Raja Shivaji BO Collection Day 1: Riteish's film earns Rs 9.39 crore on its first dayRaja Shivaji Movie Box Office Collection Day 1 Highlights: Riteish Deshmukh’s historical drama Raja Shivaji finally hit the theatres on the occasion of Maharashtra Day. As per trade tracker Sacnilk, the film has earned Rs 11.35 crore in India on its opening day, in Hindi and Marathi. The film had around 6000 shows on its release day. The film had around 6000 shows on its release day. The 1900 Marathi shows saw an occupancy of 68 percent, and the 4200 Hindi shows saw an occupancy of around 16 percent.
In Marathi, the film had its maximum number of shows, 600, in the Mumbai region, which witnessed an occupancy of around 73 percent. In Hindi, the Delhi-NCR region saw around 400 shows with an occupancy of around 13 percent.
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Produced by Jio Studios and Mumbai Film Company, Raja Shivaji stars Riteish Deshmukh, Sanjay Dutt, Abhishek Bachchan, Vidya Balan, Mahesh Manjrekar, Sachin Khedekar, Bhagyashree, Fardeen Khan, Jitendra Joshi, Boman Irani, Amol Gupte and Genelia Deshmukh. Superstar Salman Khan also has a cameo appearance in the film, which has created a lot of buzz on social media.
As per Sacnilk, the film has collected Rs 5.37 crore net on Day 2, while running across an impressive 4,648 shows nationwide.
With these latest figures, the film’s total India gross has climbed to Rs 19.84 crore, while the net collection now stands at Rs 16.72 crore so far.
The final Day 2 numbers are yet to be reported.
Faridoon Shahryar shared his reaction to Raja Shivaji on X. He wrote, “Raja Shivaji is an emotion. Riteish Deshmukh has done a stellar job. It's a phenomenal performance. Special praise for his direction. He celebrates Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj. The film's intent is pure. Sanjay Dutt has a tremendous role and he does full justice to it. Abhishek Bachchan has been presented superbly. Vidya Balan is such an amazing artiste that she owns every character she plays. She is brilliant in the film. Amole Gupte is delightful. Raja Shivaji is a highly watchable film. I loved it.”
X user Piyush Balapure shared his review of Raja Shivaji and wrote
“I had low expectations from the Raja Shivaji movie since the director is a first-timer, but I ended up really liking it. Well done Riteish on the direction, screenplay and portrayal of Chh. Shivaji Maharaj. Most expensive Marathi film ever and the cast delivers it like that. Solid performances by the cast, especially Sanjay Dutt and Riaan Deshmukh. Ajay-Atul’s music is the best part of the movie. The Raja Shivaji anthem is incredible! BGM by John Stewart Eduri is spectacular!
There are some historical mistakes and exaggerations, but the script is well balanced and doesn’t fabricate the core history. The VFX and a few fight sequences are below par, maybe due to budget, but overall the execution is fantastic. Guaranteed goosebumps in a few scenes.”
According to Sacnilk, the film recorded an afternoon occupancy of 57% in the Marathi version, indicating consistent audience interest following its opening day.
As of now, the film is running across 3,380 shows nationwide and has collected approximately Rs 3.28 crore net (live) on Day 2. With these numbers, the film’s total India gross has reached Rs 17.38 crore, while the total India net stands at Rs 14.63 crore so far.
Riteish Deshmukh was recently asked in an interview with Instant Bollywood whether he ever feels underrated or feels he hasn’t received his due. The actor responded, “I was the guy who thought my first film would be my last film. And here I am, 22 years later, still sitting and giving this interview. Mujhe meri aukaat se bohot, bohot zyada mila hai (I have received far more than I deserve).”
Salman Khan is reportedly playing Jeeva Maharaj in Raja Shivaji. He is said to have shot for the cameo last year in November. Jeeva Mahala played a key role during the 1659 Battle of Pratapgad against Afzal Khan of the Bijapur Sultanate. It is believed that when Shivaji went to Pratapgad Fort to meet Afzal Khan, Jeeva was entrusted with protecting his king and guarding him against any possible attack.
In the lead-up to the release, there was massive social media outrage over a scene from the Raja Shivaji trailer. Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj is shown revealing a weapon to Afzal Khan and delivering a dramatic line just before the attack. The depiction had angered a section of users on X, with some accusing Riteish Deshmukh of distorting Maharashtra’s history. Responding to this, the actor said, “The answer to your question is there in the movie. I hope you enjoy the film with your friends and family. Jai Shivrai.”
Salman Khan made a special appearance in the film, and while promoting, Riteish Deshmukh revealed how the superstar insisted on being part of the project. In a clip that is going viral online, Riteish said, “I didn’t go to him for this film. We were together on New Year’s, and he asked me when I was starting the shoot. I told him, ‘It’s starting this month.’ He then asked, ‘Which role am I playing?’ I said nothing, but he replied, ‘No, no, no… you can’t make the film without me. I have to be in it.’”
Vidya Balan, who worked with Riteish Deshmukh in Heyy Babyy, had the audience in splits at the launch of Raja Shivaji. She said, “I already knew he was making a film on Raja Shivaji. I thought Abhishek Bachchan and Sanjay Dutt were doing it; why didn’t Riteish come to me? Maybe he didn’t have a role for me or doesn’t think much of me as an actor, who knows?” she added with a laugh. “But then he did offer me a part, and I already knew I would say yes.”
At the trailer launch of Raja Shivaji, Riteish Deshmukh couldn’t hold back his tears as he thanked his wife, co-star, and the film’s co-producer Genelia D'Souza for her selfless contributions. Even Bhagyashree, who plays Shivaji’s mother in the film, recalled a sweet incident involving the couple on set. “I clearly remember Genelia feeding Riteish on set because he was busy setting up a shot while the rest of us had already finished dinner. So, our producer was chasing our director with a plate of roti-sabzi in her hand,” Bhagyashree recalled, as Genelia blushed.
On day 1, Riteish Deshmukh’s film earned Rs 11.35 crore, with the majority of the earnings coming from the Marathi version, which collected Rs 8 crore, while the Hindi version opened at Rs 3.35 crore.
While Raja Shivaji has opened well, earning as much as Rs 11.35 crore, it has lagged behind Riteish Deshmukh’s major multi-starrer franchise Housefull 5, which earned ₹24 crore net, last year, according to trade tracker Sacnilk. However, it has outperformed his last release Masti 4, which earned just Rs 2.75 crore.
Recently, Jio Studios released a video of Vicky Kaushal watching Raja Shivaji and being left awestruck, telling Riteish Deshmukh, “I don’t think Marathi cinema has seen an action sequence like this.”
Genelia Deshmukh had recently told Bollywood Hungama about how full of pride Riteish was when he watched Chhaava: “When he watched Tanhaji and Chhaava, he felt so much pride. Riteish is someone who generally feels as happy as the makers when a film works. He is not one of those in the industry who will sit and dissect a film.”
While the film has opened very well at the box office, Ram Gopal Varma praised both Riteish Deshmukh and Genelia Deshmukh for its success. He wrote on X: “Hey @geneliad, congrats on the way your #rajashivaji is both slashing and smashing the box office. @Riteishd, both as director and actor, is creating mayhem in theatres and he literally looks like #shivajimaharaj reincarnated.”
Riteish Deshmukh recently lauded Aditya Dhar’s Dhurandhar: The Revenge, telling Bollywood Hungama, “I think one has to be really cognisant of the changes happening around you. You cannot blind yourself to these changes. And when something really works, something as fantastic as Dhurandhar or Dhurandhar: The Revenge, you see a different narrative, different stories, a new storytelling style, a fresh approach, and a new kind of hero.”
Riteish Deshmukh’s period drama, which clashed with Aamir Khan’s son Junaid Khan’s film Ek Din, performed better, as the latter earned only Rs 1 crore. Not only this, but Raja Shivaji has also outperformed Aamir Khan’s last outing Sitaare Zameen Par, which earned just Rs 10.7 crore.
Raj Shivaji has earned one-third of Chhaava's opening day. The Riteish Deshmukh-starrer made around Rs 11 crore on release day, while Chhaava had earned Rs 33 crore on release day. It is to be noted that Raja Shivaji released with only 6000 shows, but Chhaava released with around 16,000 shows.
Riteish Deshmukh-starrer Raja Shivaji earned Rs 11.35 crore across 6100 shows in India on Friday, May 1, as per trade tracker Sacnilk. The film made Rs 8 crore in Marathi, and Rs 3.35 crore in Hindi.
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