It was pretty much expected
that amongst the three new releases of the week, Hate Story 2 would lead from the front with Amit Sahni Ki List and Pizza 3D standing up to the challenge. However what
really happened at the box office was unimaginable as this all-new starcast
affair took the kind of opening that would actually augur well with other
medium budget films starring reasonably well established actors. The film was
expected to do well primarily at the single screens but it saw good footfalls
in multiplexes as well, which is simply amazing.
As a result,
the film has now enjoyed a weekend of around 15 crore which immediately brings it into the
success zone. For director Vishal Pandya, this is a major boost to his career
since he couldn’t find much going for it with his debut film Three
– Love, Lies, Betrayal that had released half a decade back.
This time around though he has turned second time lucky with his leading lady Surveen Chawla who has ensured good eyeballs for the
film across the country.
One has to
credit the film’s marketing, promotion and distribution team for the kind of
success that has been achieved here. For the last couple of months there was
good buzz around the film and the entire packaging of erotica, drama and music
was sold well. Though it is drama that one eventually takes home, it is the
combination of erotica and music that brought in the audience, hence resulting
in good numbers.
On the other
hand Amit Sahni Ki List, which saw a controlled
release for itself, saw some good reviews going for it and it is now expected
that this would result in stable footfalls right through the week. The film’s
collections were around 2.5 crore and for Vir Das and
company, it is about how word of mouth takes the film forward.
Pizza 3D boasted
of a good premise and a twist in the tale too, though the overall packaging was
just ‘theek-thaak’. The film collected around 2.5 crore in its opening weekend and one waits
to see if collections stay on a consistent note right through the week.