What went wrong with Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha and Akshay Kumar’s Raksha Bandhan? Trade experts share their views

A lot of expectations were riding on Aamir Khan-starrer Laal Singh Chaddha and Akshay Kumat-starrer Raksha Bandhan. Sadly, both the films opened below expectations and collections didn’t improve over the weekend due to mixed word of mouth. We asked trade experts to tell us what they felt didn’t work for these films.

Trade analyst Atul Mohan explained, “4-5 years ago, before the pandemic, people didn’t have this kind of access to films. Now, when the audiences find out that Laal Singh Chaadha is a remake of Forrest Gump, they can easily download it on their phones, at times even for free. That awareness has increased now.”

He continued, “Moreover, it was an American character and the original movie was released 30 years ago. Laal Singh Chaddha meanwhile is lengthier than Forrest Gump and quite a slow film. Slow picture toh do ghanta bhi mushkil hota hai dekhna. 2.45 hours ki slow film kaise dekhegi public? Hence, it was a wrong choice to make the film in the first place.”

Regarding Raksha Bandhan, he opined, “I guess when there’s a clash, the business is bound to get divided. If Raksha Bandhan was a solo release, it would have collected Rs. 4-5 crores more on day 1. Also, a day 1 of Rs. 8 crores is not a disastrous start. It’s a decent performance for a film which released in a clash and came on part-holiday. Its big advantage is that the ladies are loving it. So, there are chances that it can pick up in the long run.”

Raj Bansal, the owner of Entertainment Paradise in Jaipur, said, “The reports of both films are negative. Ek film paune teen ghante ki hai toh dusri paune do ghante ki. With Laal Singh Chaddha, if it was 2.15 hours long, then it would had been better. As for Raksha Bandhan, the film looks lengthy despite being less than 2 hours long.”

Trade veteran Taran Adarsh minced no words as he thundered, “Kartik Aaryan is a comparatively new face. He has not been around for as long as the Khans and others. Yet, his film Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 still holds the record of having the biggest day 1 of 2022. It collected Rs. 14.11 crores on a non-holiday. And Aamir Khan on a holiday couldn’t go beyond this mark, that too with an event film! Even Ranbir Kapoor and Ranveer Singh failed to collect as much. It is alarming.”

He also said, “Aamir Khan ne ek se ek behtareen films di hai. People wait for his films as it’s synonymous with quality. Even a film like Thugs Of Hindostan opened at Rs. 52.25 crores on day 1 due to his stardom. He inaugurated the Rs. 100, Rs. 200 and Rs. 300 crore clubs. And now his film is opening at Rs. 12 crores on a holiday! Somewhere, he needs to do a rethink and introspection.”

Girish Johar, producer, and film business analyst, stated, “On non-holiday, I could have understood had these films taken such a start. But for these films to open this way on a holiday is not acceptable. Also, on non-holidays, films like Thor and Doctor Strange have taken flying starts. Choosing to shy away from these realities is a wrong option.”

Raj Bansal stated, “If audience doesn’t come to see on the first day, there’s still hope that they’ll make it to the cinemas on day 2 and by day 3, it’ll be a big hit, provided the word of mouth is positive. In case of these two films, the reports started coming in that both films are unbearable. As a result, there was a fall of 20 to 25% in collections and footfalls in my theatre on day 2 as compared to the first day.”

He further said, “The OTT also damaged things. If the film is not upto the mark, the audiences prefer waiting for 4 weeks rather than spending a bomb on movie tickets. Though the window has been increased to eight weeks, the word perhaps hasn’t spread yet.”

He also added that tremendous negativity on social media for both films, by media and trolls, spoiled the scenario.

Also Read: Aamir Khan gets family support; niece Zayn Khan shares support video for Laal Singh Chaddha, daughter Ira Khan shares it

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