The festival of Diwali has always brought good news for the film industry in terms of box office numbers. Looking at the box office figures Diwali releases in the last decade, it is clear that festival releases attract more audiences to theatres. Even after cinema halls reopened after several months of lockdown due to the pandemic, Sooryavanshi rang the cash register bell when it hit theaters around Diwali.
Film trade analyst Taran Adarsh described the Diwali period as an “attractive” period for filmmakers to release their films. In his opinion, this is a time when people want to celebrate with their friends and family, so it becomes a profitable time for the film business.
“Over the years, not only Diwali, other festivals have also contributed a lot to the box office collections. Last year, Suryavanshi had a great opening at the box office on Diwali despite 50 per cent occupancy in Maharashtra. This year is no different. So, there is no restriction now,” said Taran Adarsh, adding this year’s Diwali release, Ram Setu And Thank God will have a good opening in theatres.
The action-adventure drama Ram Setu, led by Akshay Kumar, revolves around an ‘atheist archaeologist to believer’ who has to ‘prove the real existence of the mythical Ram Setu before the evil forces destroy the pillar of India’s heritage’. Is’. Thank God on the other hand is a comedy-drama, where Siddharth Malhotra There is a human who has to answer about his sins to Ajay Devgn’s Chitragupta.
Irrespective of their content, Ram Setu and Thank God are expected to get off to a good start at the ticket counters. But his performance after the festive opening will depend on his merit. “Ajay and Akshay, both are A-listers and are well-established stars who have a huge fan following. So I feel the film should get a good start because of Diwali, but ultimately it will all depend on the content,” suggested Taran.
Filmmaker and trade expert Girish Johar has predicted that Ram Setu will earn Rs 16-18 crore on its release day i.e. on October 25, a day after Diwali. He also predicted a double digit opening for Thank God. According to him, it will start its run in theaters with around Rs 13-15 crore in its kitty.
While both the movies are expecting a great time at the ticket counter, it could have been even better if they had been well publicised. Johar said that the publicity about Ram Setu and Thank God is calm. He said, “Had it been extended further, the films would have done better at the box office. But it seems that manufacturers are a little less confident or they might not want to incur the cost of marketing. ,
Akshay Kumar in the poster of Ram Setu.
Taran Adarsh also weighed in on the impact of less promotional activity around a film these days. He said, “Actors should at least go out to promote their films. Overall, I don’t mean just releasing the trailer, but talking about the film, not only in metros but also outside them. More and more assets should be released by the makers so that they reach the common man. Publicity is very important today but they have been less important for both Ram Setu and Thank God, which are known only to the makers.”
Ram Setu is Akshay Kumar’s fourth theatrical release this year The debacle of his films Bachchan Pandey, Samrat Prithviraj and Raksha Bandhan, The film’s performance at the box office becomes even more important for the actor to revive his fading Midas touch. Ajay Devgn too needs a hit after his film Runway 34 flopped at the box office. The only films the actor worked for were Gangubai Kathiawadi He had extended cameos in both, and RRR.
Since box office clashes have been common around films, we also asked film trade experts if this would hamper the collections of Ram Setu and Thank God. Film distributor Akshay Rathi suggested, “Diwali can easily accommodate a film with two superstars. Moreover, this is a time when even medium and small scale films entice the audience. This is a time when people go out with their friends and family in a big way and we should give them a choice of many movies to choose from. So, there has to be something for people of all demographics.”
Apart from Thank God and Ram Setu, other films releasing around the festival of Diwali include Karthi’s Sardar, Mohanlal’s Rakshasa, sivakarthikeyanKay Prince and Dwayne Johnson’s Black Adam. Now it will be interesting to see which of these films stand strong even after the festive season of Diwali.