promotional strategy, buzz and predict its box office outcome.
Tune in to the podcast here.
Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, Bharat is releasing during the ICC Cricket World Cup with India’s first match being held on the day of the film’s release. There is also the India vs Australia match on Sunday, a crucial day for a film. To add to that the Hollywood superhero flick X-Men Dark Phoenix is also releasing on the same day as Bharat.
“The film brings together Ali Abbas Zafar and Salman Khan for the third time together. Their last two outings have been very huge successes - Sultan and Tiger Zinda Hai. So yes, we are expecting the film to do well.”Atul Mohan
But the buzz for Bharat has been slightly lower than it usually is for Salman Khan films and his last two Eid outings - Tubelight and Race 3 have not worked at the box office. The songs too haven’t really been lapped up by fans.
“The excitement that is generally associated with a Salman Khan movie is a little low this time. But at the end of the day it will be the content. Ali Abbas Zafar has given two big hits with Salman, and Bharat is not the usual Salman Khan movie. He is playing various age groups and even an aged man. That should be interesting,” says Atul.
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