Dangal makes Rs 1000-crore club in China. Can Baahubali beat this?

Aamir Khan's Dangal has created an unrepresented landmark in China by becoming the 33rd film in Chinese cinema history to cross one Billion RMB, which in Indian currency amounts to about Rs 1000 crore. According to Maoyan, a popular ticketing website in China which is connected to most of the theatres in the country, Dangal's gross earnings has crossed one billion RMB, joining the exclusive club of just 32 films in China cinema history.

"It is an unprecedented success for an Indian film and important land mark, making 'Dangal' a super hit Indian film," Prasad Shetty, partner of Strategic Alliance a Chinese firm promoting Indian films in China for the past few years told PTI. The film which became big hit since it was released on May 5 slipped to second place in the Chinese box office yesterday after staying on top for over a fortnight. Hollywood film Pirates of the Caribbean 5 is on the number one position.

"It is still playing in about 9000 screens. 'Dangal's' success in China perhaps opens a Pandora Box for Indian cinema as successes in China’s Box Office means world's highest revenue," Shetty said. The film has also made Aamir, 52, the most popular Indian Chinese social media star with over 6.55 lakh followers.

Aamir Khan says it is hard for him to understand why he has connected so well with the people there. He first realised he had an audience in China when 3 Idiots did surprisingly good business at the box office.“Why an actor connects to an audience is difficult to articulate. It is a very intangible thing, you cannot really pin it down. But I would like to believe that it is my films and my good work that has connected me to the people whether it is India or anywhere else in the world.”

As a producer and director, Aamir Khan feels China has shown the way when it comes to taking the entertainment business forward and hopes the Indian government also promotes popular art and culture in a big way. “The Chinese government has encouraged local cinema in a big way. They have about 45,000 screens whereas, in India, we barely have 8000 screens for all languages. It is really something that we need to learn from them. “The Indian government should do the best it can to promote popular art and culture. It needs to be exported. We need more theatres. I think that will really help the Indian film industry.”

With Baahubali 2 all set to release in China, it will be interesting to see if Dangal will manage to hold on to its crown or not.