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First weekend performance of latest release As expected BHOOTHNATH didn't set the cash counters jingling on the day of it's release. The film couldn't create any excitement throughout it's promotional campaign and the theme - friendship of a ghost and a kid - too didn't promise any built up on hype. The film opened to a mixed response both from the paying public as well as the critics. The film didn't go the whole hog in terms of kiddie entertainment and in the end even presence of Shah Rukh Khan in a 20 minutes appearance didn't make film buffs lap up to BHOOTNATH. Though there have been murmurs of the film picking up over the weekend, it is purely in relative terms considering the poor start (30%-40%) that the film took. The film needs to see a good escalation over the second weekend as well to go past the safety mark. Was anyone surprised at all by the horrendous fate of JIMMY? I mean the scare factor was right up there the moment first look of JIMMY was unveiled during the screening of PARTNER. The film was so shabbily packaged that it made Mithun Chakraborty's Ootywood films look like far more polished products. No wonder, the moment screening of JIMMY began, there were tell tale signs all over about the bruises that Mimoh's launch would face over the next few days. Such bad is the execution of the film that even average acting and looks of Mimoh are being hailed to be the best part about JIMMY! Last week's movies One week. Three releases. All three flops. ANAMIKA, MR. WHITE MR. BLACK and PRANALI arrived in the week gone by and though presence of Arshad Warsi and Suneil Shetty made MR. WHITE MR. BLACK look like the best of the lot, it was hardly a consolation factor. This stuck-in-the-cans project was poor cinema all the way and the result was seen in it's collections that barely crossed the 2.5 crores mark. Though fate of some of the recent releases makes this look like a decent number, it is still a flop all the way with more than 80% crash expected in the second week. The film has been rejected all over as can be witnessed from 50 lakhs coming from Mumbai and Delhi contributing a meager 25 lakhs! Disaster isn't the right word to explain the fate of ANAMIKA and PRANALI. While ANAMIKA netted only 12 lakhs from across the country, PRANALI too folded up at only 9 lakhs. Simply unbelievable! All this means that the two films won't even recover their print and publicity costs. From the past In the week gone by, trade gave TASHAN another chance to show it's pull at the box office. Even though the film's collections were poor in the first week (~18.5 crores), especially while keeping into consideration that the film had seen a huge release (750+ cinemas), the final verdict was kept on hold since the multiplex issue was seeing a resolution in the second week. As Yash Raj Films and multiplexes announced truce, TASHAN saw a multiplex release from second week onwards. Though the number of shows (4 to 6 a day) were far lower than what a film of this stature enjoys in the first week (15 to 20 a day), trade still looked forward to how TASHAN would perform. With releases like ANAMIKA, MR. WHITE MR. BLACK and PRANALI hardly expected to be any competition whatsoever, it had to be seen if TASHAN managed to hold on to decent collections in the second week and come up with a face saving total. However, this wasn't the case to be as the woes of TASHAN continued in the same mode as the week gone by and the film hardly seemed to be on the road to recovery. As per the collections made available for the second week, the film has seen close to 60% fall and recorded only around 8 crores more. This means that at a 26 crores total with not much expected to be gained in the weeks to come, TASHAN would indeed go down as a flop. The film managed to touch 1 crore in Mumbai though Delhi was poor at 65 lakhs. Quite a sorry state for a film which was expected to be the flagship project for Yash Raj Films this year! U ME AUR HUM lived for yet another week and earned a crore more after a 65% fall. At 23 crores, it has been a decent directorial debut for Ajay Devgan who has managed to redeem his box office status to some extent with the film. KRAZZY 4 saw a heavy fall with collections dipping down by more than 75%. 50 lakhs more coming in means that KRAZZY 4 has now crossed the 24 crores mark. Now is just the right time for the film's DVDs to hit the stands. Meanwhile VCDs of RACE have arrived though DVDs are still a little distance away. In the week which led to a 50 day celebration, RACE earned another 40 lakhs, hence crossing the 63 crores mark. In the future JANNAT should take a good start at the box office. The film is arriving solo while the music has been sitting pretty at the top of the charts for quite some time now. Also it seems like a divine intervention that JANNAT is releasing at a time when 20-20 is at it's peak. While all other recent releases are falling like nine pin, JANNAT appears to be only film which should keep the box office busy, considering it's contemporary theme of cricket and the world of betting and match fixing. With films and cricket merging, courtesy 20-20, it should benefit JANNAT.
Box office analysis-May 08 , 2008
First weekend performance of latest release There are some films which industry looks forward to being big time money spinners. There are some films which many want to fail at the box office. And then there are some which everyone is so indifferent towards. ANAMIKA, MR. WHITE MR. BLACK and PRANALI are three such films which released over the weekend gone by. Such low was the buzz around each of these three films that no one really cared/bothered, whether from the industry or the common public, if there was anything worthwhile at all to be checked out. With minimal promotion of each of the three films telling the confidence level of the producers themselves, it came as no surprise that no one was even aware about their release. Of course 20-20 played a big role in keeping the audience at home but it hardly seems that the result would have been any different even if there was no source of entertainment for the audience except for cinema for the weekend gone by. Result? Each of the three films has opened to a disastrous response and it would be a surprise if the exhibitors even continue with any prints into the second week! Last week's movies TASHAN has done a SAAWARIYA at the box office! Last year when this supposedly epic-in-the-making by Sanjay Bhansali had released, it had made just a little less than 20 crores at the box office in it's first week. The film went on to go downhill from that point on and just couldn't recover from a poor start. Now TASHAN has performed worse than SAAWARIYA and made only 18.5 crores at the box office even though it has released at far more prints than SAAWARIYA. In fact if one looks at films coming from Yash Raj Films itself, TASHAN has fared poorer than even JHOOM BARABAR JHOOM which had collections similar to that of SAAWARIYA. Doesn't this pretty much tell the tale? To give the film some credit however, the fact is that TASHAN didn't find an all-India release which did make a difference to the film's title. However, a year down the line all of this would be forgotten and what would be remembered most is that TASHAN performed way below expectations when it was touted to be THE film which would be Yash Raj Film's highest grosser ever! Coming to the film's collections, the film earned 2 crores from Mumbai while Delhi was close to 1.75 crores. Delhi NCR was good though with more than 1.5 crores coming in (the film was released at numerous multiplexes here). Since the film now sees a multiplex release (though in limited prints) in the second week, the fall would be much lesser than 70%-80% which was otherwise expected for a film that has been unanimously rejected all over! On the other hand SIRF wasn't even spoken about at all due to one simple factor - Indifference! The film has earned only 50 lakhs in it's first week and it should pretty much fold up around this figure itself. An all around disaster which would hardly find any takers in the DVD circuits as well. One more addition to the tally of flops this year! From the past With TASHAN failing to create any 'tashan', it came as a breather for U ME AUR HUM which otherwise was only hoping for a good run of two weeks! The film held on reasonably in it's third week and fell by 55% which is acceptable. 3 crores more coming in for this family movie meant that at 22 crores, this is yet another average success for Ajay Devgan this year after SUNDAY. With some acclaim coming his way for HALLA BOL as well (which otherwise was a flop at the box office), it is far from over for Devgan who has GOLMAAL RETURNS as a potential success in the pipeline! Coming to collections, U ME AUR HUM earned 60 lakhs in Mumbai though it had to be content with 40 lakhs in Delhi. With none of the three new releases making any impression whatsoever over the weekend gone by, U ME AUR HUM now has a real chance of reaching the 25 crore milestone. After a 70% drop last week, KRAZZY 4 was somewhat better in it's third week with a 60% fall. The film added another 2 crores to it's tally, hence making the film cross 23 crore mark. For debutant director Jaideep Sen, this is a very good start since an above average tag for this social comedy means that he can expect better things happening for him in future. In the long run, KRAZZY 4 also appears to be a 25 crore earner. This means that two relatively medium budget films released on the same day (U ME AUR HUM, KRAZZY 4) have brought 50 crores back into the industry. Not bad at all! While SHAURYA is already out on DVDs after making ~2.5 crores at the box office, KHUDA KAY LIYE continues to live on with less than 30% fall in the week gone by. The film has been performing pretty consistently at it's target multiplexes and with 35 lakhs more added to it's total, this film from Pakistan is just a million below the 2 crore mark. A decent success. Meanwhile RACE is still doing good for itself even though for the first time ever it earned less than 1 crore in a week. With a little less than a 50% fall and 70 lakhs more coming in, the film has now touched 63 crores which is around 50 lakhs ahead of JODHAA AKBAR (standing at 62.5 crores). Both the films are the only two super-hits of the year which is already into it's 5th month. Coming back to RACE, the film completes 50 days tomorrow and would be eyeing a DVD release in a week's time. In the future BHOOTHNATH and JIMMY are the two releases of the week and the scale at which they are set, none of the two seem to be doing much at the box office. BHOOTHNATH is a relatively bigger project but there is hardly any buzz surrounding the film. Even though the film has the towering presence of Amitabh Bachchan and that too in a title role, the promotion hasn't been able to hype up the project to an extent that it would entice first day-first show audience. At best, the film can hope to do well after an initial word of mouth. On the other hand JIMMY doesn't stand any chance whatsoever and isn't expected to make any waves whatsoever. Even though the film's budget is hardly on the higher side, it's shoddy look and feel would go completely against it as it appears to be straight out of early 80s!
Box office analysis-May 02 , 2008
First weekend performance of latest release When most trade pundits were unanimous about TASHAN being all set to take a humongous opening, I could see the alarm bells ringing which indicated the otherwise. And this was before multiplex imbroglio. I strongly believe that even if TASHAN would have releases at the multiplexes, the opening wouldn't have matched the standards of OM SHANTI OM or even RACE/WELCOME/DHOOM 2. Reason was plain and simple - the film was just not being promoted enough. In fact I would go to the extent of stating that whatever promotion took place, it was far from impressive with Kareena's waistline being the sole selling point for TASHAN. In addition, there was absolutely no idea given about the film's storyline or plot through television promotion. Surprising, since the film boasted of a solid star cast and hit music by Vishal-Shekhar. All of this would have been pardonable if only the film would have at the least opened to a good response and fetched nice enough word of mouth. But let's do some reality check here. I can easily say that this is the worst movie ever coming from Yash Raj Films ever since Aditya Chopra took over the mantle of country's premier banner. Yes, NEAL N NIKKI was better. Yes, LAAGA CHUNARI MEIN DAAG and AAJA NACHLE had a couple of moments and some good acting. Yes, even JHOOM BARABAR JHOOM was far more impressive. And if we start comparing it with the films which got maximum brickbats last year, then even RAM GOPAL VARMA KI AAG was better. To summarize - TASHAN was simply exasperating! Well, it appears that similar sentiments were shared by many since after an ordinary opening, the film had no option but to go downhill. Not a single soul has stood up and spoken in favor of the film. Of course, as it happens in case of widely thrashed movies, even those who have a few kind words to say about the film refrain from doing so lest they gets categorized in minority. However, the fact remains that word of mouth is so negative that TASHAN is bound to see a steep fall over the week. And less said about the fate of the film as the second weekend begins the better. In nutshell, TASHAN which was widely speculated to be the biggest opener of the year, now risks taking the lowest ever opening for a film of it's stature! Last week's movies HOPE AND A LITTLE SUGAR was destined to be a looser at the box office, especially after the way it was promoted. No wonder it's meager release followed by an absolute no-show at the box office meant that the film collected a mere 11 lakhs at the ticket counters. Collections have been so bad all over the major cities where it released that it has barely being continued in the second week. An out and out trade disaster which has already been forgotten. From the past A relatively open week with zero competition coming from HOPE AND A LITTLE SUGAR meant that U ME AUR HUM saw a little less than 50% fall in it's second week. Though Devgans would have expected that due to a controlled released strategy the fall would be much lesser, a large segment of audience which mainly looks for 'dhinchaak' entertainment rather than sensible cinema hasn't quite filled in the auditoriums. Result is that the film did collect 6.5 crores more with it's total reaching 19 crores but that's not the kind of collections which this film deserved. In Mumbai the film collected 1.25 crores though Delhi remained fairly stable at 70 lakhs. Since TASHAN hasn't been released at multiplexes, it has given U ME AUR HUM a couple of more weeks to breath easy since this Friday's releases are hardly a challenge by themselves. In comparison KRAZZY 4 did fall heavily (as expected) with 70% drop in collections. Still, in the process it did manage to earn 5 crores more which means that this medium budget film is already standing tall at 21.5 crores. For a film which doesn't have a single lead actor per se and is made of primarily supporting/character artists of the likes of Irrfan Khan, Arshad Warsi, Rajpal Yadav and Suresh Menon, it is a huge achievement in itself. An above average success, KRAZZY 4 earned another ~1 crore from Mumbai though Delhi was quite low at just 40 lakhs. The film doesn't have much to gain in weeks to follow but is bound to do well on DVD circuits, courtesy kids falling for a catchy title! After a huge crash in it's second week, SHAURYA somehow managed to stay afloat by seeing only 40% fall. With 20 lakhs added to it's kitty and the total crossing 2 crores, SHAURYA should be able to break even in the long run. What surprises though is the success of KHUDA KAY LIYE which is staying pretty consistent in the major cities where it has released and hence fell by - believe it or not - just 15%. The film has scored even in it's third week and with 40 lakhs more coming in, it has now crossed the 1.5 crore mark. A safe film by all means, KHUDA KAY LIYE marks a good beginning to films from Pakistan hitting the Indian shores. ONE TWO THREE managed to stay on in Top-5 even in it's 4th week and has earned 30 lakhs more. At 18 crores +, the film should now be seeing a DVD release soon. On the other hand RACE has gained further in it's 5th week with only 35% fall. With more than 1.25 crores coming in, the film is now neck to neck with JODHAA AKBAR at 62 crores. Though a huge fall (70%) during last week had indicated that JODHAA AKBAR would end up enjoying better final total than RACE, the good run of the latter in the week gone by means that it would be the eventual winner. Coming to JODHAA AKBAR, it hasn't been a pushover either even as it is battling it out in the 10th week. With less than 10% fall and 20 lakhs more coming in, the film is a huge hit at 62.5 crores and continues to work in favor of the selective Hrithik Roshan. In the future Three films release this Friday - ANAMIKA, MR. WHITE MR. BLACK and PRANALI. And one doesn't need a trade analyst or a box office expert to comment on the fate of each of the three films. Even though each of the three films belongs to diverse genre (ANAMIKA is mystery, MR. WHITE MR. BLACK is action comedy and PRANALI is social), audience is bound to skip them all in favor of, what else, but the 20-20 cricket fever. With zero expectations from any of the films coupled with unimpressive promotion, if at all there is something positive which comes out from the narrative, it would be quite pleasant in itself!
Pt Birju Maharaj guides Nargis in Tandav dance
Legendary Kathak exponent Pandit Birju Maharaj, who had obliged to guide and advice creatively in the Tandav dance, based on the never-ending journey of a Devdasi, picturised a song on the leading lady Nargis, on Monday, 21st January, at the historic Madh Fort near Mumbai for Harward Entertainments' "Pranali ' The Tradition". Earlier a disciple of panditji was specially flew down to Mumbai to train the leading lady Nargis, followed by Panditji himself, who personally taught the nuances of Kathak to Nargis. "Pranali ' The Tradition" is the story of a girl born in a small village on the border of Karnataka & Maharashtra, a girl whose childhood is yet untouched and full of pure innocence but she still falls prey to one of the unconventional and downtrodden systems of our society; a stigma of being a "Devdasi".
Deepshika out for more challenging roles
Renowned actress Deepshika who was last seen in Partner as Salman's sister has taken a stand to do more quality work. Besides anchoring Kuch Ghap Hai Kuch Sach Hai for GEO TV and working on few other soaps, she has two films set for release this year-Dhoom Dhadaka and Pranali. Though Shashi Ranjan's Dhoom Dhadaka has been in the news for quite some time, it's Pranali that Deepshika is all excited about. She states that it's the very first time that she is playing a Devdasi prostitute and this has been quite a challenge for her. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward. So Deepshi, just hang in there.