In welcome news for the entertainment industry after almost 2 years of dipping revenues due to Covid-19, theatres across the country are witnessing an increase in footfall. This is mostly due to the great start by Tamil superstar Ajith’s new movie Valimai.
The movie has grossed over Rs 159.75 crore in mere four days. Valimai has been directed by H. Vinoth and has been released in Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Kannada. The action-packed film has emerged as a blockbuster in Tamil Nadu and is being well received by audiences across different states.
Valimai’s opening collections are the highest for a Tamil film in the pandemic.
The film features Tamil superstar Ajith Kumar and Huma Qureshi in lead roles and has been produced by Boney Kapoor under the banner of Bayview projects LLP in association with Zee Studios.
The opening collections of Valimai were the highest for any Tamil film in the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic.
Another recently released film, Bheemla Nayak featuring Telugu actor Pawan Kalyan has grossed over Rs 150 crore at the box office.
Earlier this year, the Omicron-led Covid-19 wave compelled the producers to delay the release of many big-budget movies including SS Rajamouli’s RRR, Valimai, Gangubai Kathiawadi among others.
The box office collections are expected to further improve with the lifting of Covid-19 restrictions across the country, according to the CFO of PVR cinemas, Nitin Sood. “Audience is coming back to theatres in a big way, so that is good news for cinema,” he told CNBC TV18 in an interview.
According to Sood, the theatre industry is witnessing robust growth in ticketing as well as Food & Beverages segment and with the lifting of all Covid-19 related restrictions, March should be a great month for the cinema industry.
Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Gangubai Kathiawadi which features Alia Bhatt in the lead role has also witnessed a bumper opening at the box office and has grossed nearly Rs 40 crores since its release.
Nitin Sood further stated that the audience is now excited about visiting theatres and the upcoming big-budget movies will further drive the revenue of the industry.
