Hindi
No value for money
While the demonetisation affected film collections to an extent, the dropping temperatures are also affecting box office, especially in the North India, not to speak of poor quality of films made with no concern for content.
*Befikre did raise some expectations within the exhibitor community as well as the audience. Coming as it does after a prolonged dull period and a lineup of poor films, the combination of Yash Raj Films, Aditya Chopra’s direction after eight year gap and Ranveer Singh’s growing popularity meant value for money, scarce as it may be nowadays.
The film did not quite meet up with the expectations as it met with mixed reactions the first Friday first show onwards. The film lacked a clear concept as the whole length of the titles were attributed to couples kissing, not sparing even the toddlers from the act. The rest turned out to be a misplaced idea of the life of today’s youth; being in Paris can’t be an excuse for going berserk with youth in a relationship.
However, what helps the film is its controlled budget and the release period enjoying both, a solo release status as well as an additional holiday today (Eid E Milad). The film had fair number of footfalls on Friday early shows but showed a declining trend thereafter as the first day figure barley managed to cross double figure of Rs 10 crore. Saturday added over a crore compared to Friday figures while the Sunday sustained well as the film closed its opening weekend with Rs 34.35 crore..
*Kahaani 2, a poor attempt to use the title and the face of Vidya Balan from the successful franchise, Kahaani, backfires as the sequel turns the very character of Vidya topsy-turvy. The rest of the content also lacks coherence.
With an opening weekend of Rs 15.8 crore, the film adds only a little more in the remaining four days to end its first week with a total of Rs 23.8 crore. The film stands to lose at the box office.
*Dear Zindagi will be a losing proposal for its India theatrical distributor. The combined following of the rising star Alia Bhatt and the veteran star Shah Rukh Khan fails to work as the theme of the film as well as the pretentious approach don’t go down well with the audience.
The film adds Rs 14.1 crore in its second week to take its two week total to about Rs 58.3 crore.
Hindi
Dhurandhar 2 hit by YouTube leak amid record box office run
Cam-rip surfaces online but blockbuster streak continues at record pace
MUMBAI: It has been a dramatic week for Dhurandhar: The Revenge. Even as the espionage thriller smashes box office records, a piracy scare briefly threatened to steal its thunder after a full-length version surfaced on YouTube.
The leak emerged on March 30 via a channel titled “A2z movie”, which uploaded what appeared to be a cam-recorded print of the film. Clocking in at nearly three hours and 49 minutes, the footage was reportedly blurry but complete enough to spark spoilers and fan outrage online.
Soon after, users on X began flagging the issue, explicitly naming the “A2z movie” channel in their posts while tagging the film’s makers and urging swift legal action. Fans of director Aditya Dhar and lead star Ranveer Singh were particularly vocal, helping the issue gain rapid traction.
Within hours, the video was taken down, likely through a mix of platform detection systems and intervention by producers Jio Studios and B62 Studios.
Despite the leak, the film’s theatrical run remains virtually unshaken. As of March 31, the sequel has raked in an estimated Rs 872.17 crore net in India, with worldwide collections soaring to Rs 1,392.23 crore. Its Hindi opening day alone brought in Rs 102.55 crore, setting a new benchmark.
In a notable milestone, the film has matched Pushpa 2 as the fastest Indian release to cross the Rs 1,000 crore mark globally, achieving the feat in just seven days.
Interestingly, the version leaked online is believed to be an earlier cut. Midway through its theatrical run, the makers issued revised prints after eagle-eyed viewers spotted a fleeting editing error involving a cameraman’s reflection. The corrected version now plays across cinemas, adding an unusual twist to the film’s release journey.
Directed by Aditya Dhar, the high-stakes sequel stars Ranveer Singh alongside Sanjay Dutt, R. Madhavan, Arjun Rampal and Sara Arjun. The film has drawn praise for its scale and action sequences, though some critics have pointed to its intense violence and layered political themes.
For now, piracy may have made noise, but it has not slowed the juggernaut. If anything, the episode underlines the film’s cultural grip, proving that even a leak cannot derail a box office storm already in full force.
