Hindustan Times (Patna) - Hindustan Times (Patna) - Live
BIG CLASH AT BOX OFFICE
A bunch of high-profile Bollywood films are about to fight it out for the most Friday eyeballs in H2 2017
Budgets, promotions, stakes... everything has been getting bigger and bigger in Bollywood. And box office clashes are no exception. With all eyes on first weekend receipts nowadays, which film hogs the limelight on which Friday is the hottest topic in the trade.
This year started with the biggest clash when Shah Rukh Khan’s Raees locked horns with Hrithik Roshan’s Kaabil. Later, Arjun Kapoor’s Half Girlfriend lost the number game to Irrfan’s Hindi Medium. Now the second half (H2) of 2017 is also packed with highly anticipated films that’ll fight for the most eyeballs on the same Fridays.
Two films about to clash on July 21 are Sabbir Khan’s Munna Michael and Alankrita Shrivastava’s Lipstick under My Burkha. Sabbir, who liked the trailer of Lipstick, says, “I hope they do well, as in the past when two good films were out on the same day. Whatever audiences watch first, they’ll have a great second choice.”
Shrivastava feels both the films have their USPs. “Munna Michael seems to be a male star-driven mass film, whereas Lipstick is about the colourful lives of ordinary women. While there’s always space for the status quo, it’s nice to see that disruptors like Lipstick have space, too,” she adds.
Other film clashes include Mubarakan and Indu Sarkar (July 28); Baadshaho and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan (September 1); Golmaal Again and Secret Superstar (October 18); Tumhari Sullu and 102NotOut (December 1).
Talking about his film Haseena Parkar releasing on August 18, with Bareilly Ki Barfi, director Apoorva Lakhia says, “When we release over 1,500 films a year in India, it’s very difficult to get single release dates... [But] there are enough screens for 2-3 films of medium to small budgets.”
Critic Omar Qureshi states, “A good movie can arrive in a clutter, yet stand out if it passes the fine film test.”