Bollywood News and Stories From India

Bollywood box office 2017 report card: Raees, Kaabil, Jolly LLB 2 and Badrinath Ki Dulhania are the four films which have done well in terms of earnings so far. With four big budget films crossing the Rs 100 crore ($15 million) mark in box-office earnings in the first quarter of 2017, Bollywood is off to a “good” start this year — but it continues to battle the growing menace of piracy, say trade gurus. Shah Rukh Khan starrer Raees, Hrithik Roshan’s Kaabil, Akshay Kumar’s Jolly LLB 2 and Varun Dhawan-Alia Bhatt starrer Badrinath Ki Dulhania are the four films which have done well in terms of earnings so far. Hopes are thus high from the upcoming slate of movies, starting with filmmaker S.S. Rajamouli’s southern magnum opus “Baahubali 2: The Conclusion”. According to a report prepared by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) and management consultants KPMG, 2016 was a “mixed bag” for Bollywood, where films had a “disappointing year with ...

Raees First Day Box Office Report Vs Kaabil First Day Box Office Report: The Raees and Kaabil clash has turned out to be a very one sided affair on day one with Raees crushing the competition and taking a huge lead. Its unlikely that two major films released on the same day have seen such a big difference in collections on day one. The early estimates are around 21 crore nett for Raees and 7.50 crore nett for Kaabil. The star power of Shahrukh Khan has gunned down the star power of Hrithik Roshan. The latter also came out second best with the clash on Independence Day week as Mohenjo Daro grossed 8.80 crore nett on day one and the competition which was Akshay Kumar's Rustom grossed 13.92 crore nett. Still there the gap was reasonable but here its looking at a difference of over 13 crore nett just on one day. Kaabil has performed below the mark all over with some circuits being practically being wiped out due to Raees. The film was never that hot but still a Mohenjo Dar...

Raees took a huge lead against Kaabil in the morning shows across the country with collections more than double in many cities. The gap was bigger in the single screens where Raees took one of the best openings for a Shahrukh Khan starrer in recent times. Raees is looking at huge numbers in Gujrat, Nizam / Andhra and West Bengal. The collections in East Punjab and Delhi city were not as good as the rest of the country probably because its a Gujarat based film. Kaabil has a lot of work to do the opening is on th lines of films like Shivaay and Mohenjo Daro which also clashed with other films and came off second best. But here Kaabil is likley to lose by much wider numbers than those films. The plus is that it is a big holiday tomorrow and that should give a lift in the evening. Below are the admit figures of first shows with the cinema counts taken from each centre listed next to the city. Mumbai (45 Cinemas) Raees - 7,521 admits ...

Raees took an excellent opening of 55-60% in its morning shows. It is the best opening since Sultan eclipsing the morning shows of Dangal. The opening at most single screens is better than Dangal and at places even better than Sultan which was a holiday. The multiplexes have also scored big even though the film looks more for mass centres but Shahrukh Khan is there so barring East Punjab which can only be called good, the multiplexes in other circuits are excellent. The clash and the release which is around 3400 screens will obviously curtail the final number a little compared to other big non holiday releases but occupancy for a non holiday are fantastic almost across the board. Gujarat is extraordinary due to the local base of the film, West Bengal which traditionally is a slow starter has opened well enough that it could be an all time opening day record in that circuit as evenings will be bumper due to the Shahrukh Khan factor.

Kaabil V Raees: Raees Takes Huge Lead in Advance The big box office clash between Kaabil and Raees looks a bit of an anti climax as far as initial is concerned as the Shahrukh Khan starrer Raees has pulled a distance ahead. The advance of Raaes started late with some multiplexes only opening advance yesterday but it has notched up pre sales of 12.50 crore nett. Dangal was 16.50 crore nett, Sultan was 21 crore nett and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo was 15 crore nett but these were Xmas, Eid and Diwali releases respectively and all were solo releases and no fighting for shows which leads to the advance opening late. The advance is excellent at both multiplexes and single screens with the single screens at muslim centres in Gujarat and UP having chances to witness record collections on a non holiday. Considering the situation its a huge advance and that will be reflected in the initial tomorrow as its looking to beat Kaabil easily all over unless the on the day crowd changes the scenario....

Shah Rukh Khan’s latest Raees, which was released in India, the US and Britain on Wednesday, could soon hit the screens in Pakistan as it has been cleared by a special government panel. The committee formed by Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to look into the screening of Indian films has sent a summary or official note to the Prime Minister’s Office on the film. Sharif is now expected to issue a no-objective certificate (NOC) for the screening of Raees and Hrithik Roshan’s Kaabil soon, the Dawn newspaper reported. “We can expect that it will take at least two days after the NOC has been issued for the films to be screened,” a senior official at Hum Films, which is releasing Kaabil and Raees in Pakistan jointly with Eveready Pictures, was quoted as saying. Raees and Kaabil could become the first Indian movies to be released in Pakistan after film distributors and cinema owners imposed an informal ban on Bollywood productions last September. The move was made in resp...

Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan has come down heavily on the Indian media and said he was allowed to remain silent on things that don’t affect him or about which he has no knowledge. In an interview to the Indian Express, the Raees actor targeted TV anchors, comparing them to stars who he said were yet to “get over their wonderful, newly-gained stardom” and asked them to take lessons from their Western counterparts. “Why don’t journalists here behave the way their counterparts do in the West? You see journalists asking pointed questions to presidential candidates fearlessly and with facts. If the other person interrupts, they would stop and say, ‘It is his time’,” Khan said. “Here, I want to tell the journalists that it is not your time, so can you please keep quiet. Can I listen to those two people you are asking questions to? Now, there are two journalists on the TV screen and both are talking over each other and the panelists, sitting there, are not talking. It is a...

Kaabil vs Raees: Shah Rukh and Hrithik had the sweetest Twitter exchange Actor Hrithik Roshan reached out to Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan on Wednesday, saying he hopes that the superstar “mentor” will be proud of his work in Kaabil. In return, SRK sent his best wishes to Hrithik for the release of Kaabil, said he wished they could have avoided the clash of their films at the box office. Taking to Twitter, the 34-year-old star wrote to Shah Rukh assuring the superstar that he will inspire him with his act in Raees as he has done with his past films. Alongside Kaabil, Shah Rukh’s Raaes will also hit the theatres on Wednesday. “Dear @iamsrk today as a mentor I’m sure you will inspire me yet again with #Raaes and as a student I hope you are proud of me with #Kaabil,” Hrithik wrote.  Follow Hrithik Roshan   ✔ @iHrithik Dear  @ iamsrk  today as a mentor Im sure u will inspire me yet again with  # Raaes  and as a student I...

Despite clash with another high profile film Kaabil, Shah Rukh Khan‘s Raees is all set to take a very good opening at the Box Office. The film has heated up well en route release and there is good curiosity to check it out in theaters. Marketing and promotion of the film has been actually apt. It hasn’t gone over the top like Chennai Express or Happy New Year. However, it is not under-sold like a Fan either. It is somewhere in between, like was the case with Dilwale (which too had clashed, at that time with Bajirao Mastani) and hence the opening numbers too would be on the same lines. Day One numbers of last few Shah Rukh Khan starrers (barring Dear Zindagi, where he wasn’t the central character) have been as below: Happy New Year – 44.97 crore Chennai Express – 33.12 crore Dilwale – 21 crore Fan – 19.2 crore Jab Tak Hai Jaan – 15.23 crore Now as things stand, Raees should open to numbers that would be closer to Fan [18 to 22 crore]. Actually even that w...

There’s something about films based on gangsters, criminals and underworld… Have often wondered, why are several film-makers across the globe so fascinated by this genre? Though I am not a huge fan of this genre, I must confess, I have thoroughly enjoyed a number of crime sagas made in Mumbai: DEEWAAR, DHARMATMA, PARINDA, AGNEEPATH, SATYA, VAASTAV, GANGSTER, SHOOTOUT AT LOKHANDWALA, ONCE UPON A TIME IN MUMBAAI… Helmed by some of the best names in showbiz, these films have tremendous recall value and left giant footprints on the sands of time, besides leaving an indelible impression on my mind. There’s tremendous speculation about RAEES… That the story is inspired by true events… That it’s based on a real-life character… Frankly, I am not the right person to comment on the authenticity of characters/episodes depicted in the movie or verify the speculations, but as a moviegoer, I must confess, RAEES did transport me to its world. A majority of films that highlight the lives o...

This week will see Shahrukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan battle it out at the box office. Its an early release on Wednesday for both films with the big holiday falling on Thursday. There is just one holiday and not a holiday period where a clash maybe can be justified but this is how its played out and two big films will release on the same day. It is in real a Shahrukh Khan V Hrithik Roshan clash as the films do not have much of a supporting cast and the music of both films is not that big that it adds on the initial. Even the directors of both films do not have much of a track record. Rahul Dholakia of Raaes is untried at this level while Sanjay Gupta has many films (the last being Jazbaa) but limited success. Hrithik Roshan clashed with Akshay Kumar a few weeks back with Mohenjo Daro against Rustom and came off second best and here the gap in the initial will be more as there is a huge miscalculation from the makers of Kaabil. The hero and the heroine are blind in Kaabil and the pr...

Hrithik Roshan had recently said in an interview that his father, Rakesh Roshan was hurt over the clash of Raees and Kaabil on January 25. Filmmaker Rakesh Roshan says he will be happy to watch his movie Kaabil — featuring son Hrithik Roshan — again, instead of watching Shah Rukh Khan Raees. Both films are releasing on Wednesday. At a special screening of Kaabil held here on Monday, Rakesh Roshan was asked whether he will be watching Raees as it is releasing on the same day. But he said: “No, I will watch Kaabil once again.” Hrithik had recently said in an interview that his father was hurt over the clash of Raees and Kaabil. A romantic thriller, Kaabil features Hrithik and actress Yami Gautam playing a visually impaired couple. The special screening was attended by celebrities Anil Kapoor, Sonam Kapoor, Ramesh Sippy, Sussanne Khan, David Dhawan, Javed Akhtar with wife Shabana Azmi, Ashutosh Gowariker, Ahmed Khan and more. Talking about his son’s performance, h...

Raees star Mahira Khan called the ban on Pakistani actors 'unfortunate.' She also said Shah Rukh Khan is 'magic' on the film sets. Only lucky women get to romance Shah Rukh Khan onscreen. And the luckiest get the opportunity in their very first film. Pakistani actor Mahira Khan is one name we all envy. SRK’s leading lady in the upcoming movie Raees, Mahira all set for her big Bollywood debut on January 25. But what could’ve been her dream debut, turned sour due to the political turmoil between the two nations last year. Mahira has been barred from promoting Raees in India and with her team. Mahira is already a popular name in India, thanks to her hit Pakistani shows like Humsafar which aired on Zindagi channel. And while Mahira has kept the buzz around Raees on her social media accounts, by sharing regular posts and tweets, she still yearns to be with her cast at this time. Mahira spoke in length about her Bollywood film in a candid interview with Pakistani publicati...

Crowds will turn out even if Dawood Ibrahim comes in public, BJP national general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya said on Tuesday, targeting Shah Rukh Khan over the death of a man during heavy rush at the actor’s promotion of his film ‘Raees’ for which he travelled by train. Vijayvargiya also took to Twitter to praise Prime Minister Narendra Modi and hit out at Rahul Gandhi using the titles of two upcoming Bollywood films, saying our country’s ‘Kaabil’ is better than the ‘Raees’ of other country, apparently referring to the Congress vice-president’s foreign roots. “There is a new tradition of promoting films. The promoters should at least take care of public convenience. If they promote films in railways, the common people will suffer. Even if Dawood appears in public, crowd will come out. So we cannot gauge the popularity (of people), at least, on the basis of crowd,” Vijayvargiya said. He said public convenience should be kept in mind and films should be promoted ...

Just a day before the release of Shah Rukh Khan’s high-octane film Raees on January 25, we have a new song from the movie: Intriguingly titled Dhingana, the track details SRK’s journey from a small-time bootlegger to a dreaded gangster in the film. The song is sung by Mika Singh. It seems the film is trying to project him as a benevolent gangster who knows how to take care of his people. It looks more like the Indian version of Robinhood. Currently, Shah Rukh Khan is in the news for his train journey from Mumbai to Delhi. Directed by Rahul Dholakia, Raees will also feature Pakistani actor Mahira Khan in an important role.