Despite receiving praise for her performance, Kareena Kapoor Khan's latest film, The Buckingham Murders, is facing challenges at the box office. According to early estimates from industry tracking website Sacnilk, the crime thriller garnered a modest Rs 75 lakh nett in India on its fourth day of release. The film saw a steep fall in its earnings compared to its first weekend in cinemas. On Sunday, the film had earned Rs 2.15 crore. The film's total earnings in India now stand at Rs 6 crore nett, following a disappointing opening of Rs 1.15 crore. However, it showed improvement on its second and third days, earning Rs 1.95 crore and Rs 2.15 crore, respectively. Directed by Hansal Mehta, The Buckingham Murders marks Kareena's production debut and features her as Jasmeet Bhamra aka Jass, a grieving cop investigating a missing child case. (According to Balaji Motion Pictures the film made Rs 6.75 crore nett in three days). View this post on Instagram A post shared by Balaji Motion Pictures (@balajimotionpictures) The movie's overall Hindi occupancy stood at 10.81 percent on Monday, September 16, with notable interest in cities like Chennai, Bengaluru, Pune, and Hyderabad. Since the makers planned a limited release of the Hansal Mehta directorial, the number of screens allotted to it are also fewer compared to other mainstream films like Stree 2, Khel Khel Mein, among others. In Mumbai, with 159 shows, the occupancy was 10.25 percent. In Delhi and NCR the occupancy was 10.25 percent for 316 shows. While the film is seemingly having a tough time at the box office, one of the producers of the film, Ekta Kapoor, has already called it a "profitable" venture. At the trailer launch in Mumbai, Ektaa confidently declared the film a commercial success, revealing that it has already recovered its budget. "Who said this isn't a commercial film? The Buckingham Murders has covered its full cost, including P&A. It's already profitable, both theatrically and at the box office, in India and worldwide." Interestingly, this film marks Kareena and Ektaa’s fourth collaboration after Udta Punjab, Veere Di Wedding and The Crew. Weighing in on Kareena's box office bankability and commercial viability, Ektaa Kapoor offered her insight, elaborating: “I have seen very few actors being able to get a full house audience. Kareena has that kind of a pull. She’s a star and a great actor too. The Buckingham Murders sees a complete metamorphosis of Kareena. I thought that we’ve a woman with stature and talent. It’s difficult to bring stories before to the public in a medium that’s run by men and with a different kind of commerce unless they’re supported by a great actor. At the same time, you’ve to use your intelligence to make those stories commercial.” In contrast, Tamil superstar Thalapathy Vijay's film Greatest of All Time (GOAT), and Shraddha Kapoor and Rajkummar Rao's Stree 2, continued to perform well at the box office. GOAT, despite losing momentum in its second week, earned Rs 6.50 crore on its second Monday. As of September 16, the film has earned an estimated Rs 219.75 crore in India (Net). Stree 2, on the other hand, raked in around Rs 3 crore on Monday, it 33rd day in cinemas. Critics have praised Kareena's performance, with The Indian Express' Shubhra Gupta giving the film a rating of two-and-a-half stars, and writing, "Kareena Kapoor Khan raises the bar, and her presence alone makes everyone else a clear supporting character." Along with Kareena, the film also stars Ash Tandon, Ranveer Brar, and Keith Allen.
