The first day of the year is looking even better. Holdover Dhurandhar continues to be the top film, while new release Ikkis has also opened in the morning. Morning shows are about 10-15 percent which isn’t much but it’s nothing. Twenty One is an evening film, so it’s always good to get morning numbers. The New Year holiday is clearly helping, although the holiday can only boost results if there is some genuine interest in the film to begin with.
These days whenever a film performs better than expected, there are always murmurs of external factors that are helping the figures, and that could be the case here too. However, it is not as obvious or in your face as it was with Dhurandhar Aur Tu Meri, which caught on. The initial reception being positive is a plus and the film can take off. Getting the numbers on the first day will help in understanding this, which is why many of these films indulge in this practice, but ultimately if the film is not good, it takes it nowhere, for example, Tu Meri.
Based on pre-sales, Twenty One looked like it would fetch around Rs. Can aim for opening day. Around Rs 5 crore nett, and the morning opening is quite in line with that level. It may also go up slightly depending on how the afternoon and evening shows perform.
Twenty One is the last film of the great Dharmendra Deol, who passed away last year. Although this sentiment may also have contributed in the beginning, it would be fair to see the legend, perhaps the actor with the most hits in Indian cinema, sign off with a hit or better.
