Dabangg rocks box-office

Dabanggs biggest success story,in fact,is that it has displaced 3 Idiots from the all-time opening-weekend top grosser list. This is a fact that is being attested to by exhibitors as well as trade analysts. According to them,the total gross figures of 3 Idiots stood at Rs 38 crore after the first weekend along with paid previews,but Dabangg has collected Rs 47 crore in its first three days of release.

And the reason for the films success is also unequivocal: Salman Khan. Its a one-man show, trade analyst Vinod Mirani said. Amod Mehra explained the fact and stated,The movie has a new director,a new producer and a new heroine. Salman has carried the movie on his shoulders entirely.

Expectations from the movie had risen to gargantuan proportions after it created a huge buzz leading up to its release.

Helped by its pre-release promos,Salman Khan going to every reality show to promote the film and his ability to draw in crowds worked magic on the box-office, Manoj Desai,of Maratha Mandir and G-7 multiplex in Mumbai,said. All four shows at Desai8217;s theatres ran with 100 per cent occupancy.

It8217;s been a superb weekend for Dabangg. The gross box-office at PVR properties across India is Rs 6 crore. The film had a occupancy of 90 to100 per cent and collected Rs 1.8 crore on Friday,Rs 1.97 crore on Saturday and Rs 2.3 crore on Sunday, Prakhar Joshi,Head-Programming,PVR Cinemas,said. In comparison,3 Idiots collected Rs 4.5 crore in its opening weekend from PVR cinemas,Joshi said.

Ashish Saksena,Chief Operating Officer West and South,BIG Cinemas told Screen that the movie opened with 85 per cent occupancy over the weekend at 40-odd screens across India. The film is doing well because it delivers exactly what it promised as well as the fact that it was marketed extremely well. The numbers are especially good considering that its holiday season and people are moving about a lot, he said. Dabangg is doing well in all centres and has found acceptance from all age groups. Everyone is identifying with the movie, he said.

While analysts declined to comment on overseas numbers,an official spokesperson said that the movie is Salman Khan8217;s biggest blockbuster to date. The film collected AUD 80000 in two days with 14 prints in Australia,one million dirhams from Dubai and we are expecting 100,000 from UK and about 160,000 from the US market, the spokesperson from Eros International,which has distributed the film, said. Producer Arbaaz Khan seemed ecstatic about his movie8217;s box-office figures but refused to give numbers. I am also getting figures from trade analysts currently. I will definitely issue a statement regarding the collections later in the week. I want the film to work its magic for a few more days, he said.

The movie8217;s success is important for Salman Khan,considering that his last hit came exactly a year ago with a similar slam-wham film,Wanted. Khan had followed up that movie with Main Aur Mrs Khanna and London Dreams last year and Veer in 2010,all of which failed to create any impact at the box-office. Mirani believes the movie-going public is tired of pretentious movies. Dabangg8217;s success is more commendable,since Salman8217;s last two films didn8217;t work commercially, asserted Mehra. He believes that the triumvirate of Aamir,Salman and Shah Rukh now lead the pack. His endorsements prices are sure to double as well as the money from shows etc. Salman is back in the reckoning, he said.

Stakeholders are now looking to see if the movie will sustain 3 Idiots long run. The latter collected a lot of money with repeat audiences,a feature missing in Dabangg. And while Joshi of PVR asserted that Dabangg has a lot of untappd audience and doesn8217;t need repeat viewers,single-screen owner Desai said,3 Idiots ran full house for 56 shows continuously in my theatres whereas Dabangg has managed 20 shows so far. Considering there is no competition this Friday,let8217;s see if Dabangg manages to break that record. Everyone,it seems,is keeping their fingers crossed.