After a surprisingly successful Day 1, producer Vipul Amrutlal Shah and director Sudipto Sen’s ‘The Kerala Story‘ is looking at a fantastic Day 2 as well. The collections on the opening day were approximately Rs 8 crores, an unheard-of figure for a non-star vehicle.
Says Trade expert Taran Adarsh, “TKS has opened exceptionally well. It was a slow starter in the morning shows, but gathered speed post 4 pm onwards on Day 1. The word of mouth is excellent and the weekend numbers will be a shocker for the industry, because the trending is far better than several biggies that starred A-listers. At a time when the industry badly needs a hit, TKS has brought cheer, optimism and confidence back. The exhibition sector (theatres), which was extremely disappointed by the under-performance of Ajay Devgn’s Bholaa and Salman Khan’s Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, have heaved a sigh of relief. TKS is a big success for sure.”
Adds Trade analyst Atul Mohan, “The film does seem to have picked up pace after endorsement from the corridors of power in India. What happened in one corner of India with The Kashmir Files will continue to happen at the other corner with The Kerala Story. The film and the content is what will drive people to the theatres. There are a lot of organizations which are buying tickets in bulk and getting Hindu women to watch the film across the nation. Hence the story is now beyond the movie story and is being talked about in society. That’s an indication that the film is heading for massive box office numbers”
Producer and trade analyst Girish Johar adds, “The Kerala Story has opened to pretty impressive numbers at the box office. The film was even talked about by our honourable PM recently and the media has gone all out in supporting it. The reviews have been mixed but the narrative and word-of-mouth are being pushed aggressively so as to entice the paying audiences. The film will now have a good weekend to start with, which is a surprise in today’s scenario. Let’s see where it heads on Monday.”
“The film has caught the nation’s imagination. The audience likes the story, while the political ideology is being questioned by some. And that’s okay. The film has opened up a healthy debate on the conversion issue,” says exhibitor Roshan Singh.
One of Maharashtra’s most prominent exhibitors Akshaye Rathi says, “Given the non-star cast The Kerala Story has opened to unprecedented numbers, close to Rs 7.5 crore. Even their promotional campaign was reasonably short… it is the victory of the subject. It just goes to prove that if you simulate their sensibilities with something novel and unexplored the audiences will come to see the film. We’ve seen this happen with The Kashmir Files and many other films in the past. Here is another film which is capitalizing on a whole new political audience in India. I truly believe it is important that political films across ideological lines should be made. I hope cinema as a medium reaches out to more audiences. Kudos to Vipul Shah for supporting such a volatile subject.”
Says Trade expert Taran Adarsh, “TKS has opened exceptionally well. It was a slow starter in the morning shows, but gathered speed post 4 pm onwards on Day 1. The word of mouth is excellent and the weekend numbers will be a shocker for the industry, because the trending is far better than several biggies that starred A-listers. At a time when the industry badly needs a hit, TKS has brought cheer, optimism and confidence back. The exhibition sector (theatres), which was extremely disappointed by the under-performance of Ajay Devgn’s Bholaa and Salman Khan’s Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, have heaved a sigh of relief. TKS is a big success for sure.”
Adds Trade analyst Atul Mohan, “The film does seem to have picked up pace after endorsement from the corridors of power in India. What happened in one corner of India with The Kashmir Files will continue to happen at the other corner with The Kerala Story. The film and the content is what will drive people to the theatres. There are a lot of organizations which are buying tickets in bulk and getting Hindu women to watch the film across the nation. Hence the story is now beyond the movie story and is being talked about in society. That’s an indication that the film is heading for massive box office numbers”
Producer and trade analyst Girish Johar adds, “The Kerala Story has opened to pretty impressive numbers at the box office. The film was even talked about by our honourable PM recently and the media has gone all out in supporting it. The reviews have been mixed but the narrative and word-of-mouth are being pushed aggressively so as to entice the paying audiences. The film will now have a good weekend to start with, which is a surprise in today’s scenario. Let’s see where it heads on Monday.”
“The film has caught the nation’s imagination. The audience likes the story, while the political ideology is being questioned by some. And that’s okay. The film has opened up a healthy debate on the conversion issue,” says exhibitor Roshan Singh.
One of Maharashtra’s most prominent exhibitors Akshaye Rathi says, “Given the non-star cast The Kerala Story has opened to unprecedented numbers, close to Rs 7.5 crore. Even their promotional campaign was reasonably short… it is the victory of the subject. It just goes to prove that if you simulate their sensibilities with something novel and unexplored the audiences will come to see the film. We’ve seen this happen with The Kashmir Files and many other films in the past. Here is another film which is capitalizing on a whole new political audience in India. I truly believe it is important that political films across ideological lines should be made. I hope cinema as a medium reaches out to more audiences. Kudos to Vipul Shah for supporting such a volatile subject.”
