Weekly review and box office thread: Love Aaj Kal is on a shaky ground,takes a slump on Monday(Reports)

Som |

Hello there! If you are new here, you might want to subscribe to the RSS feed for updates on this topic.

All the media reviews, Box office news, articles, pieces are to be posted here, excluding original posts by members.

Weekly(24th-30rd July) Reviews and Box office thread

Weekly(10-16th July) Reviews and Box office thread

Weekly(17th-23rd July) Reviews and Box office thread

Weekly(7th-13th Aug.) reviews and box office thread

Kaminey reviews and Weekly Box Office thread (14th – 20th Aug 2009)

There Are 277 Responses So Far. »

Som 30 July 2009
05:43:44 am

WOW!

Love Aaj Kal:One of the coolest productions of the year, here’s a film that actually talks the talk

There are three reasons why you must catch Love Aaj Kal ASAP – dialogues, performances and music. Imtiaz Ali’s tale of love, then and now is a light hearted and refreshing watch.

Burnout, commitment phobia, long distance relationships – issues the minus 30-generation can easily identify with, are subtly touched upon thought the movie. Here’s a film that actually talks the talk.

Like Socha Na Tha and Jab We Met, Imtiaz Ali’s third film also rests on a wafer-thin plot. The director uses smart one-liners and life-like situations to take the story forward. Love Aaj Kal is about Jai (Saif Ali Khan) an urban, alpha male who can’t understand the meaning of love. His girl friend Meera (Deepika Padukone) also believes in choosing career over romance. After a mutual breakup, Jai meets the grand old Veer (Rishi Kapoor). He narrates his own love story to give Jai a peak into old-fashioned romance. The conflicting approaches to love form the base of Love Aaj Kal.

The narrative runs in multiple timelines – which can get confusing sometimes. Imtiaz Ali uses a clever, non-linear edit pattern to draw parallels between his two stories. Saif Ali Khan is in home turf as Jai. Playing a role similar to Kal Ho Na Ho and Hum Tum, Saif is charming as ever with his wise cracks and mannerisms. However it’s in the emotional sequences towards the end, where you realise how much he has matured over the years. Casting him as young Rishi Kapoor, is bit of a cinematic liberty. But it works in the context of the film – even though Khan’s Punjabi is not very authentic. You can often sense the metrosexual Saif wanting to break out of the turban.

Deepika Padukone is the real surprise. Looking her best ever, Deepika delivers a surprisingly effortless performance. A scene where she checks herself out in the mirror before heading for a date is a gem of a moment. And yes! For the first time we discover that the girl knows how to cry. Rishi Kapoor is spontaneous as the romantic Sardar. Watch out for his surprise in the climax.

Imtiaz’s dialogues are once again straight out of everyday conversations. The scenes between Rishi and Saif are bound to remind you of the advice your dad gives you about settling down in life. As a technician Imtiaz shows shades of Yash Raj romances. Pritam’s stupendous score adds tremendous value to the film, making the proceedings even livelier.

Any minuses? Yes! The second half could have been 20 minutes shorter. Also, while the easy pace of the film works for the theme, it often tends to get slow. This film wastes little time in the boy meets girl part and is quick to get to the point. But the point could have been made in under two hours.

On the face of it a lot of sequences appear shallow. Unlike Jab We Met where the comic portions and dramatic ones were distinctly spelt out, here the emotions are pretty understated. There’s a lot of depth in the seeming light hearted portions. It’s a multiplex film in the truest sense of the word.

Love Aaj Kal is not perfect. But in one of Bollywood’s dullest years, this one comes as a refreshing ray of hope. It’s bound to bring a smile on your face. Here’s a film with both head and heart.

Verdict: It’s the coolest film of the year

Rating: 4/5

Som 30 July 2009
09:05:53 am

Taran Adarsh reviews Love Aaj Kal

Come to think of it, if the film carries the ‘burden’ of humungous expectations, it’s imperative that it goes beyond those expectations. The reaction after watching the film has to be similar to a child who has laid his hands on his fav toy. The joyous smile would say it all. The question is, does LOVE AAJ KAL live up to the hype and hoopla surrounding it? Or does it go beyond that?

LOVE AAJ KAL is not an easy film to write and execute. Sure, it’s a love story, but it’s not one of those mundane love stories that talks of love and heartache. Here, the two stories, set in different eras, run parallel, but have a similar end.

To be brutally honest, it takes time to grasp the plot, since the past and present run concurrently. If you aren’t attentive, chances are you’d lose the plot. Also, if you aren’t aware by now that Saif enacts dual roles in the film — playing his part as also the part of young Rishi Kapoor — the goings-on would confuse you no end, when the transition occurs.

LOVE AAJ KAL is a director’s show entirely. The relationships here are complex because the couple in love lives in complete denial. It is to Imtiaz Ali’s credit that he has penned an offbeat story, developed a complex but comprehensive screenplay and extracted sensitive performances from the principal cast. At the same time, the writing isn’t the type that would appeal to all sections of movie-going audience. Besides, the execution of the subject and also the pacing in the first hour are deterrents.

Final word? LOVE AAJ KAL makes you fall in love with love all over again. Makes you value your loved ones all the more. This film is special!

Love Aaj
London, San Francisco, Delhi – 2009.
Jai [Saif Ali Khan] and Meera [Deepika Padukone] is a modern-day couple in London. They are very happy together, but do not believe in tying each other down. So when life pulls them in different directions, they decide to call off their relationship, since long-distance relationships, in their opinion, don’t work.

Love Kal
Delhi, Calcutta – 1965.
Veer Singh [Rishi Kapoor] is struck by a thunderbolt when he sees Harleen for the first time. He travels a thousand kilometers by train to stand under her balcony, only to have a glimpse of her face. And yet not speak a word with her.

Love Aaj Kal
Veer does not understand how Jai can treat matters of the heart without passion. Jai does not understand how Veer Singh could have been so naive and silly about Harleen in his youth. But as both stories unfold, we realize that the process of relationship might be different in different eras, but the experience of being in love remains the same.

LOVE AAJ KAL travels multiple continents and different eras. The subject matter is novel, never attempted before, but the material, the characters [Saif and Deepika especially] as also its execution is targeted at the youth in big cities mainly. As they say in filmi lingo, this one’s a hardcore multiplex movie.

Another area where Imtiaz Ali experiments is by depicting Saif as the young Rishi Kapoor. It’s a novel concept, no two opinions on that, but the question is, will it cut ice universally? Will people tend to get confused when the sequences turn sepia?

The film captivates in bits and spurts in the initial portions. Partly because the writing is so different. But the writing breaks new grounds in the second hour. It’s in this hour that the film grips you completely, when the fragmented pieces are put together and a mesmeric picture emerges.

The second hour is the soul of the film. Right from the time Deepika decides to marry, till the last reunion, the film touches an emotional high. The sequence of events that lead to the culmination is incredible. Saif’s interaction with Deepika at the marriage, or the gradual change in Saif’s behaviour in the U.S. in the course of a song, or the realisation that marriage was a big mistake… moments like these take LOVE AAJ KAL to dizzy heights.

Imtiaz Ali is a genius. The film bears the stamp of an accomplished storyteller. This is a forward-thinking film that handles the new-age relationships with complete understanding. The songs compliment the goings-on beautifully. This is amongst Pritam’s accomplished works. ‘Twist’ [already a rage], ‘Aahun Aahun’ [foot-taping], ‘Chor Bazaari’ [melodious] and ‘Dooriyaan’ [melancholic], each song is a gem. N. Natarajan Subramaniam’s cinematography is fantastic. Editing [Aarti Bajaj] is wonderful.

Both Saif and Deepika come up with their career-best performances in LOVE AAJ KAL. Saif carries the most difficult parts with remarkable ease. Sure, we’ve seen him as the cool, urban guy in several films, but this one’s the most demanding role and only a seasoned actor could’ve delivered it with such precision.

Deepika looks ethereal. Most importantly, in LOVE AAJ KAL, she acts very, very well. Matching up to Saif is no mean achievement and she does it in several scenes. This should be the turning point in her career. Rishi Kapoor is top notch. The actress enacting the role of Harleen is pretty. Rahul Khanna does well in a small, but significant role. Watching Neetu Kapoor in the end sequence is truly astonishing. She’s so graceful.

On the whole, LOVE AAJ KAL is for the young and romantic at heart. Sure, it’s not perfect, but the terrific performances, melodious music and stirring emotional moments [last 35 odd minutes] more than compensate for the hiccups. At the box-office, the film should start with a bang for four factors — its novel cast, super music, great promotion and yes, Imtiaz Ali, a name that commands respect amongst moviegoers. Released extensively [approx. 1800 screens worldwide], LOVE AAJ KAL will have one of the biggest first weeks in India and also in the international markets. In India, the business will be superb across multiplexes, while single screens might not behave as energetically. But the business at multiplexes will ensure a fantastic recovery of the investment. Internationally, it has the potential to emerge one of the biggest grossers in recent time.

Rating: 4/5

Som 30 July 2009
09:29:19 am

TOI gives it a 4 as well.

Chalo, let’s get drunk with one more heady potion of Pyar, Imtiaz ishtyle, you tell yourself before sauntering in for his latest, Love Aaj Kal.

And no, you aren’t disappointed at all. Because, this time, the effervescence and adrenalin rush of impetuous love, resonant in the romance of Geet and Aditya in Jab We Met, has been replaced by a more serious and realistic take on modern love. The film literally holds up a mirror to the commitment phobia of the young, successful professionals who keep changing their status from `committed’ to `single’ on the sundry social networking sites. Much to the chagrin of their dads and mums who fail to understand this emotional dilettantism and keep badgering them with love-of-a-lifetime cliches.

The secret of director Imtiaz Ali’s film making lies basically in three primordial areas. Instead of relying heavily on a three-hour long script, he chooses to concentrate on his dialogues: crisp, concise and completely in sync with aaj ka lingo. All of Saif’s babblings about love sans marriage and Deepika’s discourses on career and cumbersome commitment are straight out of real-life ramblings in pubs, discotheques and coffee shops.

Secondly, it’s the characterisations that literally set the screen on fire, with their highly individualistic streak coupled with their sad vulnerability. Here again, Saif Ali Khan’s Jai and Deepika’s Meera aren’t your run-of-the-mill Romeos. While cool dude Jai dreams of building bridges like the Golden Gate and cannot see romance coming in the way of his career, restoration artist, Meera too feels long distance relationships are a drag when she decides to move from London to repaint frescoes in Delhi. Refreshingly, this romance actually begins with a break and then goes through umpteen twists and turns, before the new age Jai realises he ain’t much different from the old-fashioned Veer (Rishi Kapoor) who lived out the Heer-Ranjha story in the less cluttered 1960s. Both Jai and Meera try to live out their lives independently, simply as friends, pursuing their careers and different love interests. But ironically, they keep bumping into each other at odd junctures of their life, babbling incoherently (and funnily) to avoid the senty soulmate signals. And Saif’s absolutely delightful with his gibberish take on I’m okay, you’re okay, we’re okay, while the scene’s actually yelling out something else.

Thirdly, like Jab We Met, this film too scores in the lush atmospherics that anchor the drama so exotically. London, San Franciso are fine, but it’s actually Delhi that once again sweeps you off your feet as it stands by as a sweet and vibrant witness to the wooing and shooing, both in the 1965 romance and the 2009 something-like-love story. Playing a major role in creating the right ambience is Pritam’s foot tapping music score too which boasts of a number of chartbusters.

On the flip side, the first half does ramble a bit and takes time to build up into a riveting second half. But the alluring performances by the lead pair do cover up for the langorous bits. Deepika is definitive and strong as Meera, the modern girl who has an individuality of her own. But it is Saif who renders so many shades to his character to make it seem so very real: confident, confused, careerist, homebody, fancy-free, foolishly in love.

Final query. How do Meera and Jai resolve their long-distance-relationships-don’t-work dilemma? We’d like to believe the bridge-builder moves in with the restoration artist in saddi Dilli! Go watch it for it’s GenNow feel and it’s ekdum modern appeal.

Som 30 July 2009
09:36:51 am

I don’t know what to say after reading these reviews.3 reviews so far, those are extremely positive. I am not sure if Imtiaz has really delivered a “good” film here, the promos did not smell anything of that sort. May be Kashyap was right on the film.

Tango 30 July 2009
09:38:06 am

It was but obvious that Love Aaj Kal would get great reviews. I am not saying it does or does not deserve it as I will only be seeing it on Saturday.

As far as Toran is concerned, an invitaion to a special preview/screening always gets good reviews from him.

rks 30 July 2009
09:59:19 am

Som is booked for weekend

Som 30 July 2009
10:10:16 am

I’ll be seeing it anyway, Rks. But I would be more than happy if the film is as good as the early reviews have suggested.I won’t like to have the luxury of experiencing another Kambakkhat Ishq or Luck.

Akshay 30 July 2009
10:15:19 am

Som you can be sure that the movie would not be a KI or a Luck. I mean the comparison itself is sacrilegious.

If JWM is any indicator to go by, I’d think this is going to be a lovely movie to watch. I’ll watch it for Deepika

Som 30 July 2009
10:16:45 am

A love story that opens with a breakup – that’s quite a ‘twist’ in the treatment. Do not expect too much of novel turns in the tale though.

Love Aaj Kal is a been-there-seen-that story of a couple, Jai (Saif Ali Khan) and Meera (Deepika Padukone) who realize true love for each other once they part ways and go their own paths. Just that this couple breaks up to start with and subsequently gets together for an imminent happy end. A parallel plot in a period setting has Veer (Saif, again) being smitten by a pristine Punjabi kudi in a bygone era.

The different perspectives of love in the parallel narratives, beautifully builds a contrast in the tale. The innocence of love from the past era comes across as strikingly divergent to the practicality of romance in the present times. In a pensive line, Rishi Kapoor as the elder Sardar, makes smart sense when he says love made people serious about life in yesteryears while seriousness towards life makes people abandon love in current generation.

Read the rest HERE

Som 30 July 2009
10:18:36 am

Aap to chupa rustam nikle, Akshay. Aap bhi Deepika!

Akshay 30 July 2009
10:30:40 am

Som I guess there are like 100 million “chhupe rustam” in India who will fall for Deepika : Hook, Line & Stinker

Tango 30 July 2009
10:32:10 am

“A love story that opens with a breakup – that’s quite a ‘twist’ in the treatment.”

Looks like this is the first movie which Gaurav has seen that goes into the flashback mode, with an unexpected start.

Gorilla 30 July 2009
10:39:59 am

If LAK is all about mushy love story then i will be disappointed. I do not like out and out mushy romances with matured actors (actors who have been on the screen for ages- Saif). I am hoping that there is some manly twist with Saif and girlish tango with Deepika.

Gorilla 30 July 2009
10:42:03 am

But reviews have been very promising. Happy for Saif and Deepika; and for myself as most likely i will be checking this out. Am yet to catch Harry Potter; LAK will follow immediately after that.

Som 30 July 2009
08:08:50 pm

Love Aaj Kal: Definitely not to be missed

Som 30 July 2009
09:36:44 pm

Love Aaj Kal Has Best Advance Of 2009

Love Aaj Kal has had the best advance booking at multiplexes this year. The film is showing on huge volume with some multiplexes giving the film 26-28 shows daily.

The business at multiplexes will be huge over the first weekend and if single screens were to show a similar response than the weekend could show record or near record business but it is likely that the single screen response will be lower.

Love Aaj Kal carries excellent pre-release reports and is expected to score heavily at multiplexes all over with no major competition for two weeks and an added advantage of Raksha Bandhan holiday on Thursday.

Som 30 July 2009
10:06:10 pm

Love Aaj Kal starring Saif and Deepika enjoying the best advance of this year so far, better than an Akshay and Kareena starrer Kambakkhat Ishq again raises the question of “genre” and “promotion/marketing” contribution towards the opening of a film these days along with the presence of big stars.

Som 30 July 2009
10:07:13 pm

Reuters:Not very original but it works

Angels and Belds 30 July 2009
10:18:05 pm

srk + deepika – blockbuster
saif + deepika – superhit

akshay + deepika – disaster

enough said!

Som 30 July 2009
10:26:24 pm

Love Aaj Kal is a complex love story because the couple in love lives in complete denial. The total credit goes to Imtiaz Ali who has wrote an exceptional story.

Som 30 July 2009
11:08:20 pm

Love Aaj Kal hits you like fresh air

RAJ 30 July 2009
11:20:45 pm

LAK seems to be getting more poitive reviews than negatives..Anyway i have decided longback that i will watch thin one in theatres..So i will watch it on Saturday…

Som 31 July 2009
01:25:04 am

Raja Sen:Yet another love story. Okay, two

Som 31 July 2009
01:49:34 am

“I would like to offer Farah Khan a special and awestruck citation for making us believe that Deepika Padukone is an actress. She cannily used the undisputably attractive girl as a lovely mannequin in Om Shanti Om ,and none of us realised just how plastic this Barbie really is. She has a great smile, dimples and all, but that’s really it. I feel for Imtiaz to see his dialogue butchered by his actress, heartbreak heightening when she murders a lovely ‘break me’ line. Both Imtiaz’s earlier films featured heroines of tremendous talent, and one wishes this one also had an actress.”

This is harsh, Raja Sen.Not fair.

Som 31 July 2009
02:02:45 am

Anupama Chopra:Love Aaj Kal is an above average film with some wonderful moments, nice lines and fine performances. But it’s not as sparkling or engaging as it should have been. I’m going with three stars and recommending that you catch it

RAJ 31 July 2009
02:51:37 am

Som,

Raja sen seems to be a person who is “”not born”" all right..He seems to be bitter and dissapointed of himself…I have never seen Raja sen giving more than two stars to any movie(Except a few)…

devesh 31 July 2009
03:19:11 am

8/10 for me Som – Deepika is brilliant
i watched it yesterday – probably gonna watch once more.

I thought the story/screenplay was bang on target. In fact, I could reflect on the proceedings so many times. It was very realistic with respect to the portrayal of the character, their motivations and their feelings. Jab We met IMHO was much more filmy!
The only thing i found lacking in the movie was Saif. I thought one of the younger ones, like Ranbeer / Shahid would have been much more suited to the role. Saif does well, but his mannerisms give a feeling of deja vu all the time.
Som – Deepika is refreshing, smiles are enough. do notice her crying scene at the end on the ladder.
I think after Socha na tha, this wud be Ali’s 2nd best work for me.
Jab We Met stands tall if u talk about a feel good filmy film. But this one’s more honest, real and believable”

Som 31 July 2009
05:58:08 am

Hey Devesh! Thanks very much. It took Love Aaj Kal for you to come up with a single comment after a long gap Keep visiting man.

Som 31 July 2009
08:16:14 am

Love Aaj Kal Opens To An Excellent Response

Love Aaj Kal has opened to an excellent response at multiplexes in most of the country. The film opened below par in the South which could be due to the release of heavyweight Magdheera in the region or possibly due to the huge Punjabi flavour of the film.

The multiplexes outside South India will show around 90% collections for the first day on huge volume which is fantastic. Delhi/NCR and Chandigarh multiplexes are recording bumper collections. The single screen response is lower than multiplexes but they still have good to decent collections.

Overall the film has good reports and should emerge a winner in the long run and it could also post the best first weekend collections this year on the strength of its strong start and humungous release at multiplexes.

ACHILLES 31 July 2009
08:18:03 am

90% opening in a wide plex release … we may be looking at big numbers next week.

Som 31 July 2009
08:54:25 am

Audience response to Love Aaj Kal

Som 31 July 2009
08:59:41 am

Deepika comes out shining. Put her in the hands of a good director and she can do wonders. Imtiaz coaxes out a good performance from her. But believe me; this girl can do much, much better. She stands up to the much-experienced Saif Ali Khan in the lighter moments as well as the more intense ones. If she makes the right choices, she will be an actress to watch out for.

Read the rest HERE

Som 31 July 2009
09:06:40 am

LINK

Jai and Meera are a very today couple. They noodle around in London, figuring out if they are, like, together. That entails mugs of black coffee and lots of smart chatter, and eventually, a parting of ways, because they can’t quite get a handle on their feelings. Like, love, you know, who knows?

Veer and Harleen take us back to the 60s. He follows her rickshaw on his cycle in Purani Dilli, and she takes note of her smitten Sikh suitor with downcast eye and demure smile. She’s a ‘soni kudi’, he’s a ‘changa munda’, and there is nary a doubt in their hearts that they are meant for each other.

Imtiaz Ali’s new film shuttles between the two time zones, ‘aaj’ and `kal’, and his twin-set of lovers, as they ricochet between cities and conviction. We get good-looking locations in London, Delhi, Calcutta, San Francisco, and exceedingly good-looking people. We get zippy backchat (I’m not trying to pile on, says Jai; then why pile on, shoots back Meera). We get some really nice moments. What we don’t, is a crackling romance.

Because ‘Love Aaj Kal’ is, in the way it comes across, a buddy movie. Jai (Saif) and Meera (Deepika) kiss and cuddle, and their conversation leads you to believe that they have done ‘sab kuch’, but they are more like pals that hang out, rather than dying-for-each-other lovers.

There’s affection, not ardour. There’s more longing in Veer’s (Rishi Kapoor) voice when he talks of his Harleen (Shweta Gulati), than in all the exchanges between Jai and Meera.

It’s also not new enough. The snappy back-and-forth between the guy and girl, the large Sardar family and the songs, the train journey (a leitmotif in Imtiaz’s films), remind you strongly of both ‘Hum Tum’, and ‘Jab We Met’. Saif playing the older Veer, in turban and beard and rashes of Punjabi, comes up with a few fresh flourishes; but his Jai is all too familiar.

You wonder if the outcome would have been different if he had paired himself (‘Love Aaj Kal’ is Saif’s first home production) with another actress. Deepika is far too put together to display naked emotion, and if you can’t do that, you can’t play a madly-in-love lover.

It’s hard not to warm up to a film which is, at its core, likeable. I just wish I could have liked it more.

Som 31 July 2009
10:40:02 am

Not so good reactions

JANTA VERDICT

rks 31 July 2009
10:45:35 am

Som – What kind of fan are you? You haven’t seen LAK and posted a review?

Som 31 July 2009
10:51:42 am

Tomorrow evening or Sunday Rks. You might not be knowing maine ek nariyal phoda aaj mandir mein, praying for Deepika to get a huge hit in LAK.

rks 31 July 2009
10:56:03 am

“You might not be knowing maine ek nariyal phoda aaj mandir mein, praying for Deepika to get a huge hit in LAK”

lol. If you do it generally, you might get many Deepikas

Som 31 July 2009
11:10:07 am

Haha! Just kidding, never had made up my mind to see it today.Will catch it either tomorrow evening or Sunday for sure.

Som 31 July 2009
11:12:38 am

I have also seen Ankur by the way.

Som 31 July 2009
12:24:11 pm

Rajeev Masand: Love Aaj Kal is not memorable

There’s a funny scene in Love Aaj Kal in which its protagonists Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone having just broken up amicably, take the liberty to reveal to each other what they’ve always liked and disliked about the other, now that there’s no romantic pressure on them anymore.

“You really shouldn’t drink on dates,” Saif tells her. “You have no idea the advantage I’ve taken of you when you’ve been drunk.”

Deepika responds, “Actually I don’t get drunk very easily. I was always awake and quite enjoyed what you were doing. I realized that pretending to be drunk might be the only way to get you to do something.”

It’s witty, charming moments like these peppered throughout the film that are the best bits in writer-director Imtiaz Ali’s Love Aaj Kal, which is in fact a standard Bollywood love story disguised as a realistic take on modern love.

Saif and Deepika play Jai and Meera, a pair of practical, career-driven Londoners who realize they feel true love for each other well after they’ve split up, gone their separate ways and hooked up with other partners. Nothing unusual about that, except that the film opens with their break-up and follows them up to the point when they are finally reunited.

A second love story is narrated in flashback by Rishi Kapoor who plays Veer Singh, a Sikh restaurant owner in London. In his heyday, he wooed a pretty sardarni who lived in his neighborhood in Delhi, but eventually relocated with her folks to Calcutta. Consumed by love, he followed her there and despite opposition from her parents, eventually brought her home with him.

DDLJ you’re thinking, and you’re right. Except for the twist that the younger version of Rishi Kapoor’s Veer Singh is played by Saif Ali Khan again, wearing a turban this time so you can distinguish between the two characters he plays. It’s an interesting device, and the logic used to justify it is that Saif’s character Jai reminds Veer Singh of himself in his younger days.

Using chatty dialogue and smart tools like parallel narratives and jumping timelines, Imtiaz Ali tells us a familiar tale with a worn-out message. It doesn’t work for the most part because there’s no inherent drama in the plot and barely any depth to the relationship Jai and Meera share.

From the moment you’re introduced to them in that break-up scene, you long to root for these characters; you’re meant to believe they’re making a foolish mistake by going their separate ways, but alas the lack of chemistry between Saif and Deepika and their surface-level emotions never quite convince you that they’re made for each other.

The film refers to sexual compatibility but chickens out from using it as an important factor for their mutual attraction.

On the other hand, Veer Singh’s romantic track is engaging because it’s innocent and it’s simple and it doesn’t try too hard.

There’ s an earthy charm to those scenes between a younger Veer and the delicate Harleen Kaur, played by a new actress whose name, strangely, has been kept secret.

Silences convey so much more than irreverent banter, and nowhere is this more evident than in the interactions between Veer and Harleen, whose romance is conducted almost entirely through their eyes and longing expressions.

There is such tenderness in that scene in which she sneaks him a glass of black tea under her dupatta, and he brings her sweets from her favorite mithaiwala in Delhi. Or those Romeo & Juliet-like moments where they gaze at each other affectionately, she at her balcony, he outside on the street.

Love Aaj Kal is not a bad film. It’s got its heart in the right place, but its other parts seem scattered. The screenplay, for one, is far from foolproof.

The incident that drives Jai to realise where his heart lies is ridiculous, and equally unconvincing is Meera’s hurried marriage. The young Veer and Harleen track is wrapped up with a convenient culmination that isn’t even dramatic enough to justify how much time has been spent establishing these characters.

For a film trying so hard to capture the attitude of the current generation, Love Aaj Kal relies too heavily for its key plot points on such Bollywood hits as Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, Dil Chahta Hai, and even Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna.

I can’t speak for others but I don’t think I can take one more film in which a wise old man scolds s a younger fellow for not knowing his heart. “Trust me, you don’t know it yourself but you love her,” Rishi Kapoor’s Veer Singh tells Jai.

It’s the oldest cliché in the book and I wish Jai would turn around and tell the old man to mind his own business.

Love Aaj Kal suffers also because the writers fail to develop Meera’s character entirely, which explains your bafflement at her sudden decisions. Deepika Padukone lacks the maturity or the skill to make up for the lapses in the writing and to construct a credible character out of Meera.

Saif Ali Khan, meanwhile, effortlessly pulls off the restless, footloose Jai, and brings depth even to the part of the love-torn Veer.

It’s a joy to watch Rishi Kapoor take ordinary lines and deliver them convincingly, and never miss a beat.

The film in the end is ordinary stuff, watchable but never memorable like the director’s previous efforts, the far superior “Socha Na Tha” and “Jab We Met”. I’m going with two out of five and a n average rating for Love Aaj Kal. It’s like that plump mango you bite into only to discover it’s not ripe yet. Watch it nevertheless for the sharp dialogue and some clever humor.

Rating: 2 / 5 (Average)

Som 31 July 2009
12:27:56 pm

Reminds me of critics reception to Singh is King.Most of the reputed critics did not think much highly of the film but other blog, web portal reviews were good.Same thing seems to be happening with Love Aaj Kal. None of the likes of Raja Sen, Masand, Shubra Gupta, Anupama Chopra seems to be too pleased with the film.

Som 31 July 2009
12:58:27 pm

Subhash K Jha reviews Love Aaj Kal

Rating; ****

The first thing to be said about this incredibly enchanting excursion into the matter of the heart as seen in contemporary times and in times gone-bye-bye , is …what’s wrong with these two people who are so much in love ? We can see that love. They can’t. That’s the paradox of love in any era. The realization of its existence sometimes takes inexcusably long. And by then, Cupid forbid, love is gone.

Love Aaj Kal is a take on love in current times , as seen through the eyes of a filmmaker who can keep an outstanding balance between cinematic language and the grammar of today’s young generation.

Imtiaz Ali often weaves dialogues about the enduring place of love in times of acute contemporary contempetitives into conversations in American cafes without sliding into cynicism. He is clued into today’s moods. But he doesn’t subscribe to them. Nor is he judgemental about how today’s youngsters treat love.

That’s no small achievement, considering cinema about protagonists who are cynical about love in today’s twitter-ing times often cannot tell the difference between the language of love and the cynical attitude that colours contemporary relationships.

Love Aaj Kal connects with the feelings of love and commitment in a realtionship deeply and with delightfully captivating candour .

Deeepika Padukone and Saif Ali Khan play our two too-cool NRIs who think love is a commodity to be used at their conveninence. Or , so they would like to believe that they believe.

Astoundingly the pair lies to one another about mutual love without for a second seeing through each other’s deception.It’s the way of today’s world.

Imtiaz Ali portrays contemporary commitment phobia on a canvas that echoes an elaborate symphony. As we ‘listen’ to the heartbeats that pervade the magical moments of love , layer after layer of relevance and resonance emerge so effortlessly, you almost miss the compulsive passions that underline the director’s vision of a world where emotions are often smothered for what today’s people feel to be more important issues.

Imtiaz had proved himself to be a racounteur of remarkably unaffected and yet deeply affecting skills in Jab We Met.

There’re elements from Jab We Met reverberating across the expansive horizon of Love Aaj Kal. The bustling Punjabi household, for one. Its infectious bonhomie is intact. The great geographical distances covered by planes trains and more metaphorical means keep us watching the frames for much more than just the characters and their words which are joined in a tight embrace to convey the emotional content . The director doesn’t squander the engaging narration in pursuit of passions that could take the film into the dark region.

While addressing issues that directly question sexual and moral values in present times, the tone remains bright bouncy and bubbly.

Into the story of today’s couple Jai(Saif) and Mira(Deepika) Imtiaz Ali weaves the incredibly romantic story of Veer Singh(Rishi Kapoor) and his balcony-ke-neeche love for the pretty Harleen(played by a newcomer who takes the ‘ pretty’ status pretty literally).

The editing pattern and the mellow merger of the present and past replicate Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra’s Rang De Basanti. But here the issues are not political but passionately personal.

Passionate love often looks preposterous to the onlooker. Not this time. The director derives a fulsome fragrance of mushy feelings from his two set of love birds without letting them surrender to selfindulgent schmaltzy sensations. Though the protagonists are lazy about love, their lives are captured in movements that are as life-giving as that first morning cuppa.

There’s a peculiar pragmatism to the way Imtiaz Ali puts forward his love gyan. In his realm of romance cynicism too is given a place. But it soon dissolves as the characters resolve their dilemma of prioritizing practicality and emotions to realize that worldly ambitions are obtainable only when personal emotions attain a state of fruition and liberation.

Mira and Jai’s journey into love is segmented into fascinating compartments of selfdeluding aspirations, some so selfcontained they could make independent films. Saif’s tryst with job-satisfaction in San Francisco and his rapid disillusionment with his work-related dreams is done like rapid images seen from a moving train.

Catch them if you can.

Would this film have worked without its two main players? Deepika Padukone’s Mira is a moving image of modern misapprehensions on love, a magnificent montage of seductive emotions mapped on a face that’s meant to be a classic yet a ‘Mira’-image of contemporary times.

It’s significant that Deepika plays an art restorer. In her performance she indeed restores the era of the leading lady who doesn’t need to talk constantly or take off her clothes to be supremely appealing. Deepika creates a graph for her character without growing judgemental about the character’s obvious shortcomings.

The script ‘belongs’ to Saif. He weaves in and out of the character of Jai who goes from smirking about Majnu to almost becoming one , with a conviction and energy that are symptoms of a hungry actor’s pursuit and obtainment of a place to rest his considerable skills. In his other role as the Sardarji silently courting the girl nextdoor Saif does away with his habitual restless-energy and gently focuses on getting the emotions right without losing the character’s body language and speech.

Rishi Kapoor comes up with the third fully-credible performance. But the off-centre space in the narration is also filled with other people who know this is not just a film about getting the accent mood and flavour right.

Love Aaj Tak is about a lot more than technicalities of love. We journey with the ‘cool’ urbane couple through three continents and many more emotional plateaus to finally crack that age-old mystery about the thing called love.

The truth is, love will always hurt. And from that hurt is born some great contemporary art.

Take a bow, Imtiaz Ali.

Som 31 July 2009
01:45:28 pm

Love Aaj Kal is the perfect date movie

Som 31 July 2009
01:55:02 pm

Go watch it. You won’t be disappointed. Rather, you’d be left wanting to fall in love, if you are already not in it, that is

Som 31 July 2009
01:57:45 pm

“Deepika Padukone is an image of grace in a role that requires her to talk more through the eyes than words. She doesn’t ham, nor is there any apparent effort on her part to underplay her character”

“It’s significant that Deepika plays an art restorer. In her performance she indeed restores the era of the leading lady who doesn’t need to talk constantly or take off her clothes to be supremely appealing. Deepika creates a graph for her character without growing judgemental about the character’s obvious shortcomings.”

Sounds so good to ears.

Doga 31 July 2009
05:02:55 pm

The first weekend will be great, followed by steady weekdays, yielding in excellent week 1 numbers, 2nd weekend will see falls though in range of 55-60%.

The movie will then make way for Kaminey.

Som 31 July 2009
07:23:03 pm

Hopes ride high on Love Aaj Kal

“Occupancy for the film was as high as 90% on the day of the release with advance booking for the weekend at 25%. Theatre owners expect to end the weekend with occupancy rates of 75-80%. Love Aaj Kal, made on a budget of around Rs 50 crore, has been released in 1,800 screens across the world.”

Som 31 July 2009
07:37:27 pm

The destination is the same. The journeys are different. And the journeys are difficult. Journeys across continents. Journeys through millions of miles. Journeys from the brain to the heart.

Love Aaj Kal is Imtiaz Ali’s examination of whether today’s ‘mango people’ — that’s what he calls the ‘aam junta’ — can actually make that journey. We the modern minds, can we fall in love? We the practical guys, do we still feel the tug at our hearts?

More than depicting love kal and aaj, it’s more about how love kal swings love aaj. How Jai (Saif Ali Khan) is inspired by Veer Singh’s (Rishi Kapoor) love story to connect to his own romance with Meera (Deepika Padukone). The googly: Saif also plays the young Veer.

Jab they met, Jai and Meera have the simple philosophy — na dil hai, na dard hai. They just have a rocking time, from the bar to the bed. And when work calls saat samundar paar, they just cut short their affair and throw a gala break-up party! Soon Jai is doing the Twist with a firangi babe from Switzerland and Meera is going on dinner dates with her boss.

Read the rest HERE

Som 31 July 2009
07:50:02 pm

Luck First Week Collections Around India

Luck has collected approx 17 crore nett in week one. The Mumbai circuit collected 6.50 crore nett and Delhi/UP grossed 3.30 crore net. The all India distributor share for week one is a fair 9.50 crore approx.

Luck – Week One

Mumbai/Thane – 2,78,12,168

Ahmedabad – 69,23,718

Baroda – 23,39,690

Surat – 24,63,544

Himmatnagar – 2,30,557

Anand – 9,31,140

Vapi – 4,61,195

Valsad – 2,69,481

Nadiad – 3,99,077

Bharuch – 4,85,173

Navsari – 3,22,336

Mehsana – 2,88,582

Palanpur – 1,37,185

Dahod- 1,14,402

Rajkot – 17,56,379

Bhavnagar – 6,72,233

Jamnagar – 4,62,853

Gandhidham – 3,06,858

Junagadh – 1,32,826

Porbander – 2,59,314

Bhuj – 1,13,418

Adipur – 1,39,016

Morbi – 1,02,444

Pune – 64,63,448

Solapur – 3,24,625

Kohlapur – 5,39,326

Sangli – 3,30,214

Malegaon – 3,15,680

Ahmednagar – 2,29,553

Ichalkaranji – 1,54,155

Karad – 1,26,975

Loni – 1,10,001

Baramati – 1,45,305

Shrirampur – 1,00,356

Kopergaon – 1,24,526

Pandharpur – 1,13,458

Islampur – 1,01,553

Nasik – 10,85,704

Goa – 12,03,799

Belgaum – 5,30,332

Hubli – 5,29,645

Dharwad – 1,00,031

Bijapur – 1,79,753

Delhi – 1,46,82,909

Noida – 20,38,786

Ghaziabad – 29,84,253

Lucknow – 22,65,749

Kanpur – 15,38,968

Agra – 12,24,316

Varanasi – 10,72,465

Meerut – 10,13,577

Gorakhpur – 6,46,582

Moradabad – 3,81,112

Dehradun – 3,02,313

Allahabad – 3,06,631

Aligarh – 4,16,466

Bahraich – 1,36,763

Bareilly – 1,40,851

Bulandsheher – 1,03,844

Hapur – 1,86,800

Jhansi – 1,91,749

Mathura – 1,37,026

Muzzafarnagar – 2,07,983

Pilkhuwa – 1,11,206

Rampur – 1,00,322

Rishikesh – 1,08,011

Ruderpur – 1,25,631

Saharanpur – 2,35,462

Shamli – 1,36,884

Som 31 July 2009
08:32:34 pm

LINK

The much-hyped LOVE AAJ KAL opened to a stupendous start across all multiplexes. The film is being screened in 20, 23, 25, even 28 shows everyday at prominent multiplexes, which is a record of starts. The first day business was huge across multiplexes, although the single screens weren’t as strong [expectedly]. But there’s no reason to press the panic button, since 70% to 80% business is generated from multiplexes alone these days.

The reports of LOVE AAJ KAL are good, the audience feedback is positive and the opening weekend is expected to be humungous. In fact, the first weekend numbers of the film should easily find a place amongst the biggest openers ever. Another advantage is the Raksha Bandhan holiday on Wednesday [5th August], which will add that extra revenue to the booty.

LOVE AAJ KAL has cost Rs. 42 crores to its producers [Saif Ali Khan and Dinesh Vijan] and with P & A costs included, the final cost works out to approx. Rs. 48 crores [for Eros]. A major chunk of business is expected to be recovered from the domestic market, while Overseas is expected to be huge as well. In fact, the Thursday night shows in Pakistan were bigger than that of KAMBAKKHT ISHQ. Even UAE was higher than KAMBAKKHT ISHQ, where LOVE AAJ KAL collected approx. 6,50,000 Dirhams on its first day.

One awaits with bated breath for its response in U.K. and U.S.A. ‘Bollywood Hungama’ will keep you updated with the developments, with official figures.

Som 31 July 2009
11:00:06 pm

Stunning UK opening number.

U.K. update: ‘Love Aaj Kal’ has a record-breaking start

Tango 31 July 2009
11:02:54 pm

“A major chunk of business is expected to be recovered from the domestic market”

Rs. 42 crore is high for a Saif solo but I think once again EROS being the worldwide distributors is an advantage.

Som 31 July 2009
11:10:26 pm

Don’t think 42cr can be recovered from India alone. At best I can see Eros recovering 28-30cr in India and 12-13cr in Overseas.

Som 31 July 2009
11:11:35 pm

The most beautiful thing that the film does is to tell us that it is ‘cool’ to be ‘the way we are’. And thereby prepares us, one more time, to break the shackles, and express our love all over again

Som 31 July 2009
11:14:15 pm

On the whole, despite its inherent flaws, Love Aaj Kal is still rather enjoyable and has more than it’s fair share of nice moments. So while the whole doesn’t match up to the sum of its parts, I still reccomend you watch Love Aaj Kal. Just remember to leave Jab We Met at home.

Som 1 August 2009
03:41:17 am

Love Aaj Kal Opens To Bumper Response At Multiplexes

Love Aaj Kal opened to a bumper response of 90% at multiplexes and a decent 60% response at single screens. The multiplex business on day one was phenomenal as it collected more money than any other film on day one at the multiplexes. Overall reports are good and it is a sure shot winner and may emerge first Super Hit of 2009.

Luck grossed 17 crore nett in its first week. The film managed decent collections in single screens but multiplexes were not good. The single screen collections also dropped after a good start making recovery impossible. FLOP

Kambakkht Ishq adds 1 crore nett business in week four to take its total to around 46.75 crore nett. ABOVE AVERAGE

New York grosses around 1 crore in week five to take its total to 45.50 crore nett. HIT

Som 1 August 2009
03:43:14 am

Khalid Mohamed reviews Love Aaj Kal. It is nice to see him back reviewing films.

Hip hip, there’s a stiff upper lip. It belongs to a Mercedes-Benz chauffeur in the English countryside, who gravely announces, “We shouldn’t be here for so long.” Why? Why? Were there geeky goblins in the grass? Anyway ma’am agrees and tells churlish Chauffeur to take a U-turn to reunite with her wimpy husband (Rahul Khanna, jeez!), making you hit your head with your left hand, then your right hand..then both. Hey gal, make up your mind whether you like the pati, chauffeur or woh?

Oh. That was the oddball news first. The goodball news is that despite the inevitable clunky passages, writer-director Imtiaz Ali’s Love Aaj Kal is an utterly fluttery romance which returns the smile to your face, and at points is even sensitive enough to moisten your eyes. Indeed, its major triumph is its inventively structured script, incorporating flashbacks seamlessly.

Okay, so there are some terrible speedbreakers towards the concluding reels – particularly an antsy conversation between the wimp and his newly-wedded wife which is unintentionally howlarious – but for a good part of its 14 reels, here’s a romcom that’s intelligently directed and serves the purpose of eye drops visually.

So jab they meet, boy (Saif Ali Khan) and gal (Deepika Padukone) hang out at pubs, poke each other on decent parts of the body, kiss, giggle gaggle, love one another as if one were a tea cup and the other a saucer. Aah, they also make a huge thing about guzzling black coffee together. Then it’s time to make adult decisions. She wants to restore Mughal era monuments in Delhi, he wants to do something vague with San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge. Sadly, he’s not all interested in upgrading the Bandra-Worli sea link. Just think.

Golden Gate Boy is also commitment phobic. So Girl Mughlai Monuments just smiles, lumps it and is seen off in a very tenderly-written scene at the London airport. Tender because it involves a lively restaurateur (Rishi Kapoor) who advises Golden Boy to be traditional (a bit), not allow Girl Mughlai to fly away and simultaneously narrates his ye olde love story — when Romeo-like he wooed a kuddi standing like Juliet in a balcony. Those were the days of Shakespeare, it seems, not Sexpeare. Inventively, the jolly-ho, ageing Romeo narrates his prem di kahani,imagining the Golden Boy in his place, accounting for Saif Ali Khan’s double role.

Towards the concluding reels, the fun-`n’-gambols get messy, like a kitchen after a wild party. Golden Boy loses interest in his new beatific Swiss girlfriend (Blondielocks) and even his jazzy job (horrors, he’s shouted at by the Gate boss). Plus, he’s beaten up black-`n’-sepia by plump-as-pumpkins goons. Sob, they steal his wallet and oiks, Girl Mughlai’s photo. Photo pe aisi baat dabake chale aaye or what? Next: An Asian cabdriver rushes to the mugged, bleeding Golden Boy to ask, “Do you have medical insurance? No? Then I’ll just get you some water.” Now that’s some more unintentional ha-ha.

Like it or not, the characterisations intermittently become unsympathetic. There is no reason on earth why a bride would tell her husband that she wants to walk out..unless she is super selfish and er, wacky. As for Golden Boy, he changes girls like T-shirts (of course, so many guys do) but there is something unlikeable about a ‘hero’ who brags about his conquests and asks a girl to show him “something..and can my friends see them too?” How David Dhawan or Anees Bazmee is that! And he gives his Swiss arm-Tobler the heave-ho, apologising that he hasn’t figured out the definition of love.

Quite. Whatever its flaws, Love Aaj Kal is appealing because of its today’s-brash-youth-versus-bygone-era’s-restrained-youth subtext. Then there are wonderful moments like Golden Boy and Mughlai Girl joining a street baraat, the girl getting stone drunk..and at one moment, the boy talking casually though respectfully of “bhagwaan shagwaan.”

Imtiaz Ali also suggests that love in the time of swine flu is squandered when either the boy or the girl don’t express their feelings; by the time they do it could be much too late. What he could have also affirmed is that in the consequence, others are irreparably hurt. In the formula tradition, Jilted Husband just smiles Mona Lisa-like. Oh well, at least he doesn’t go psycho.

If you’re willing to go with that, here’s a bright entertainer alright.Pritam’s music is eminently hummable (shhhh now, don’t you dare bring up Mouja hi mouja for comparison). The cinematography is correctly moody.The dialogue is effective, the trouble is that there is too much of it. Jabber jabber shabd khile?

Of the cast, newcomer Giselle Monteiro (unfairly omitted from the publicity) as the gentle Juliet kudi is lovely. Saif Ali Khan is impressive as the Sardar Romeo but much too annoyingly frantic as the Golden Boy. Can we avoid paunchy bare-chest shots please? The acting honours are stolen by the ever-dependable Rishi Kapoor and a restrained, charm-oozing Deepika Padukone.

So, the result is cuts above the kind of movies you’re getting aaj kal. Worth the price of a ticket-cum-popcorn. Make that caramel.

Gorilla 1 August 2009
05:30:45 am

I am very happy for Saif. LAK has got the biggest opening ever in terms of footfall. However I do not think it has the same buzz as Ghajini. But if the BO news has some truth, i am ready to eat my words. Nonetheless looks like a Blockbuster hit for Saifu.

My theatre (multiplex) was 90% full for a noon show and audience reaction was good – LAK did manage to engross them, though it was difficult for me to sit thru the whole movie and climax saved the day. I hate these rom coms with senior citizens even more.

Som 1 August 2009
06:23:15 am

Love Aaj Kal CI First Day Comparison With Big Films

The first day figures for Love Aaj Kal in CI circuit and other big films over the last year are as follows. All collections are nett gross.

Singh Is Kinng – 20,86,000

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi – 18,20,000

Ghajini (Friday) – 21,16,000

Chandni Chowk To China – 17,66,000

Kambakkht Ishq – 20,20,000

Love Aaj Kal – 19,82,000

Angels and Belds 1 August 2009
07:31:16 am

Gor…a bhai – i thoroughly enjoyed the 2nd half and the songs..

RAJ 1 August 2009
08:31:31 am

60 cr business in India is sure shot for this movie…

Doga 1 August 2009
09:09:24 am

Yes Opening week can be close to 40 cr, then relative big falls will end up around 60-65 cr.

Akshay 1 August 2009
10:12:36 am

I just came after seeing LAK and it did not work for me. The movie is a little too-heavy and for sure this movie hasn’t got a repeat viewing value. I can easily watch JWM over and over again though.

Som, in case you haven’t seen it then go and watch it for Deepika. She looks amazing though I must admit I dont want to see her dance.

Som 1 August 2009
10:14:18 am

She looks amazing though I must admit I dont want to see her dance.

LOL!

Som 1 August 2009
11:04:05 am

Love Aaj Kal Grosses 8.25 Crore Nett On Day One

Love Aaj Kal grossed a huge 8.25 crore nett approx on day one on the strength of its multiplex business all over India. The collections on day one were below par in CP Berar, Bihar and slightly below the mark in Nizam (due to release of Telugu Blockbuster Magdheera). All the rest of India has performed exceptionally well especially Delhi/UP, East Punjab and Mysore. The approx first day circuit breakdowns are as follows.

Mumbai -3.30 crore

Delhi/UP – 1.85 crore

East Punjab – 78 lakhs

West Bengal – 38 lakhs

Bihar – 12 lakhs

CP Berar – 22 lakhs

CI – 20 lakhs

Rajasthan – 36 lakhs

Nizam – 34 lakhs

Mysore – 38 lakhs

Others – 28 lakhs

Love Aaj Kal First Day Second To Ghajini Only

Love Aaj Kal has recorded the second highest collection ever for the first Friday after Ghajini last year. Collections at multiplexes are the highest ever for day one.

Five Highest First Friday Grosses

Ghajini – 9.25 crore nett

Love Aaj Kal – 8.25 crore nett

Kambakhht Ishq – 7.50 crore nett

Singh Is Kinng – 7.25 crore nett

Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi – 7 crore nett

Som 1 August 2009
11:06:33 am

Stunning first day numbers if true. Had the single screens been as good as the multiplexes, this could have easily come close to Ghajini. Having said that this is a tremendous achievement for the Love Aaj Kal team. I would say the brand “Jab We Met” seems to have done wonders for the film.

Som 1 August 2009
11:13:44 am

Multiplexes update: ‘Love Aaj Kal’ attracts more footfalls than ‘Ghajini

LOVE AAJ KAL is on a record-smashing spree. The Cinemax chain of multiplexes recorded a record turnout for this Saif-Deepika starrer on Friday. Cinemax, one of the leading multiplex chains of India [74 screens in 24 multiplexes], saw approx. 49,700 footfalls in their properties on Friday.

LOVE AAJ KAL has clearly overtaken the other big openers at this chain:- NEW YORK [34,500 footfalls on Friday], KAMBAKKHT ISHQ [39,800 footfalls] and GHAJINI [39,500 footfalls]. “The response is amazing. Even the 7 a.m. and 8 a.m. shows in Gujarat are running to packed houses,” Devang Sampat of Cinemax informs me.

Tango 1 August 2009
11:55:13 am

Interesting to see that Love Aaj Kal beat both Ghajini & KI and that KI attaracted more footfalls than Ghajini.

Tango 1 August 2009
12:08:09 pm

Indore Barometer Friday Love Aaj Kal

Saturday 1st August 2009 16.30 IST

http://www.boxofficeindia.com/.....;nCat=news

Love Aaj Kal opened to a fantastic reponse at Indore multiplexes. Below are the Friday figures for Love Aaj Kal and Kambakkht Ishq.

PVR

Love Aaj Kal 2,72,380

Kambakkht Ishq 2,72,700

Inox

Love Aaj Kal 1,17,560

Kambakkht Ishq 1,57,260

Big (Adlabs)

Love Aaj Kal 1,60,510

Kambakkht Ishq 1,84,250

Velocity

Love Aaj Kal 1,34,060

Kambakkht Ishq 1,40,230

Inox City

Love Aaj Kal 1,75,840

Totals

Love Aaj Kal 6,84,510 (8,60,350 including Inox City)

Kambakkht Ishq 7,54,440

Doga 1 August 2009
05:53:42 pm

Yes KI opening was better than most people have it.
I think it was in the region of 35-36 cr easy.

I cinemax KI did better than Ghajini, so it goes without saying that on all plexes it would be within 10% of Ghajini.
(Friday i mean), though on single screens ghajini was altogether different beast.

Som 1 August 2009
07:33:40 pm

Raja Sen reviews Love Aaj Kal (video)

Som 1 August 2009
08:17:41 pm

Love is rarely a prosaic thing in our movies. Either sacrosanct or scandalous, innocent or impetuous, tragic or wicked, it can never be as banal as it can be real life. Love that we imagine love to be—that’s what great romantic films play on, and that’s why great romantic films are comfort films (like comfort food). Since his first film Socha naa Tha (2005), writer-director Imtiaz Ali has used that time-tested tool effectively and stylishly. Ali’s new film Love Aaj Kal is no different. There’s boy, there’s girl, there’s love, hurdles, heartbreak and happy ending—not much else. But unlike in Socha naa Tha and Jab we Met (2007), there’s some deliberate verbal discourse on love here. Ali believes that in the good old days, say in the 1960s, love was a thing of the heart. It still is, except he thinks today’s youth are cynical fools who believe that love can be conquered by reason. Quite a shaky premise to begin with, but a premise never made a good film.

More HERE

Gorilla 1 August 2009
08:35:11 pm

‘LAK gets more footfall than Ghajini and KI’

This is wonderful. However i think that LAK is not as big as these two films in single screens, Is it? Then how the footfall can be bigger unless of course we are talking only of multiplexes.

aside, LAK is a prefect example of a BIG multiplex film and that this genre has finally found a bigger acceptance than before. It’s aleary being compared to more massy films like Ghajini and KI; this is a victory of sort.

Som 1 August 2009
08:44:29 pm

Yes we are talking about Multiplexes where Love Aaj Kal has got the biggest ever release and as a result has put up big numbers. If we take BOI’s words, Love Aaj Kal has seen the biggest first day at the multiplexes, even bigger than Ghajini.

Som 1 August 2009
08:55:10 pm

Komal reviews Love Aaj Kal

Last week collections on Film Street Journal

Som 1 August 2009
10:48:06 pm

Businessofcinema:Love Aaj Kal takes second highest opening at Indian box office

MUMBAI: Eros International and Illuminati Films’ latest flick Love Aaj Kal has taken opening day (Friday) net collections of Rs 80 million (Rs 8 crore) in India.

According to information available with Businessofcinema.com, this the second highest ever opening day collections for a Hindi film in India after Ghajini, which did net business of Rs 92.5 million (Rs 9.25 crore) on the day of its release (25 December, 2008).

On the other hand, third in line is Kambakkth Ishq, which took in net collections of Rs 72.50 million (Rs 7.25 crore) on its opening day in India, which is followed by Singh Is Kinng at Rs 71.50 million (Rs 7.15 crore) and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi at Rs 70 million (Rs 7 crore).

As per industry estimates, Love Aaj Kal is likely to do a net business of approximately Rs 275 million (Rs 27.50 crore) in India in its opening weekend (Friday – Sunday).

Love Aaj Kal has been running to 85 – 90+ per cent occupancy across multiplexes in Mumbai with some even playing anywhere between 17 – 25 shows back to back across select properties in Mumbai.

At Cinemax, Love Aaj Kal garnered the highest number of footfalls on its opening day beating Ghajini as per Cinemax senior vice president strategy Devang Sampat. Moreover, at PVR Cinemas’ Mulund and Goregaon multiplexes, which are screening 14 and 10 shows respectively of Love Aaj Kal, are running to 100 per cent occupancy.

OVERSEAS BOX OFFICE COLLECTIONS

The movie has taken a good opening in the overseas market as well. According to figures provided by Eros International, Love Aaj Kal grossed $260,000 in the US on Day 1.

In the UK, Love Aaj Kal took an opening of £125,000, which is higher than movies like Singh Is Kinng (£108,000), Race (£102,000), Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi (£101,000) and Ghajini (£95,000).

Love Aaj Kal has been directed by Imtiaz Ali and stars Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone in the lead.

Som 2 August 2009
02:36:27 am

Long one on love ‘n’ longing

Som 2 August 2009
02:37:19 am

Love Aaj Kal beats Ghajini

Love Aaj Kal, Imtiaz Ali’s latest, has opened to packed houses. In many places, the film, which has released in over 1800 screens, overtook last year’s record setter, Ghajini.

“The film has taken a superb initial,” says Komal Nahta, editor of The Film Street Journal. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh seconds that. “The opening’s on par with Ghajini. In the overseas, the film will be one of the biggest hits.” Devang Sampat of Cinemax confirms that the film has opened better than Ghajini in all its properties.

The film, about contemporary relationships in urban India, where the protagonists are not afraid of calling off their relationship in their pursuit for personal goals, seems to have struck a chord with the youth. “It was like watching me, or one of my friends, up there on screen,” says 22-year-old aspiring filmmaker, Viral Shah. “I have had a long distance relationship when I was studying abroad and could relate to the scenes.”

Law student Shruti Kant enjoyed the flashback portions, which had the more ‘Hindi film’ type of a love story. “The film intertwined love stories from then (Kal) and now (Aaj) very well and appealed to the romantic in me.” Shruti also feels that grey areas in the film, like the heroine realising she doesn’t want to be with her husband two days after marriage, was identifiable. “I completely related to Deepika’s character.”

The film’s appeal may be restricted to the youth due to its content and treatment by writer-director Imtiaz Ali, but its not something actor-producer Saif Ali Khan and he need to worry about.The major chunk of the film going audience in India is made up of youngsters, says Adarsh, and the film appeals to them. “Even though few over the age of forty may like it, it will be strongly patronised by women for its emotions, an advantage even Ghajini didn’t enjoy.”

Whether in the final analysis, the film will better Ghajini at the box office or be as patronised as Jab We Met on the small screen, remains to be seen. But for now, its Love All at the theatres.

Aarohi 2 August 2009
06:40:15 am

Saw LAK today and loved it. I think it’s Imtiaz’s 2nd best after SNT.

ACHILLES 2 August 2009
06:53:11 am

I dont think LAK opening is at par with Ghajini … but from BOC’s article (their numbers here seems quite on the mark here) LAK has opened better than the likes of KI, SIK and RNBDJ by almost 1 cr on day 1 (in both India and UK).

If true, this will be the second Saif starrer after Race to excite the multiplex crowd to the same extent as a hyped Aamir/SRK/Akshay movie can do … he is quite an under-rated star actor.

JustaFan 2 August 2009
10:04:06 am

Also, LAK is behind Ghajini for the FIRST FRIDAY…not the FIRST DAY. Ghajini’s first day was over 10.5 if I am not mistaken (thursday, december 25). Ghajini AVERAGED over 10 CR for the first 4 days (42 CR after Sunday).

JustaFan 2 August 2009
10:05:44 am

and the reason is the single screen where GHAJINI was an absolute monster….LAK may not even do average business here though it is going to be mind boggling at the plexes.

Tango 2 August 2009
10:20:04 am

JustaFan let the associated ppl say what they want to. Once numbers are out we will know. If you ask me LAK may be a monster but wont get to within 10 crore of Ghajini, for the same duration.

But once again what amuses me is that the same distributors (EROS) and the same sources giving the numbers like KI, but not even one pall bearer of honesty (barring Achilles) has questioned the authenticity of the numbers

I guess that is why the term hypocricy was coined.

Som 2 August 2009
10:39:11 am

Well. don’t think the business overall is on the same level as Ghajini. I guess it is doing the best business at Multiplexes, single screens have been bit on the lower side. Having said that, I think it is quite commendable (if the reports are to be believed) that a Saif-Deepika starrer movie is coming close to the opening of an Aamir starrer i.e Ghajini and has beat the opening of Singh Is king and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. One can argue about the brand “Jab We Met” working,extensive wide release, 20+ shows at the multiplexes but we should also not forget Ghajini was released during a festive season and it does help to boost the collections. This is a movie which does not have an Aamir or SRK or a Hrithik or even an Akshay, features Saif who is relatively a lesser star than these four who never has been considered as strong force at the BO, not many solo hits to his credit and Deepika who has only done 3 films so far but still manages to get one of the best openings ever,perhaps the 2nd best after Ghajini makes it performance even more commendable in my opinion.

I think LAK further illustrates the point of good marketing and genre contribution towards the opening of a film along with the presence of a big star.

It remains to be seen how LAK keeps the pace in the weekdays after the huge opening weekend. Movies like Ghajini, Rab Ne,OSO and D2 in recent time not only have put up great numbers in the opening weekend but also have kept the momentum going in the weekdays too which has resulted in huge first week. If LAK manages to keep the pace in the weekdays, we should be witnessing the 2nd biggest first week(7 days) ever.

Som 2 August 2009
10:55:36 am

Good numbers in US $702,000

JustaFan 2 August 2009
11:08:15 am

Tango…I am only taking BOI’s numbers here…I don’t ever take producer numbers.

rks 2 August 2009
12:21:28 pm

Som – It tells the power of hit songs and affable stars.

Som 2 August 2009
12:28:49 pm

Yes Rks. I think it is a combination of factors that work like the presence of a star,genre(Comedy, Romance and action are usually the safest bet), one or two Chart buster songs, marketing/promotion (OSO, Kambakkhat Ishq and Ghajini are the gold standard in this regard) etc. Apart from that being a sequel to a successful film (Dhoom 2) or director’s extremely loved/appreciated past work like in this case the brand “Jab We Met”,also helps to get an opening.

rks 2 August 2009
12:42:15 pm

I think it is opening somewhere between KI and RNBDJ if reports are correct. Many people have liked it decently and there are many people who got bored, so I think it is going to trend decently.

Som 2 August 2009
12:47:24 pm

Well, reports suggest it is second only to Ghajini on the strength of the collections from multiplexes alone where it has like 20-22-24 shows. I am not sure if these reports are indeed correct, might be exaggerated who knows! Only the numbers will tell.Having said that I do think, it has taken a big opening. How big lets wait and watch.

neelu 2 August 2009
02:26:24 pm

Som in Gorilla mode – so cool!!!!

Som 2 August 2009
07:16:26 pm

LOL!

Som 2 August 2009
07:17:57 pm

I am sensing a lot of flak for the performance Ms. Padukone lends to Love Aaj Kal, and I believe all of that is somehow misplaced and misguided. I read a couple of reviews who juxtapose her acting abilities with those of the two actresses who have preceded her in Mr. Ali’s films – Ms. Kareena Kapoor (Jab we Met) and Ms. Ayesha Takia (Socha Na Tha) – and then go on to compare them unfavorably. To Ms. Padukone. I have seen mere portions of Mr. Ali’s previous film, and nothing in them suggested to me any sort of motivation to dwell any further. But now I am, very motivated, for I see how flatteringly he portrays his women, how generous he is to them giving them the most genuine of moments, and how precise he is with their characterization. I see a casting agent listed for the film and I think he deserves a bonus.

Read the rest of the review HERE

Som 2 August 2009
08:20:57 pm

“Saw LAK today and loved it. I think it’s Imtiaz’s 2nd best after SNT.”

Would have liked to hear more from you on the film,Aar.

NyKavi 2 August 2009
08:32:07 pm

Just saw this movie. Simply awesome. Much as I have found JWM almost infinitely repeatable, I rate this attempt by Imtiaz Ali to be much superior. Lots of depth of characters, good screenplay, pacing, direction, dialogs, and the novelty of showing Saif as the young Rishi. After a long time the dialogs in a movie really scored for me.
Definitely the best movie outing since RBDNJ/Ghajini back in December. This one should do very well IMO. For sure a superhit in US, and should do bumper in India too, maybe barring the interiors, but maybe the entire past lovestory would provide for a good connection in the interiors as well.

NyKavi 2 August 2009
09:05:14 pm

Wud like to add that Deepika needs some serious accent straightening classes. Forget her horrifying “NRI English”, her Hindi sucks pathetically as well. I do agree that she cant act to save her life, perhaps the Brazilian Harleen did much better than her.

Aarohi 3 August 2009
02:01:08 am

I think NyKavi has summed up pretty well what I wanted to say about LAK. I liked JWM a lot and I think Kareena and Shahid did pretty well there. But LAK is a more mature film; Imitiaz Ali’s assured handling works very well here. The minor characters which were unfortunately reduced to caricatures in JWM are handled with dignity in LAK, be it Rahul Khanna or Saif’s Swiss girlfriend. And, LAK is fabulously shot. The opening credits and the Saif the sardar sequences stand out in this regard. All of this make LAK a far more compelling watch than JWM.

I think Deepika has done a very good job and it helps that Imtiaz has cleverly given her a persona of someone not so extrovert. Imtiaz Ali also handles the newcomer who plays Harleen well. That is until she starts dancing. One thing that was an eye sore was the shoddy make up of Rishi Kapoor, and Saif in the closing song. Work harder on the beards, guys. Another ‘not-so-nice’ aspect of LAK is the “wishy-washy” way the career part of the leads was handled. Come on, isn’t the Golden Gates bridge already there? One more: Saif naach nahi sakta.

Over all, I’d give LAK 8/10. Watch it in theaters.

I saw a Sunday 10:30 am show, which, needless to add, was houseful.

Som 3 August 2009
04:41:23 am

Love Aaj Kal Grosses 27 Crore Nett Over First Weekend

Love Aaj Kal has a grossed a huge 27 crore nett over its first weekend in India. This is the second biggest ever Friday-Sunday collection. The film performed extraordinarily at multiplexes and fair to good at single screens.

The best performance was in circuits like Mumbai, Delhi/UP, East Punjab and Mysore while CP Berar and Bihar underperformed.

The first week is also heading for the second biggest total ever of somewhere between 42-45 crore nett as it has an extra advantage of a weekday holiday and that will help give weekday collections a boost.

Som 3 August 2009
04:42:37 am

Love Aaj Kal May Emerge Biggest Non SRK Starrer In Overseas

Love Aaj Kal is doing remarkable business in the overseas circuit and may emerge the biggest grosser in Overseas which does not star Shahrukh Khan. The exact figures are not in yet but the weekend business is heading for an outstanding £425,000 in United Kingdom, a good $900,000 in North America, an excellent $700,000 in Middle East, $200,000 in Australia and $425,000 in the rest of the world. This would give it a weekend total of over 14 crore.

So far the biggest non SRK starrer in Overseas is Singh Is Kinng with around 35 crore in Indian currency and it is possible that Love Aaj Kal may cross this figure by the end of its run. The top five grossers overseas in indian currency are Kabhi Alvida Na Kehna, Rab Ne Ban Di Jodi, Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham, Om Shanti Om and Veer Zaara.

NyKavi 3 August 2009
04:45:43 am

One question: Given that Saif plays a young Rishi, would casting Ranbir instead have made a better impact? Or maybe another father-son pair like BigB-JrB?
Though neither Ranbir nor Abhishek can beat Saif in the charm quotient, as well as the comic timing.

Overall, hats off to Imtiaz for the editing. Except for the confusing opening title sequence where we see mixed scenes from the rest of the movie, without understanding head or tail of what was being portrayed. The movie couldve probably started with Saif-Deepika meeting at Rishi’s restaurant to talk of their breakup and we wouldnt have missed a beat. After that event, the movie moves very smoothly, and I was really looking forward to each new flashback with the suspense of Rishi’s lovestory.

Som 3 August 2009
04:46:08 am

Can Love Aaj Kal Emerge A Blockbuster?

Indore Barometer Weekend Love Aaj Kal

Bash 3 August 2009
04:53:46 am

There is a scene in LAK which particularly showcases Saif’s brilliance, when Meera tells him she has found someone, Saif cuts the call in the pretense of someone ringing the bell, then calls her again, mechanically giving the responses he is logical expected to say. His expressions are brilliant in it.

Can’t think Ranbir/Imran would have done it, unless they can surprise. May be Shahid would have been good as Saif had done this kind of role already.

RAJ 3 August 2009
04:56:43 am

Incredible performance indeed if numbers are to be believed…The movie doesnt even star SRK,AAmir,HR or Akshay…Take a bow Saif,Deepika and Imtiaz…

I believe in addition to the genre,JWM brand , the movies’ length of 2 hrs which resulted in atleast 20 % extra shows in the multiplexes helped the movie to clock these big figures…
Hope makers in Indis take a cue from this and make movies which are short in lentgh there by increasing the chances of Movies’ BO collections…

Som 3 August 2009
05:02:11 am

Yes Raj that is exactly what I have said earlier.If these numbers are indeed true, this is a very creditable performance on the part the LAK team. I would just stick my neck out and say this well might turn out an “event” film for Saif as a solo hero.

Aarohi 3 August 2009
05:05:22 am

NyKavi: I think Saif playing Rishi young worked very well for the film. Ranbir-Rishi would have been too gimicky IMO. I disagree on the opening credits sequence. I found it very impressive and it set up the rest of the film very nicely.

Bash: That scene was very good. Deepika also gets a similar moment towards the end, but the gap is evident in that scene. I also loved the scenes where Saif ends up being almost incoherent in front of Deepika.

RAJ 3 August 2009
05:16:53 am

Agree Som,

Infact 6 months back one of our esteemed ex NG members asked me..”"Does Saif have more BO clout than Abhishek ???”" I said ,yes he has anyday”"” I was butchered for that comment..

But look at the BO records…saif’s “”Race”" opened to more than 30 Cr opening and here again LAK seems to be opening to a figure of 40 Cr plus…

Now look at Abhishek’s Bo record..What has he done??None of his movies has opened to more than 30 cr (Dostana was around 27-28 cr) and none of his movies has ever grossed a total 50 CR…

As you said LAK might be that even film in saif’s career and yes ..i am looking forward to “Agent Vinod”…It will be interesting to watch a RAW officer playing the spy games rather than the usual CIA guys..

RAJ 3 August 2009
05:17:56 am

Aarohi,

“”I also loved the scenes where Saif ends up being almost incoherent in front of Deepika.”"

I liked that scene too…

NyKavi 3 August 2009
05:48:04 am

Yes, Saif manages to pull off a Vince Vaughn type of incoherence in those scenes. No doubt that a lot of effort from Saif has gone into this movie.
Aar, the confusion I was referring to is the opening portion where they show sardar saif on the bike, even before Rishi’s story has been introduced, Deepika moving into the new flat, showing SF golden gate, then the London Tower, then Howrah etc. For a lil while, I thought the 2 are based in SFO, but then they show them meeting in Rishi’s London cafe. Maybe Imtiaz’s way of enforcing the “Love Aaj Kal” theme upfront and center.

Bash 3 August 2009
05:58:38 am

Aarohi,

Actually, I liked the scene with Deepika too. She is rather too emotional during it. Justifiably. For me, Deepika’s act was a pleasant surprise. Her sunshine smile and casualness rocked.

NyKavi 3 August 2009
06:21:47 am

Deepika’s smile is her saving grace. And off course her figure. The perfect mannequin.
But so awkward in key scenes, and in dialog delivery. eg, she butchers that end sequence when she is perched high frescoing red fort while Saif proposes to her. Or that scene where Saif tells her on the phone about getting the Golden Gate project, her English response “Superb, Outstanding..etc”..the accent killed it completely.
Yet, despite those flaws, the overall positive effect remains, largely due to Saif, and Imtiaz. Not to forget the effortless performance of Rishi.

Bash 3 August 2009
06:32:38 am

Hmmm… I sometimes wonder if perfect dialogue delivery is required in the first place. At least in this movie, it didn’t matter to me. The characters were incredibly normal and I became so engrossed in the movie, that glitches in accent and dialog delivery weren’t a big deal. Because normal people can butch up a response. It actually helps making it casual.

And a perfect accent can make it clinical and dull. ala Aamir Khan in every movie of his. Just an opinion.

Aarohi 3 August 2009
07:09:26 am

NyKavi: Agreed, it was a bit confusing, but few minutes into the film it starts making sense.

Bash: I agree that Deepika did quite well and I think, too an extent, that’s because Imtiaz used her smartly.

Does Deepika play a proper NRI in LAK or is she in London for 2-3 years? btw, I didn’t have any problem with her accent.

rks 3 August 2009
09:15:09 am

Som – I think CBox license has expired.

We need to renew it (probably by lunch time). Sorry for inconvenience.

Som 3 August 2009
10:07:31 am

Thanks rks. I thought so. Sorry for the inconvenience, SB dwellers.

Som 3 August 2009
10:09:56 am

India: Love Aaj Kal nets Rs 270 million in opening weekend

Love Aaj Kal among top opening weekend grossers in UK, US

Rediff BO:Audience laps up Love Aaj Kal

Doga 3 August 2009
11:10:22 am

When the dust settles down LAK will end up around 40-42 cr week 1, Great Numbers indeed.

Also looking at Indore barometer , it seems like KI and LAK had similar opening in plexes, taking some error into account and the fact the KI is supposed to do better than LAK in single screens, i think they had similar opening weekends.(with some +-).

This re-affrims my thinking that KI did 35-36 cr week 1.(As reports didnt indicate any drastic kind of falls for KI).

Som 3 August 2009
11:30:33 am

To have a 40cr opening or even more, a film has to be stable in the weekdays. Or else it is a difficult task. Even after the claimed 27cr opening for Love Aaj Kal,it really needs to keep the pace in the weekdays to have any shot of doing 40cr+.A close to 50% fall in the weekdays will mean it does just about 40cr or so.

rks 3 August 2009
11:42:35 am

Doga – 1. Indore is an indicator. Rest of centers may or may not act similarly.
2. Indore week data
BOI – 41.50 7 Cinema
FI – 34.16 7 cinema
IndiaFM – 34.16

BOI data of 25 Lac is for 4 cinemas. You can see clearly that the fall is more than 65% atleast (more likely 70-80%). If we take 27cr for weekend (It was more like 24cr actually). Then with 65% fall it would barely reach 36 (This is the most optimistic estimate ).

neelu 3 August 2009
11:44:57 am

Naya week, nayi pichchar, naya BO discussion? OR same BO discussion

rks 3 August 2009
11:53:07 am

Kya karen ‘Kambakkht aadat’ se mazboor hain

neelu 3 August 2009
12:02:51 pm

BO numbers Kaminay kaafi dinon tak peeche pade rahnege.

ACHILLES 3 August 2009
12:13:20 pm

The problem with indian BO is that there is no way to verify the opening weekend numbers from distributors or sites like BOI … if they say LAK did 27 cr and KI did 25 cr, how can one substantiate that? producer/distributor numbers can be far from the truth as we witnessed during KI scam …the weekly collection data from reported centers helps us to estimate the week 1 collections, which may give some idea about how the weekend was – but not enuf to validate these 25/27 cr claims.

We will only know the opening week of LAK sometime next week, till then anyone is free to throw any numbers for LAK being fully aware no one can audit it … then once the weekly estimate is done there is always the excuse of either ‘it fell sharply after the biggest opening’ or ‘it was stable on the lower side’… the so-called ‘drop’ on weekdays is also another vague term thrown around by Adarshs and Nahatas.

I think we will be looking at 35-40 cr opening week for LAK.

Som 3 August 2009
12:42:24 pm

It’s a figure that can blow your mind out. The film industry has lost Rs. 75-80 crore in the last three weeks alone! Eros, which holds the worldwide rights of Kambakkht Ishq, would end up losing around Rs. 25 crore of its investment in the film.

Although the Akshay Kumar starrer took a bumper initial, it didn’t have the stamina to hold on at the turnstiles. In the following week, Indian Film Company released Short Kut in which its investment (including prints and publicity) was around Rs. 31-32 crore. Since the film was a resounding disaster, not even having opened decently, IFC would stand to lose about Rs. 20 crore in that film. The losses could have been higher by approximately Rs. 4-5 crore but IFC had sold its satellite rights before the market crashed.

Komal Nahata:Three Flops Cost Industry Rs. 80 Crore

Som 3 August 2009
01:03:33 pm

The power of romance makes ‘Love Aaj Kal’ rock box office

rks 3 August 2009
01:04:56 pm

Status of CBOX:
Sorry Guys, I could not make CBOX work. I tried different payment methods but nothing worked. I have told Rohit about it. I will try fom home once more in evening.

Doga 3 August 2009
01:11:19 pm

Well RKS i think KI did ok on monday and tuesday, as many websites said it was stable.(ie only 55-60% falls), only after that did KI totally crash down.(70% falls).

I think LAK has done 25-26 cr on weekend and KI little less than 25 cr.

Doga 3 August 2009
01:16:05 pm

I was reading that article by komal nahata and found this,

” With films like Yeh Dillagi and, much later, Dil Chahta Hai and Race, the trade finally accepted him as an actor who could deliver in a multi-starrer or two-hero project.”

So Komal Nahata has DCH as a success, and you know a success by Nahata means a comparitively bigger success by linient terms.(BOI,Taran etc).

This was for all “DCH did average” People, lol.

rks 3 August 2009
01:31:00 pm

DCH did a lopsided business. It probably did good to excellent business in cities and probably was average to flop in other smaller centers.

Som 3 August 2009
01:41:01 pm

Rks, I made the payment and I think it was successful. Cbox is working now.

ACHILLES 3 August 2009
02:02:42 pm

So Eros invests 75 cr in KI and losses 25 cr after the dust settles … an eye-opener for those tried to project it as a hit/semi-hit/above average/blahblah.

DCH was a plex movie released when there were few plexes … its business was much like the scenario if LAK was released only in single screens today.

Som 3 August 2009
02:04:18 pm

It’s house full for Love Aaj Kal

rks 3 August 2009
03:47:22 pm

Som – PayPal Hit by World-Wide Outage

Doga 3 August 2009
04:32:34 pm

Well lets be fair here.

I We want to call KI a flop/disaster based on what a corporate bought the rights for, lets come forward and call the OSO’s and Ghajini’s Average at max too.

By no means Ghajini(90 cr) and OSO(75 cr) double its investment to be called a hit, let alone hit , i doubt they made much profit(barely 15-20%), so they are Average at best.

Now that we have made it clear, lets move ahead.

Since the corporates came to bollywood the market logistics have been messed up. They are ready to make losses to enter the market and make a foothold.

So gone are the days when we had a unified verdict on a movie’s performance.

Today the simple but flawed method which can be used to get a generalized verdict will be:

1) Looking at the opening.

2) How the movie trends.

Now both the above should be compared to similar movies to judge the performance.(Jayshah introduced me to this methodology, in todays environment, this is the best way i think).

Doga 3 August 2009
04:35:47 pm

I hope Komal Nahata remain true to himself and i will be waiting with Bated Breath to hear this:

” MNIK and Kites have done record breaking business of 100 cr in india and 30-40 cr overseas, but since they were both bought for 100 cr, unfortunately they just broke even and are thus Commission Earners.” LOL.

Has had enough of this selective treatment of movies depending on the situation and trend going, even Nahata has joined the bandwagon this time.

Doga 3 August 2009
04:41:39 pm

One Shining Example of Corporates will throw money to enter a market:

Few years ago in india BSNL and Airtel had 80%+ market in mobile phones.

Tata indicom had miserably failed to gain any ground.

Then came Reliance, they literally threw mobiles phones at customers(500 rs, buy one and get one free etc) and also re-introduced post payment options.

I dont need to go into details how this was grossly misused by the customers(fake ids,use and throw), Reliance lost crores of rupees in this.

But they all along knew they will make losses but ultimately the gained a lot of ground in indian mobile market.
It was their success story.

rks 3 August 2009
05:19:53 pm

hmmm..not sure they could be compared (a movie is like introduction of new phone by a company, Not inttroduction of company IMO) but agree that the prohibitive cost they are taking essentially means that they barely earn over investment if successful. And most of the time they are just rumor, actuals numbers are litlle less or different.

Eros is not a new player any more. They know what they were getting into with KI. Risk is not divided between producer and distributor when distributor buys all the rights. Ideally producer should sell the movie with some opportunity cost profit and share the profits after distributor has recovered his/her investment with opportunity cost profit.

Doga 3 August 2009
06:16:07 pm

RKS agreed EROS is not new, but if they want to remain in the game with these out of control Corporate houses they too will have to Jack up the price.

Not too long ago dealings used to be like this:

“According to Sohail, Eros had invested Rs 30 crore in Partner and according to their agreement once the money was recovered, the profits would be distributed among three parties – Eros (50 per cent), joint-producers Sohail Khan Productions (25 per cent) and K Sera Sera (25 per cent).”

Now the above makes a lot of sense, and it was indeed EROS who invested only 30 cr in Partner.

Just compare that with the insanity going around right now with a movie like shortkut being bought for 31-32 cr.

Doga 3 August 2009
06:19:03 pm

RKS the above deal between EROS and Sohail khan/K sera makes agreement to your second Paragraph.

Essentially here the producer took money from the corporate to make the movie and if the movie works then its divided among both of them.

But i guess this model wont work anymore, with producers happy to sell movies to excited loss making corporate houses for good profits.

rks 3 August 2009
07:10:20 pm

US – $1.241 mil

Much more than what was reported.

Som 3 August 2009
07:27:32 pm

This is some stunning numbers from US if true. Unbelievable.

Qalandar 3 August 2009
07:41:28 pm

You said it Som. Stunning numbers here for sure.

Doga 3 August 2009
07:56:08 pm

I just saw 1.2 million in USA.

What an incredible opening overseas, Saif is a International Superstar now,lol.

Som 3 August 2009
08:07:35 pm

I do think there is some discrepancy with numbers in US this time. In India BOC and BOI reported $900K in US which I am sure must have been provided by Eros. Now Mojo reports $1.2 Million which again I think must have been provided by Eros for sure.So why are Eros reporting one number in India and one in US?

And if you could remember Mojo had reported some fictional $18 for OSO in the opening weekend and $15 Million for Saawariya, these numbers I am sure must have been given by Eros and Sony respectively to Mojo. Does this mean Mojo accepts numbers from the distributors with out actually verifying?

neelu 3 August 2009
08:14:58 pm

Oops – there goes the credibility of the last credible BO site….

Som 3 August 2009
08:29:01 pm

Taran says 28cr weekend in India.

Mind-blowing opening weekend. Is amongst the biggest opening weekends ever. 1st weekend nett: approx. Rs. 28 crores

Som 3 August 2009
11:39:20 pm

BO Report: Love Aaj Kal breaks Rab Ne records

Not only this week’s only Hindi release, Saif Ali Khan’s maiden production Love Aaj Kal has taken the biggest opening of the 2009 but has also broken opening weekend collections of biggies such as Kambakkht Ishq, Singh Is Kinng and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi. So encouraging are its overseas collections that it looks definite to surpass Singh Is Kinng’s collections which are considered the biggest ever abroad for a non Shah Rukh Khan starrer. Down South, superstar Chiranjeevi’s son Ram Charan Teja starrer Magadheera (Telugu) has opened to record shattering collections as well.

BO Collections

Imtiaz Ali directed Love Aaj Kal starring Saif Ali Khan and Deepika Padukone had one of the widest worldwide releases for a Bollywood film with 1800 prints. Big city multiplexes in India had opened with 16-18-20 shows per day and their confidence proved right what with the bumper opening the film has received in its first three days. Single screens in the B and C centers have shown collections on the lower side but then again this film isn’t targeted at them.

In the multiplexes Love Aaj Kal opened to 90 per cent occupancy on Friday whereas single screens opened to 65 percent. In Mumbai alone the film went on to gross on Rs 3.30 crore net collections on day one. Its overall first day net collections were Rs 8.25 crore. On the weekend, crowds increased at both multiplexes and single screens and many big city multiplexes recorded 100 per cent occupancy with single screens showing a rise in their collections by 10 per cent. With a strong weekend, the overall first three days net collections of Love Aaj Kal have been a whopping Rs 27 crore. The film has been fairing very well in the North apart from Mumbai.

In the overseas, on day one, the film had grossed $260,000 in the US and £125,000 in the UK. Its over all overseas opening weekend nett collections are a huge Rs. 15 crore. In the UK it has taken the 9th highest opening ever for a Hindi film. Its first day collections are better than Singh Is Kinng, Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi and Ghajini.

But Love Aaj Kal’s collections down South in India have been a little less as compared to those in the North but that’s due to the arrival of Telugu biggie Magadheera. Tickets for this re-incarnation flick are being sold in black for as high as Rs 1000 per ticket.

Trade Talk

The trade is super excited with the kind of response Love Aaj Kal has generated. Trade pundits admitted that though they were expecting a good opening, a fantastic opening like this was never expected. Veteran trade analyst Amar Solanki feels, “Barring Hum Tum, none of Saif’s solo starrers have taken a good opening but this film has succeeded in pulling its target audience because of the superbly cut promos and also the fantastic marketing strategy employed by Saif and his team. Also, as the film’s release came closer, the music by Pritam also started getting popular rapidly which helped. The critics’ ratings have been very encouraging, making it a deserving hit.”

Solanki adds, “The youngsters were hungry for a good film for long and they have lapped this one up.”

Distributor J.Popat feels, “The holiday on Wednesday August 5 due to Raksha Bandhan will additionally benefit the film. I feel the film will settle its week one’s net collections at Rs 45 crore at least. This film will be 2009’s first blockbuster hit.”

Som 4 August 2009
12:48:36 am

LOVE AAJ KAL grosses Rs. 62 crores in opening weekend

Som 4 August 2009
12:54:56 am

As expected, the solo release of the week Love Aaj Kal got a brilliant opening. Most multiplexes played as many as 20-25 shows for the film to cash in on the immense audience curiosity towards the film. There was tremendous hype surrounding the film which didn’t backfire and worked positively for the film. Going by the figures, the opening weekend collections of Love Aaj Kal could be amongst the best of 2009.

Like Kambakkht Ishq and Ghajini , the paid preview screenings for Love Aaj Kal on Thursday evening were almost sold out. The weekend was steady at most multiplexes and single screens weren’t bad either though marginally low than multiplexes. The regular slump from Monday should again rise on Wednesday with the Raksha Bandhan holiday.

The coming week sees 3 releases of which Ram Gopal Varma’s Agyaat looks the most promising. Though in terms of its cast and star value, Agyaat (Priyanka Kothari, Nitin Reddy) is in the same league as the other release of the week Teree Sang (Ruslaan Mumtaz, Sheena Shahabadi); the former is much more anticipated.

That’s the magic of RGV. Irrespective of the star status, the genre, treatment and experimentation of the subjects do attract audiences. Presenter UTV is promoting the film aggressively and a Telugu version would release in Andra Pradesh to cater to the regional audiences.

Teree Sang is being pushed as a social film on teen pregnancy and one would really have to wait and watch for the response it gathers. The third release Chal Chalein starring Mithun Chakravarthy and Shilpa Shukla ( Chak De India captain) might just come and go.

Read the rest HERE

Som 4 August 2009
02:09:55 am

Love Aaj Kal bigger than Ghajini?? Court Martial with Imtiaz Ali.

Som 4 August 2009
05:10:28 am

Love Aaj Kal Takes Huge Opening In International Markets

Love Aaj Kal has taken a huge opening overseas. It is the biggest opening outside a Shahrukh Khan starrer. United Kingdom grossed 3.25 crore, North America grossed 5.75 crore and Middle East added 3.50 crore. The Overseas total was a huge 15 crore. The film may hit 35 crore lifetime business in International markets.

Luck fell badly and is looking to finish its overseas run with around 4 crore. FLOP

Som 4 August 2009
05:11:51 am

Love Aaj Kal Takes A Hit On Monday

Love Aaj Kal showed a pretty significant drop in collections on Monday. The Monday collections were 55-60% lower than it’s Friday collections. Even a circuit like Mysore where the film was doing bumper fell from 38 lakhs on Friday to 19 lakhs on Monday.

The Monday nett business was in the range of 3.50-3.75 crore taking the 4 day nett total to 30.50-30.75 crore. Love Aaj Kal will still manage decent weekday business due to Wednesday holiday and the week should end up in the 40-42 crore nett range.

Overall the film will emerge a solid hit but Super Hit business looks unlikely. It is likely to end up with around 60-65 crore nett business and a distributor share of 30-32 crore.

Som 4 August 2009
05:32:37 am

Rediff BO:Love Aaj Kal becomes superhit overseas

JustaFan 4 August 2009
06:25:23 am

I am surprised that LAK took a dive on monday. Normally, movies that have a huge weekend AND are critically acclaimed sustain pretty well on the first monday. This def. looked like a 70CR one sunday night….let’s see if it even goes to 60.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
06:30:03 am

‘The Monday collections were 55-60% lower than it’s Friday collections. ‘

BOI had reported the same for KI.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
07:30:26 am

Indore Barometer – LAK falls more than KI on Monday

Love Aaj Kal showed a heavy fall in collections on Monday at the Indore multiplexes. The collections are 65% lower than its Friday collections. The fall is larger than Kambakkht Ishq in Indore. Below are the Monday figures for Love Aaj Kal and Kambakkht Ishq.

PVR

Love Aaj Kal – 1,02,405

Kambakkht Ishq – 1,14,660

Inox

Love Aaj Kal – 45,495

Kambakkht Ishq – 67,190

Big (Adlabs)

Love Aaj Kal – 54,490

Kambakkht Ishq – 68,800

Velocity

Love Aaj Kal – 32,760

Kambakkht Ishq – 35,800

Inox City

Love Aaj Kal – 52,290

Totals

Love Aaj Kal 2,35,150

Kambakkht Ishq – 2,86,450

Love Aaj Kal (including Inox City) – 2,87,440

Gorilla 4 August 2009
07:30:59 am

http://www.boxofficeindia.com/.....;nCat=news

Gorilla 4 August 2009
07:34:18 am

I think Wednesday holiday will ensure LAK gets bigger week 1 collections than KI. However I am absolutely astounded to see LAK falling on Monday and in some places more than KI despite having infinitely better media backing and reviews.
Naturally either we overestimated LAK’s WOM or underestimated KI’s WOM.

Doga 4 August 2009
08:26:39 am

Justafan, There is a new trend going on in bollywood and we need to take that into consideration.

When these movies open to more screens than required, these falls are emminent.

I think only people like Aamir,srk,hrithik have the clout to keep the falls under 50%.

These 55-60% falls are going to become a norm in bollywood and there is nothing alarming in it i think.

To top all this, I think LAK might even exhaust a big chunk of its audiance in week 1 itself and thus second weekend will see an even steeper fall(65-70%). Dont see the movie doing anything more than a Solid Hit business.

Doga 4 August 2009
08:28:52 am

Also going by the Shoutbox barometer i think LAK has not been liked that much as has been shown by the media.

And in the end we do know that numbers talk the loudest, so lets just wait few days.

According to BOI KI had done 4 cr on monday(initial numbers),so LAK is doing even worse than KI, lol.

Doga 4 August 2009
08:30:31 am

LAK is doing pretty much same business as KI in indore(incredibly close all the way from friday to monday).

And Supposedly KI was doing better in single screens.

Hmmm. Just some food for thought i guess.

RAJ 4 August 2009
08:37:32 am

Doga,

As reportes have suggested LAK soppsedely doing its best business in Mumbai,North and Punjab where most of the Multiplexes are concentraetd..And its doing its worst in Cp Berar and Bihar.. Indore falls in CP Berar…May be this is also a factor..Also due to its short time span(2 hrs) the movie must have got additional 15 to 20 pct shows at multiplexes which might have increased its collections…

rks 4 August 2009
09:17:55 am

I won’t say LAK is critically acclaimed. According to allbollywood average rating stands at 65%, which is decent. I don’t think the movie has that emotional pull to coax audience into coming again (important for trending). But yes, lets wait for saturday numbers before we say something definitive.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
09:34:20 am

I think i said before – we will be looking at 35-40 cr opening week for LAK once numbers start coming in from the weekend.

Som – did you gt this week’s FI yet?

Som 4 August 2009
10:10:47 am

The power of romance makes Love Aaj Kal rock box office

CBO – July 31 to August 2

Som 4 August 2009
10:40:52 am

I think LAK does not seem to be holding up that well.One can argue Indore Barometer is not the right indicator of how the film is doing in rest of India but we should realize these are the collections at the multiplexes in Indore, multiplexes where LAK is supposedly doing its best business.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
10:50:09 am

All these movies – NY, KI, LAK – opening so well may be due to the drought for 2-3 months … specially considering all are falling short of the expected end grosses … was expecting NY to cross 50 cr, KI to get to 60 cr … eventually both ending their run around 45 cr.

Even if LAK does not sustain it shud reach 55 cr or so due to the strong opening.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
10:56:23 am

Now let’s see what Kaminey does….VB has never had a blockbuster and Shahid had a so so Kismet Konnection last year. Can they deliver? The catchy title and the rocking music sure helps but I doubt if we are looking at a 60 CR movie here.

Som 4 August 2009
10:56:54 am

New York would have gone past 50cr had the 2nd week not been affected by Kambakkhat Ishq. It has been quite stable since then. When there is WOM working, there is always the chance for a film to recover which I think New York did to an extent as soon as the hype surrounding Kambakkhat Ishq settled.

rks 4 August 2009
11:05:18 am

” The catchy title and the rocking music sure helps but I doubt if we are looking at a 60 CR movie here.”

From the track record, 60 cr is difficult. But lets see if he does minor transformation like Imitiaz.

Doga 4 August 2009
11:05:21 am

Raj you are right that Indore belongs to CP Berar and should not be taken as a the right barometer, but as som says we cant totally reject indore barometer due to the fact that these numbers are from the Multiplexes in Indore.

Yes Ach, i too think LAK will have hard time crossing 40 cr now,
but can reach close to that number.

Som 4 August 2009
11:05:33 am

Btw there is a pattern I am observing with films that take huge opening. With the exception of films starring Aamir(Ghajini),SRK(OSO and Rab Ne) and Hrithik(Dhoom 2 and Krrish), not many films manage to sustain/reasonably sustain beyond the weekend.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
11:08:24 am

Of the three successful films i liked NY followed by KI and then LAK.
Both Kaminey and Wanted looks promising. But a true blue blockbuster movie is yet to come. I think like always, the 4th quarter of this year would do the trick.

Doga 4 August 2009
11:12:27 am

Gorilla,

After seeing what is happening to LAK i think a movie really needs to be loved by audiance to be a blockbuster.

Kaminey now looks shaky to me.(Long term trending).

Even Wanted i think will get bad reviews.

Rajeev Masand had this to say on wanted:

” The movie is by Prabhu so will be stylish and all, but salman looks disinterested”

So atleast Masand will rip wanted apart for sure.

I guess will have to wait for Kites/3 Idiots to get a Blockbuster.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
11:13:17 am

‘Indore belongs to CP Berar and should not be taken as a the right barometer’

Isn’t it true that there are two set of cultures irrespective of the country – Big city and small city. The sentiments of ppl of big cities across the world are almost same and so are those for small cities of the world.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
11:22:51 am

Agree with you doga, thought Kites is still not confirmed for this year.

To me De dana Dan and 3 idiots looks safe bets.
Then comes Kaminey and Wanted.

Other biggies:
Wake up Sid, London Dreams, Ajab Prem ki gajab kahaani, Blue

Ab koi to blockbuster hoiga hi inmein se.

Akshay 4 August 2009
11:25:57 am

3 Idiots would be a monster hit and so would be my name is khan

Whatever one might say at this stage Aamir and Shahrukh stand head and shoulders above the competition. Give them a topic which is liked by a majority or if the contents are really good expect nothing but a super-hit or a blockbuster.

rks 4 August 2009
11:32:45 am

LOVE AAJ KAL GROSSES
INR 62 CRORES WORLDWIDE IN OPENING WEEKEND

““Love Aaj Kal has taken a record opening in USA of $2,51,799 beating records of all recent releases.”

Probably friday numbers

Qalandar 4 August 2009
11:44:38 am

Re: Indore as barometer: Indore has a lot of colleges, so a large % of the movie-going crowd in Indore might not be Indore natives. Thus I will take Indore as a barometer of the “young crowd” more than anything else (my sense is Rang De Basanti did crazy well here, whereas it made less of an impression in other cities with the same population).

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
11:53:06 am

Neither Kites nor 3 Idiots release date is final right now … both are in the post production. One will come on Dec and the other in Jan … MNIK probably in Feb … each will be at least 3 weeks apart. All these 3 movies are expected to open with 50 cr week 1, a figure that the recent openers are struggling to reach as their end total.

Apart from these 3, i suspect Akshay’s DDD will be the second biggest grosser of this year (next to Kites/3I whichever makes it in Dec).

Kaminey may at best do 60 cr … Vishal sems to be changing climax … having problems with censor board – i suspect whether Kaminey will cater to a wide audience. I am more interested in his next – a Departed remake with Saif, Akshay and Kareena sounds promising.

Som 4 August 2009
11:54:04 am

After reading this press release I am not sure if it can’t do $1.2 Million in US considering Friday was $251,799.To put up such numbers, the film has to show a big jump on Saturday and Sunday which I kinda doubt would have happened in case of LAK.I think anything in the range of $800-900K looks plausible.Moreover why have not EROS given the complete weekend numbers in US unlike UK and Australia?

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
11:55:19 am

On the departed remake – i wud have loved to see Amitabh/Sanjubaba as Nicholson … Abhishek as Matt Damon and Hrithik in DiCaprio’s role … that wud had been very interesting.

Som 4 August 2009
11:57:47 am

“Kaminey may at best do 60 cr … Vishal sems to be changing climax … having problems with censor board – i suspect whether Kaminey will cater to a wide audience”

I have heard it has been given an A rating. If true the audience will be limited, family audience especially won’t like to go.In that case,don’t see it doing anything close to 60cr.

Gorilla 4 August 2009
12:00:58 pm

‘I am more interested in his next – a Departed remake with Saif, Akshay and Kareena sounds promising.’

didn’t know about this. is there any media item on this?

‘i wud have loved to see Amitabh/Sanjubaba as Nicholson … Abhishek as Matt Damon and Hrithik in DiCaprio’s role … that wud had been very interesting.’

agree.

Akshay 4 August 2009
12:09:43 pm

Som – “I have heard it has been given an A rating. If true the audience will be limited, family audience especially won’t like to go.In that case,don’t see it doing anything close to 60cr.”

Som, just wondering if you have any numbers on what’s the maximum a movie has grossed (in bollywood ofcourse) with an A Rating ? Would be interesting to know

Som 4 August 2009
12:17:14 pm

Not sure Akshay, I think Raaz was given an A rating when It was released in 2002 and grossed close to 25cr. Dev.D in recent time did 16cr. Vishal’s own Omkara did just over 20cr in 2006.

Akshay 4 August 2009
12:20:55 pm

Som if these numbers are correct and if 25Cr is the max gross for a film with an A Rating then I dont think the team behind Kaminey would ignore that.

If that is the case, then rest all your doubts and fears, Kaminey would be released with a U/A certificate

Som 4 August 2009
12:26:56 pm

Yes I think so Akshay. Hopefully Vishal makes it release with an U/A rating with the necessary cuts.There is a tremendous hype surrounding Kaminey, the Dhan Te Nan track has already done the trick and the subsequent promos have kept the curiosity in tact.So an U/A rating can only boost the film’s commercial prospects. Vishal does need a HIT, at least for the sake of him Kaminey works.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
12:54:25 pm

If 3 idiots trends anywhere near LRM then it will cross Ghajini’s 114 CR total. Aamir will ensure that it opens to at least 47-50 CR range and then WOM will do the rest.

I am not really sure of MNIK. If this was a typical K Jo movie then 50 CR was almost an auomatic but he is doing something very different here so I am not sure how it will look.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
12:56:11 pm

and even though K Jo is saying otherwise, MNIK has too much of a NEW YORK feeling right now. Again, this might be different in treament but there are some similarities in the story line.

neelu 4 August 2009
12:59:03 pm

Qurbaan is coming, will make us forget about NY!!!

Doga 4 August 2009
01:12:00 pm

Keep it up guys, soon we will hit 200 comments.

NG is back,lol.

Som 4 August 2009
01:25:26 pm

Justafan:It is usually bit difficult to trend like the likes of Lage Raho, Chak De and TZP after taking a huge opening.It does not happen unless the WOM is incredibly positive and there is a high repeat value.If you see the movies that have taken big opening be it Ghajini or Rab Ne or D2, none of them really managed to trend like a Lage Raho.When a film takes a huge opening, it indicates people are really excited to see the film as soon as possible, expecting a lot from the film but there is also the possibility that the film might not meet those expectations and leave the audience in some disappointment which would limit the repeat value of the film to a great extent. Take Love Aaj Kal for example, people were expecting another Jab We Met, that is why they rushed to the theaters resulting in big opening numbers but when people saw the film, they were kind of disappointed.No wonder we have already started to hear news about the film not holding up well, taking a fall on Monday.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
01:31:47 pm

Som….that’s why I said that even if 3 Idiots come close to the LRM trending, it will be a monster. I don’t think it will open with as many screens as Ghajini. Going by Raju Hirani’s two film track record, it will no doubt be critically acclaimed so the repeat value should be there. I think a 47 CR type of opening may take it past Ghajini.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
01:33:14 pm

Remember, LRM did 70 CR on a 20 CR opening which is simply amazing!!!!! I would rather have VVC open 3 idiots on a smaller number of screen and let the WOM bring in the moolah!!!!

Som 4 August 2009
01:39:54 pm

But yes agree on the point that Hirani’s past record i.e.Munna Bhai films to his repertoire and the presence of Aamir Khan who is kinda synonymous with “quality” of late,that is what the perception says would make sure it takes a very good opening.Whether it trends like Lage Raho from there on is something that will depend a lot on the content of the film.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
01:46:29 pm

There is no chance of anything like LRM trending for 3I … Kites and MNIK are releasing one after the other … if 3I postpones to March then it may trend very well if the movie is good.

If 3I is the first of the 3 biggies to release on 25th Dec, then it shud go for a big release … it may find difficulty in even doubling up its initial … its also a hyped up DCH deal with RDB first half flavor … something Aamir has done too many times now … it may have comedy but its not a Munnabhai sequel either.

I have doubts if 3I can go beyond the 80-90 cr range … if Kites come in 15 Jan and MNIK in Feb, then its likely both will cross 100 cr (unless they turn out to be bad movies for the target audience).

As far as opening is concerned:

Kites>MNIK>3I

Total:

Kites/MINK>3I

Overseas:

MNIK>Kites>3I

How much the differential between these movies will be – time will tell … but i am expecting 3 blockbusters in a row to take the industry out of its blues.

PS – DDD will likely be in 70-80 cr range if accepted.

rks 4 August 2009
01:52:44 pm

Here is an old comment relating to trending
Market Saturation

JustaFan 4 August 2009
01:55:40 pm

There is no way 3I will make less then Kites….not a chance!!!! can’t say the same about MNIK because SRK and Kajor are huge but Kites is not beating 3I on the indian box office.

Som 4 August 2009
02:01:14 pm

Yeah right Ach. not much of a gap between these 3 big releases could also affect the trending.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:10:08 pm

One ghajini does not change everything … SRK has not been giving consistent big hits throughout Aamir’s 20 year career without any reason … hrithik a 10 year junior has always been a bigger draw at BO from his debut.

A SRK movie with Hrithik in a supporting role did as much as combined business of Lagaan and DCH in 2001. In 2006 D2>Krrish>LRM>Fanaa>RDB … TZP with its super WOM did only a couple of crores more than JA and less than CDI.

History does not give any reason to believe 3I can outgross Kites/MNIK … even if i dont consider release timings and its advantages/disadvantages.

rks 4 August 2009
02:22:04 pm

Content wise I think 3I would be better. But at BO if Kites is able to hide Barbara somehow, with all action and masala it should do best business. MNIK – Karan when articulating makes lot of sense but I don’t think his forte is realistic movie. If MNIK is trying to be realistic then I am not sure of its outcome. But one thing is sure MNIK would open big overseas (not suggesting anything – this would probably attract widest audience from subcontinent by naming of the movie unlike say CDI which probably did underwhelming business for a SRK movie).

JustaFan 4 August 2009
02:22:15 pm

let’s go thru this one by one:

A GHAJINI DOES change a lot of things. That movie shattered every record possible and the biggest reason wasn’t it’s director, the producer or genre…

K3G making more money then Lagaan and DCH proves exactly what?? That a Big B + SRK + Hrithik + Kajol movie made more money then Lagaan and DCH?

D2 made more then any movie released that year….Fanaa broke VZ’s opening week, Krrish broke Fanaa, KANK broke Krrish and then D2 broke KANK….get my drift???

You do realize that TZP had Aamir Khan in a SUPPORTING ROLE. Comparing it to CDI and JA doesn’t make any sense.

As for history, A Raju Hirani + Aamir Khan movie WILL ANY DAY beat a Anurag Kashya + Hrtihik Roshan movie…..ANY DAY. Forget the two actors for a second…there is not even a comparison between Kashyap and Hirani!!!!

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:22:58 pm

Also, Aamir had a monster hit like Ghajini way back in mid-90s – Raja Hindustaani … but his following hits were nothing comparable but small successes like Ishq, Sarfarosh, Ghulam.

This no way means 3I will be a small hit – it will have the hirani goodwill apart from Aamir’s presence … else i wudnt have predicted a 80-90 cr grosser here.

If I was a ego-maniac like Aamir, i wud have postponed 3I to release it on the same day as MNIK … only then does 3I have a great chance of coming out on top of this clash of biggies.

We will see how it plays out.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
02:27:59 pm

Aamir is not an ego maniac…he is perhaps the smartest and the shrudest guy in indian movie industry right now. He will NEVER put his movie against another biggie like KITES or MNIK.

rks 4 August 2009
02:31:47 pm

JaF – But his three biggest hits came when he had competition ..Dil (Ghayal),RH (Ghatak), Lagaan (Gadar). Probably she should finance a movie for Sunny and make it clash with his movie

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:34:01 pm

LOL .. trapped in your own logic my friend.

1. Market is growing at a fast pace … D2 wudnt have done just 80 cr if released 2 years later. Inflation considered, D2 wont be much less than Ghajini and inflation considered Ghajini falls short of even a Gadar. Opening record, yes for thats a 8 day record, its 7 day record wont last this year.

2. K3G did much more than Lagaan+DCH … Amitabh+SRK did much much less in Mohabbatein one year earlier. Anyways, the K3G example shows that ’star/stars’ are always much bigger at BO than ‘quality’.

3. If every later release does more business than prev like D2,Krrish, Fanaa … that implies MNIK>Kites>3I …also check the site you have quoted you follow, KANK never opened more than Krrish.

4. TZP worked more for Aamir brand than supporting role or lead … 3I is resting on the same brand for any predictions on BO.

Where does kashyap come in??? anyways, wait and watch … Ghajini seems to have induced some short-term memory loss syndrome among fans.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:36:12 pm

rks – Aamir’s biggest hits RH,Ghajini and QSQT … Dil, Fanaa comes next … Lagaan much down in BO terms.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:38:34 pm

anyways, its futile to go on and on in this … we can look back at these predictions next march and see which is a better reasoning … till then respective fans can dream about more crores!

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
02:46:17 pm

btw – the perceived disadvantages of Kites – mori and steamy scenes – are not much of factors imo .. indian censor board will force basu to chop off anything too vulgar (Roshans wont go with A on this one) … as for Mori or Lori – when did actresses matter when it comes to Filmkraft movies with hrithik? Amisha, Priyanka etc cud have been replaced by anyone without disturbing the box office.

Similarly Hirani brand will be a flavor for the single screens … 3I shud be a universal hit not a plex one.

MNIK may have more advantages in plexes but then it has SRK and Kajol to a lesser extent to excite everyone who followed the biggest hits of the 90s.

Doga 4 August 2009
03:31:35 pm

3 Idiots is confirmed for 25th Dec.

Veer is looking at 11th Dec and also at 22th Jan.

Kites 15th Jan also looks right.

Rakesh Roshan is saying he will decide in September, but it will be too late by then to release this year.

All info @ Pratik Gilani(son of Vijay Gilani,Producer-Veer).

JustaFan 4 August 2009
03:34:43 pm

Ach…aint no movie relasing this year making 64 CR in 8 days or heck even 10 days. These movies aren’t making 64 CR in THEIR ENTIRE RUN…forget first week. As for KITES, let’s see if it comes close to breaking the first week record. Forget Mori, steamy scenes, etc….as I have said before, this movie WILL NOT MAKE MUCH MONEY on the single screen…something that ANY MOVIE needs to break Ghajini’s opening week record. As for Krrish vs KANK, BOI has recently changed some of it’s numbers but this wasn’t the case in 2006. As for this Aamir brand, I guess this only comes into play when Aamir is in supporting role. I mean to compare a movie on a subject like Dyslexia where the main actor is an 8 year old boy to a movie like CDI or JA where the supestars HAVE FULL BLOWN ROLES is laughable.
Aamir didn’t show up in the movie until the INTERVEL!!!!!

rks…I don’t believe DIL and GHAYAL released on the same day. Same for RH and Gathak (RH came in a week later). Lagaan and Gadar did open on June 15, 2001. That is the only time I believe a big Aamir LEAD movie (not counting TZP) opened against another biggie. To be more accurate though, Akele Hum Akele tum opened against Raam Jaane on December 1, 1995.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
03:37:04 pm

According to IMDB, GHAYAL released on June 8..DIL on June 22.

Doga 4 August 2009
03:38:31 pm

So unless Kites somehow squeezes in this year, Aamir Khan has a chance to have 2 years in a row top grossers, something which havent happened since the 77-78 era of Big B.

JustaFan 4 August 2009
03:43:14 pm

Yes..3 Idiots is def. coming on December 25. Shooting is over pending a song to be filmed in September. Why would VVC move away from December 25 knowing what Aamir did on this day last year?

KITES is coming on Jan 15…a good sign I guess since it was Jan 14, 2000 when KNPH came out…not a bad 10 year anniversay.

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
04:03:10 pm

JAF – feel free to type everything in caps if you are further excited!

TZP was Aamir brand – director/producer/lead/blahblah … hrithik roshan always had single screen support, be it KNPH, KMG, Krrish … Filmkraft always had excited the single screens and there is no reason why Kites wont – a hrithik vehicle with songs, dance action, romance .. its a force at BO that Khans always had problems countering throughout the last 10 years.

As for the kank/krrish story, anyone who was aware of the collections knew KANK never surpassed Krrish opening (except for BOI propaganda and fan support).

Kites at the moment is looking at 18th Dec or 15 Jan … the decision i believe depends on to some extent whether 3I can actually make it on x-mas or not … and also the distribution channels in some mexican markets.

btw, Kites if it comes in Dec wont go for more than a 2-3 month promotional campaign, starting not before October for Dec release or Nov for Jan release.

Veer release date will only be decided once the dates are finalized for these 3 biggies.

rks 4 August 2009
04:07:59 pm

JaF – Dil and Ghayal both released on 22nd Jun 1990.

Ghatak and RH didn’t release on same day but RH released on tuesday. Link
“Between the two Diwalis that were dominated by the Chopras came the Diwali of 1996. Rajkumar Santoshi’s Ghatak created some fireworks of its own.
Then came Raja Hindustani. Technically speaking, it was not released in the Diwali 1996 week. It opened mid-week which, for all practical purposes, was akin to a Diwali release. Needless to add, that film wrote history. ”

Link

Link2

Ravi 4 August 2009
07:21:20 pm

rks is right . Dil and Ghayal released on the same day, Dil was my matinee show and Ghayal was my second show on opening day.

Som 4 August 2009
08:27:19 pm

Overseas Box office:Love beyond borders

Business Talk With Taran Adarsh:Massive numbers

Som 4 August 2009
08:30:58 pm

Taran also talks about a 60% drop on Monday though he has been bit defensive here as always.

Akshay 4 August 2009
08:53:53 pm

Ach – “As far as opening is concerned: Kites>MNIK>3I
Total: Kites/MINK>3I
Overseas: MNIK>Kites>3I”

Well since everybody predicts so much on NG let me be a party to it and say

Opening : 3I > Kites > MNIK
Total : 3I > Kites > MNIK
Overseas : MNIK >>>> Kites > 3I
I would not be surprised if MNIK is the biggest grosser ever overseas.

Ach also about your logic of comparing Aamir’s previous work with the likes of D2 etc does not make a lot of sense. Over the year Aamir has built an incredible reputation (Brand) and whenever he is associated with a movie for the masses (like Ghajini) he would do phenomenally well in terms of BO numbers (atleast till the time he gives around 2-3 movies in a row with seriously bad contents).

Aamir did not have huge numbers because other than Fanaa in the recent past (Ofcourse not counting Ghajini here) he was not a part of any movie with a mass appeal.

You are under-estimating the Ghajini hysteria and I dont see any reason why it would not tread to 3I as well.

3I should be a monstrous hit though maybe not as big as a Ghajini. Ghajini was special in terms of the way it was promoted and no other movie in Bollywood has ever been promoted like that. Aamir’s training videos were superbly shot and placed.

Akshay 4 August 2009
09:03:55 pm

Looks like SRK & Aamir are ensconced very well for the 2 biggest movie going seasons in the year.

Diwali belongs to King Khan and the Christmas to Aamir

ACHILLES 4 August 2009
09:23:48 pm

Akshay – you will get all your answers once these movies releases.

Akshay 4 August 2009
09:25:06 pm

I agree

manoj16_391 4 August 2009
11:18:55 pm

rks,

” if Kites is able to hide Barbara somehow,”

What do you mean by this?

manoj16_391 4 August 2009
11:24:37 pm

“Aamir Khan has a chance to have 2 years in a row top grossers, something which havent happened since the 77-78 era of Big B.”

Hrithik had 2 of the biggest hits in a SINGLE year itself -2006

manoj16_391 4 August 2009
11:34:12 pm

Akshay,

Yup,one cannot compare RDB or TZP with D2 .Likewise one cannot compare JA with Ghajini.But one can surely compare a Fanaa with a Krrish (both made from a commercial point of view).

Both movies released within a gap of 4 weeks in May-june 2006.The opening of Fanaa was no where near Krrish.What happened to the brand value of Aamir there?

rks 4 August 2009
11:41:40 pm

“What do you mean by this?”
effectively present for masses..Not as a foreigner..

manoj16_391 4 August 2009
11:44:18 pm

Critical reception:

Krrish-66%

Fanaa-60%

manoj16_391 4 August 2009
11:54:06 pm

rks,

On the face of it,both your comments seem to contradict each other.It would be better if you elaborate a bit.

IMO,If the chemistry between Barbara Mori and Hrithik works(which it should ),then there is no reason why the audiences will not be able to relate to her.

Gorilla 5 August 2009
12:06:27 am

‘IMO,If the chemistry between Barbara Mori and Hrithik works(which it should ),then there is no reason why the audiences will not be able to relate to her.’

Buddy it’s the zoology that should work and not chemistry. I think we underestimate the sex starved youth of India. They outnumber married couple.

manoj16_391 5 August 2009
12:15:18 am

Gorilla,

I dont disagree with your point.You are right in a way.
Nowadays on-screen chemistry as become a lot more “physical ” than what it used to be 10-15 years ago.Gone are the days when the lead pair had on-screen chemistry while dancing around the trees.People today get bored by such scenes.Even Kissing scenes have become a normalcy and have lost their novelty factor.They have become mandatory in virtually every film these days.

sv 5 August 2009
01:16:21 am

“Aamir Khan has a chance to have 2 years in a row top grossers, something which havent happened since the 77-78 era of Big B.”

Doga,you have forgotten Anil Kapoor who has three consecutive top grossers from 1986.He was the top star of those times.Let’s see what aamir can do.

Som 5 August 2009
01:41:29 am

“if Kites is able to hide Barbara somehow
What do you mean by this?”

Rks meant the lesser the makers titillate the family audience by showing the cleavage and naval of Barbara in the promos , the more the latter will be inclined to check the movie.When there is family audience on board along with the younger audience,huge numbers are always on card.

Som 5 August 2009
01:42:28 am

Love Aaj Kal Grosses 34 Crore In Five Days

Love Aaj Kal has taken its nett gross to approx 34 crore in five days. The weekdays have given 7 crore approx adding to the 27 crore over the weekend. The total is already the highest first week total with two days of the week remaining.

The collections on Tuesday were very steady being just 5-10% lower than Monday. Love Aaj Kal will have good collections on Wednesday as it is a holiday. The nett business on Wednesday may be around 5 crore meaning a 50% jump in business from Tuesday. No major competition on Friday will also help its cause as it will mean multiplexes will keep the film on large number of shows daily.

manoj16_391 5 August 2009
01:50:52 am

Som,
What about the naval and cleavage show in D2?

manoj16_391 5 August 2009
02:07:14 am

The audiences today are OK with a certain amount of cleavage or naval show.On the contrary,NOT having a certain amount of glamour restricts a major section of Indian audience.

rudresh 5 August 2009
02:17:11 am

first week will be in range of 38-41 cr.. thats great for saif’s movie.

by the way Happy RakshaBandhan to all the bro and sis.

rudresh 5 August 2009
02:21:29 am

I also have few doubts for kites.
If actress is not able to speak hindi means hero is also speaking english most of time…. movie will do business only in big cities and multiplexes. There is further restriction that movie has to be good to do so.

Delaying a movie when the shooting was almost over a 4 months back is also creating a doubt that even roshans are not sure about the movie and delyaing it…

manoj16_391 5 August 2009
02:32:57 am

rudresh,

In how many scenes did Hrithik speak in full-fledged hindi in D2? You can count them on your fingers.
If the chemistry works,the film will work.As simple as that.

The reason for delay is the search for International distributors who are not willing to buy the rights at a huge price being demanded by RR(150-200 crores).Meanwhile ,Reliance big pictures was ready to buy it at 150 crores:

http://www.naachgaana.com/2009.....ew-record/

RR ,on the other hand,wants a hollywood studio as he wants a big worldwide release for Kites which RBP may not be able to provide.

Bash 5 August 2009
02:58:19 am

Happy Raksha Bandhan to all.

Som 5 August 2009
04:13:39 am

“Som,
What about the naval and cleavage show in D2?”

Barbara is not on patch on Aish and Bips.

Som 5 August 2009
04:14:48 am

Indore Barometer Tuesday Love Aaj Kal

Love Aaj Kal is very steady at the Indore multiplexes on Tuesday compared to Monday collections. The collections are just 5% lower than Monday collections. Below are the Tuesday figures and Monday figures in brackets for Love Aaj Kal and Kambakkht Ishq.

PVR

Love Aaj Kal – 95,350 (1,02,405)

Kambakkht Ishq – 1,04,000 (1,14,660)

Inox

Love Aaj Kal – 48,885 (45,495)

Kambakkht Ishq – 48,800 (67,190)

Big (Adlabs)

Love Aaj Kal – 47,720 (54,490)

Kambakkht Ishq – 44,830 (68,800)

Velocity

Love Aaj Kal – 29,335 (32,760)

Kambakkht Ishq – 29,000 (35,800)

Inox City

Love Aaj Kal – 50,125 (52,290)

Totals

Love Aaj Kal 2,21,290 (2,35,150) -5.60%

Kambakkht Ishq – 2,26,630 (2,86,450) -20.88%

Love Aaj Kal (including Inox City) – 2,71,415 (2,87,440) -5.58%

Som 5 August 2009
04:15:21 am

Happy Raksha Bandhan to all.

manoj16_391 5 August 2009
05:29:26 am

Som,

No one came to watch Ash and Bips “perform/act” in D2.They came to see the skin show/glamour.In that aspect,Barbara Mori comfortably beats both of them by several miles

rks 5 August 2009
08:29:43 am

“Happy Raksha Bandhan to all.”
I hope you didn’t catch LAK on Raksha Bandhan?

Looks like normal fall..and according to Indore estimates LAK should reach 40 by end of this week.

neelu 5 August 2009
09:48:27 am

Manoj – the two biggest grosssers last year, Ghajni and Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi, did their business without skin show. Are you saying Hritik needs skin show to make his film a blockbuster?

Som 5 August 2009
09:50:45 am

“Happy Raksha Bandhan to all.”
I hope you didn’t catch LAK on Raksha Bandhan?”

Hahaha! Naaaaaaa…

RAJ 5 August 2009
10:33:47 am

As far as the Big Battle of Big 3 is concerned…The movie releasing first has less chnace of trending like LRM But since the gap between the movies are likely to be 3 weeks any of the three movies can gross 100 cr if they are good…

Akshay 5 August 2009
10:45:48 am

Neelu, on a lighter note, I’d attribute a large part of Ghajini revenues to Skin show

Som 5 August 2009
11:15:52 am

LOL Akshay! Good one! The only difference is we witnessed too much of “male skin show”, may be Aamir wanted to deconstruct the very notion of “female skin show” towards bringing the audience in and there by setting a new example,the revolutionary he is.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
12:02:39 am

Neelu,
Did Krrish have skin-show?

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
12:10:31 am

I am not saying that all Indian directors should start making soft porn movies to target the BO .They will be rejected outright.But a CERTAIN amount of skin show/glamour (in whatever way you read it) is a prerequisite if you want to engage the larger section of Indian audiences.
In its COMPLETE absence,we have seen that even well-scripted movies like Lakshya and Swades sink at the BO.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
12:35:14 am

If not skin-show,the movie has to have other commercial elements like a strong romantic angle,good action sequences,high on style quotient et al.

Movies like lakshya and swades can work for many of us without the aid of such commercial elements but we dont constitute the whole of India.

neelu 6 August 2009
12:38:22 am

But movies like CDI and TZP were blockbusters.

Gorilla 6 August 2009
12:40:40 am

***Virus Alert***

ATTN MODERATORS – MANOJ’S ID HAS BEEN HACKED. HE HAS STARTED MAKING LOTS MORE SENSE TODAY.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
12:48:20 am

Neelu – you are extremely predictable! I already knew you would cite the example of these two movies immediately.

CAN you compare the collections of CDI and TZP with that of D2 or OSO or Ghajini?The latter belong to a completely different league.Moreover it is impossible for srk or aamir or any star to deliver a CDI /TZP on a regular basis.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
12:49:31 am

LOL Gorilla!

neelu 6 August 2009
12:52:21 am

Manoj – I think you should look at the return on investment of all those films you mentioned. If you present those numbers, then we can talk.

I try to reciprocate when the remarks are predictable (reference to Lakshya and Swades).

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:07:33 am

The following is an article written by neelu herself who claimed that a BIG BUDGET movie turning into a BB is much better than small budget movies with equal or more success.

http://www.naachgaana.com/2009.....n-trouble/

neelu 6 August 2009
01:12:28 am

Manoj – bite the bullet and do the math. Getting 30 crores in return for a 15 crore investment is different from getting 5 crores from a 1 crore investment. I think you should look up the ROI principle. Or check that article you just pulled up

neelu 6 August 2009
01:15:58 am

Let me clarify that there is no doubt that CDI and TZP made more money for YRF and Aamir Khan productions than Ghajini and Dhoom 2 did for the people who made/bought those films.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:17:20 am

Distributor share of films:

D2 : 45.87 cr

OSO : 40.15 cr

Krrish : 40.42 cr

CDI : 28.43 cr

TZP : 25.56 cr

neelu 6 August 2009
01:20:26 am

ROI?

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:22:30 am

LOL neelu! are you awake?

neelu 6 August 2009
01:24:26 am

No – I usually type while in deep sleep.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:27:35 am

Any film’s verdict(BB,superhit,hit,avg,flop etc) is dependent ONLY on its distributor share.I hope you know this.

SR was sold to its distributors at over Rs 40 crores so by your logic,SR should be a superhit!(its budget was way below 40 crores)

neelu 6 August 2009
01:32:18 am

I would say that you have not carefully read what I wrote while asleep.

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:35:30 am

Producers generally always make money.Its always the distributors who suffer when the film doesnt work.

Kjo doesnt need to worry about MNIK now,Its Fox studio who has to worry.
producers ka kaam hai tension doosre ke sir par madnaa

neelu 6 August 2009
01:37:49 am

In some cases the producers are also distributors. AND they make out like bandits on cheap films that become blockbusters.

rks 6 August 2009
01:40:22 am

Link

manoj16_391 6 August 2009
01:48:21 am

Neelu,

Apart from the funny stuff you have said so far,didnt you also claim that a flop tashan is more profitable for yrf(both as a producer and distributor) than Utv’s hits like a wednesday?What happened to your ROI logic there? LOL!

neelu 6 August 2009
01:49:48 am

I only say funny stuff to some people. Thanks for reading, because without an audience it is worth nothing. What did UTV make on A Wednesday?

rudresh 6 August 2009
03:20:49 am

Love aaj Kal Did fantastically well on Rakhi:
Love Aaj Kal did very well on Wednesday due to Raksha Bandhan holiday. The film collected an approx 5.50 crore nett giving it a 65-70% jump from Tuesday’s collections. The collections now stand at around 39.50 crore nett after six days.

The film is now looking at a huge first week total of around 42 crore nett. This would be similar to what Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi collected in week one last December.

The multiplexes are giving Love Aaj Kal 8-10-12 shows daily on average in its second week compared to the 16-18-20 in week one
— BOI

rudresh 6 August 2009
03:24:15 am

moive is doing quite well on holidays , iam expecting good number from coming weekend also. It will sustain well and without any compition number will be quite good.

Ankit 6 August 2009
03:34:36 am

Well, UTV definitely has great marketing strategy. They make kind of offbeat movies and yet manage to give semi-hits now and then. Dev.D wouldn’t have been a hit had it been not marketed properly. UTV deserved credit for it. Agyaat has recovered all its money even before its release. I couldn’t imagine a film having Priyanka(Nisha) Kothari in the lead role recovering its money. But UTV did it. Also unlike the YRF, Dharma Productions, UTV obviously have an advantage that they make low-budget films and multiplexes help such movie to recover their money even if the film receives not so good reviews. But a film by YRF and Dharma Productions once critically bashed will find itself struggling to recover its money now with the boom of multiplexes. OFC exceptions like Hey Babyy are there.

rudresh 6 August 2009
03:40:14 am

Agyaat recover money purly on basis of fine strategy by UTV.
ITs tamil and talgu rights have fetched them more than 5 crore which is rqulas to cost of production, now hindi release will be just a profit for them.

RAJ 6 August 2009
04:06:06 am

“”moive is doing quite well on holidays , iam expecting good number from coming weekend also. It will sustain well and without any compition number will be quite good.”"

Agree Rudresh..I am looking at a 70 Cr plus end nettgross now…

You must be logged in to post a comment.

Som

Related Posts

There Are 277 Responses So Far. »

Leave a Reply