Across the country, Night fever catches on

What is it exactly, about the film, that has left audiences spellbound? Especially as horror is not a genre that usually works in India. According to Ashish Chawla, freelance advertising and fashion photographer: 8220;This was one film which just about managed to live up to the hype preceding it. It would have been even moreexciting, if it was underplayed.8221;

Though TV producer Iqbal Malhotra has reservations about lauding The Sixth Sense as an Indian8217; achievement, he does think the film is intelligently made: 8220;It left me guessing to the very end. In terms of the plot and how the story progresses, it was brilliant. I don8217;t think there was any gap or discrepancy in the film. But those you can find out only if you were to see it minutely for the second or third time.8221;

Maybe that8217;s why the collections for the first two weeks at PVR theatre were over 98 per cent. At the Satyam Cineplex, the film8217;s net earnings were Rs 4,43,118, in its opening week, which is considered good for a 1,000-seater cinema hall. Running into its third week at PVR, the film is still going strong as the number one grosser at the theatre, beating even the Barjatya musical extravaganza Hum Saath Saath Hain since it joined the fray.

Girish Johar, spokesperson for Columbia Pictures, the makers of the film, found Shyamalan8217;s psycho-thriller so enthrallingthat he wants to see it for the fourth time: 8220;Since it has done so well in the West raking in over 300 million at the box office, and still features at 12 or 13 in the top 20, everyone8217;s curious out here.8221;

The Sixth Sense8217;s dubbed Hindi version, Murdon Ki Kahani, Ek Bacche Ki Zubani is doing pretty well too. In terms of raking in moolah at the box office as well as audience applause, The Sixth Sense has made a lot of sense for Columbia Pictures, which is now pushing it for the crowning accolade the Oscars. Mumbai: At Sterling, one of Mumbai8217;s premier theatres for English films, the film has been averaging 90 per cent since it was released.

Meeta Jhunjhunwala, an assistant director in Mumbai, liked the performances, story and direction: 8220;I feel good that an Indian has directed this film. That was one of the factors that made me go see the film.8221; Added Abhijit Rao, a radio film producer, who saw the film at Sterling cinema on a weekday, 8220;The theatre was packed. And when Shyamalan came on screen inthe cameo, everybody applauded.8221; Bangalore: Since the movie premiered in Bangalore on November 19, it has been continuously running full shows. There is not a ticket to be had, either by hook or by crook. When the credits roll on, the whistles and cheers that greet Shymalan8217;s name is deafening.

8220;It8217;s extraordinary, this movie. In every movie you see, you are able to predict the ending. But this left me stunned,8221; confesses Aditi, a movie aficionado. 8220;We haven8217;t had a movie like this for a long time8230;Most of those who have come have either understood the movie at one shot or they come back to see it again. Either way, we8217;ve been running packed houses,8221; says Uthaiah, Manager, Rex Theatre.

Pune: The fever has reached even a city like Pune which goes to bed early where people are seen queuing up at night in front of Vijay theatre. Anita Balagopalan was suddenly proud of her Malayalee roots. Reason? The Sixth Sense has a 8220;Mallu8221; director. And Rohan Pandit spend two hours after the midnight show justtalking about what he calls a 8220;killer film!8221;Even the black marketeers in Pune are happy because after the Titanic this is the first English film to post healthy 8220;profits8221; for them.