Pathaan’s Advance Booking Officially Kicked Off, and on That First Day Alone, It Sold Over 5 Lakh Seats

Shah Rukh Khan's return movie Pathaan is the center of attention. Everyone, including the public, business insiders, and trade specialists, is anticipating the movie's January 25 release.

By Charu On Jan 24, 2023

Shah Rukh Khan‘s return movie Pathaan is the center of attention. Everyone, including the public, business insiders, and trade specialists, is anticipating the movie’s January 25 release. The movie is in charge of awakening the Hindi film industry from its protracted slumber, and industry insiders are optimistic that it will provide the impetus for the remainder of the year. They anticipate “tremendous” things from Pathaan.

“As we all know, Shah Rukh Khan is returning to the cinema after four years as an out-and-out action entertainer, and the promotional material has done the work,” said film trade analyst Taran Adarsh in reference to Pathaan. The movie is being discussed by people. All eyes are on it because it’s the first significant release of 2023. He anticipates the movie to make between Rs 40 and Rs 50 crore in its opening weekend.

On January 20, Pathaan’s advance booking officially kicked off, and on that first day alone, it sold over 5 lakh seats. PVR, INOX, and Cinepolis, the top three multiplex chains, sold more than 2 lakh tickets. These numbers should increase significantly in the final two days before the movie’s premiere. Taran responded to a strong advance ticket sales performance by saying, “This demonstrates people want to watch a big artist on the big screen only.”

The whole Hindi film industry, which struggled in 2022 while contending with fierce competition from worldwide cinema and films from South India, now feels more confident, according to film producer and industry expert Girish Johar.

The advance ticket sales for all formats and languages are excellent, he told indianexpress.com. It greatly boosts the team working on the movie as well as the overall industry. The best currently available Hindi film is Pathaan. Shah Rukh, Deepika Padukone, and John Abraham are all at the top of their game in this film, which is being directed by Siddharth Anand and produced by Yash Raj Films. For Pathaan, I am anticipating an excellent start. He predicts the movie will make between Rs 35 and Rs 38 crore on opening day, though.

Pathaan’s brilliance will extend beyond its opening weekend in theatres. The five-day extended weekend will likely set some records for box office takings, according to specialists in the film industry. The movie, according to Girish Johar, is expected to take in between Rs 175-200 crore in the home market in its first five days and an easy Rs 350 crore worldwide.

Yash Raj Films, which failed to produce a hit last year, will “bounce back this year,” according to film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi. “Siddharth Anand and YRF have never made a mistake in the urban action genre,” he claimed. So, whether it’s a Tiger movie, a Dhoom trilogy, or a War movie, YRF has consistently emphasized the issue of this genre. So they will provide a smash with a filmmaker like Siddharth, who fairly understands the huge action set pieces and excellent entertainers.

The highest-earning opening day in Bollywood history belongs to Siddharth Anand’s War, a 2019 movie starring Hrithik Roshan and Tiger Shroff. On the day of its release, it brought in Rs 53.35 crore. It is uncertain whether Pathaan will strike him again. Shah Rukh has also never failed to draw crowds to theatres on opening day. Zero, his disaster from 2018, opened to a modest Rs 19.35 crore.

The Pathaan crew, however, didn’t advertise the movie the conventional way. So, how will that impact the audience’s level of movie awareness? “The moment an actor opens his or her mouth and expresses an opinion, the boycott calls and conflicts start,” Taran Adarsh retorted. What makes you want to engage in that? Girish Johar thinks that YRF has “smartly” promoted the film, and in his opinion, even the controversy surrounding the song “Besharam Rang” has increased interest in the picture.

Akshaye Rathi is actually confident that “Pathaan will set the momentum for the rest of the year and bring back the profits and bring back the livelihood of millions of people who are tied to the filmmaking profession.”