Jawan, the much-hyped Shah Rukh Khan-Atlee film, hit screens on Thursday. This is the first time SRK is working with a Tamil director known for films like Theri, Mersal, and Bigil, and for this reason, theatre owners in Tamil Nadu are gung-ho about its prospects. “People are receiving this Hindi film with as much love as they would show a Tamil film,” says Nikilesh Surya, owner of Rohini Theatre, Chennai.
“This is by far the biggest release for a Bollywood film in Kerala and Tamil Nadu,” claims Krishnamoorthy, executive producer of Sree Gokulam Movies, which is foraying into Tamil films by distributing Jawan. The Hindi and Tamil versions have been released across 1,001 screens (718 centres). This includes 450 centres in TN and 270 in Kerala.
While the film is being released in Hindi, Tamil, and Telugu in TN, it’s believed the Tamil version will contribute most business. “Tamil audiences have always chosen to watch dubbed versions of English and Hindi films. So, the Tamil version should make 70% of all business,” says Tirupur Subramaniam, veteran film distributor and the head of Tamil Nadu’s Theatre Owners Association.
The craze for Jawan in Kerala is no less. Linto Davis, owner of Vanitha-Veneetha theatre, Ernakulam, says they now have more shows than planned. “The first show started at 6 am, and owing to the extraordinary response, we have charted a late-night show at 11 pm,” he adds.
Litmus test for Atlee in north, SRK in south
AtleeEE’s Jawan has been expected to reignite the Hindi cinema box-office, and it seems to have begun really well. “I have two theatres in Gaiety and both are running full. For the weekend, advance bookings are almost full already,” says Manoj Desai, Executive Director of G7 multiplex, and Maratha Mandir Cinema, Mumbai.
With Atlee at the helm, Tamil theatre owners are confident that Jawan will appeal to Tamil audiences as well. Jawan is a litmus test for Atlee in the north and doubles up as a test for SRK in the south. His previous industry superhit, Pathaan, only got about 135 centres because of the timing of its release.
Nikilesh says, “The bookings for the first weekend are guaranteed.
Then, we need to wait and watch.” Girish Johar, producer and film business expert, says, “As per early trends, I expect Rs 100 crore worldwide collection (gross).”With trends suggesting Rs 350 crore collection by this weekend, it’d be interesting to see the final collection. It has cooked up quite a storm already. But will it overcome the Pathaan juggernaut?
(With inputs from Kartik Bhardwaj & Vignesh Madhu)