That’s one of those headlines that sounds more impressive than it is. Yes, Airlift has the best opening of 2016. But, we are only 3 weeks into 2016, so how impressive is that, really?
There are a few other, more substantial, records that it is hitting, however.
Figures are out for Airlift opening day, and the (possibly) last week of Dilwale overseas. So far, no big surprises. But things could always look different after the weekend is over!
Thank you businessofcinema.com for providing so many numbers to me! There are a few interesting things going on in the local and global box office, going into Airlift weekend.
Airlift, and Republic Day, will put an end to the traditional Christmas season releases, as the screens are given over to patriotic rather than family friendly films. Meaning this is expected to be the last big week, and final box office projections are rolling out for Wazir, Dilwale, and Bajirao.
Read on to learn more.
(first reports on Airlift box office here)
Newer Box Office Report Available HERE!!! Dilwale still leads!
Okay, the 4 week report is out, and despite losing screens worldwide, and its steep drop off in the major Indian territories, Dilwale is far outstripping Bajirao in the global box office.
In fact, it has already beat Salman’s Kick receipts, and is coming up on Shahrukh’s own records, for Happy New Year and My Name is Khan.
All of which I predicted! (if you follow those links, you can see my previous posts). But, why is this happening? Why does the global picture look so different from the local?
Update: To see how I think the new Fan “Tu Nahin Samjhega” videos relate to this, check out posts here and here.
Bollywoodhungama is just the best. They just posted the best of the box office 2015 list, broken down by territories. I already talked about how Bajirao stacked the deck by focusing on the Bombay audience, and how Dilwale suffered by losing market share to protests. And how Salman is consistently the all India winner. But this makes it even more apparent.
So, Bollywoodhungama posted the weekend overseas box office figures, broken down by country, with screen counts included as well. Some interesting things in there.
(also, admire my pun in the header image! “Two days, two players, one game.” How perfect is that for another Bajirao vs Dilwale weekend report!)
So, this article points out that the gap between Dilwale and Bajirao is biggest in the Bombay box office, and that the Bombay market is usually the biggest profit within India. They also point out, what should have been a “no duh!” sort of thing but which somehow had not occurred to me, that Bajirao is about a famous Maharashtrian, and therefore will do better in Maharashtra than anywhere else.
So, Bollywoodhungama.com just posted an analysis of the second weekend Dilwale numbers. They see the limp box office for Dilwale and good word of mouth for Bajirao as a sign that Shahrukh should take a moment and think about doing something a little different, instead of just relying on his star quality to carry the picture, because the audience is obviously tired of the same old thing. I agree with their analysis of the box office numbers and all, but I think they are missing the bigger picture. Maybe Dilwale released when it did BECAUSE he wants to different films, and needed to rush a traditional one out the door first.
According to Times of India, overseas business is going great guns, and is picking up over the week, especially among family audiences, as the holiday nears. So there is still hope! Just like I said, the second weekend box office is going to be the big one. This weekend, with schools closed worldwide, Dilwale‘s family friendly content may take the lead over Bajirao with it’s more adults-only content (not like it is super sexual or anything, just fewer bright colors and stupid jokes for 3 year olds).
And, they also say, I am right that Varun is appealing to young people. Which I agree with, because I am a young person, and I find him appealing.
So, Business of Cinema has updates for midweek. According to them, Dilwale is facing a steep fall, while Bajirao has a steady climb. However, they point out that Bajirao still has a ways to go to overcome Dilwale‘s very strong start last weekend. And, they assign blame for Dilwale‘s fall not so much to bad word of mouth, but to the resurgent protests in multiple cities.
I care about this deeply, of course, but not as much as I care about free speech and speaking truth to power and so on and so forth. And apparently Shahrukh agrees with me, since he recently avoided an opportunity to apologize and thereby end the protests, instead saying “I have not said anything that I should apologize (for). I will fall in my own eyes if I do that.”
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