Trade Espresso: Subhash Ghai returns
Three years after Kisna, Subhash Ghai finally moved to realistic cinema with Black & White, which saw a satisfactory opening at the box-opening, writes Vajir Singh.
The timing seemed just right for the return of Subhash Ghai. Three years after Kisna, he was returning with Black and White toplining Anil Kapoor and newcomer Anurag Sinha.
There had been no new release since Jodhaa Akbar and no competition on its Friday opening. Alas, Ghai’s effort to change tracks towards more ‘realistic’ cinema, could not make ripples at the cash counters.
The reason
Tradewallas state that the relatively small-budget film, for Ghai, was extensively publicised. But the battered-to-pulp theme of terrorism didn’t attract the audience, especially the youth segment.
In the event, it fetched a bleak response on its first day. There was an increase in the collections on the second day, particularly in the evening shows.
Since the film is targeted at an audience which craves meaningful cinema, the collections by and large at the multiplexes are satisfactory. The weekend collections at the multiplexes were reasonable but the scenario was discouraging at the single screen cinemas.
The film’s silver linings, at the end of the day, are its modest budget and the fact that there’s no notable film releasing next Friday .
After much brouhaha, Ashutosh Gowariker’s Jodhaa Akbar has been finally pegged as an average earner. The public response has been lukewarm at best. It was fortunately unopposed by any big competition for as many as three weeks.
Coming up
Suddenly, B- and C-grade movies are popping out of the woodwork. The next biggie in line is Abbas-Mustan’s Race featuring Saif Ali Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Bipasha Basu, Katrina Kaif and Anil Kapoor. April will see the release of Ajay Devgan’s U Me aur Hum and Yash Raj’s Tashan.
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