Will The Kashmir Files affect box-office collection of RRR after Bachchhan Paandey? Trade experts answer

Vivek Agnihotri's The Kashmir Files caused some serious damage to Bachchhan Paandey's box-office run. Will it do the same to SS Rajamouli's RRR?

The Kashmir Files has created a storm at the box office ever since its release on March 11, touching the coveted Rs 200 crore mark. From opening with just 400 screens on the first day to having 2200 screens on the second day, the film managed to overshadow and overtake other films that were released during the same time. Akshay Kumar's Bachchhan Paandey, which was released a week later on March 18, was affected big-time by The Kashmir Files phenomenon. The Vivek Agnihotri-directed film isn’t letting anyone come in its way as it continues to shatter box-office records. And with its glorious run, one wonders if it will affect the box-office collection of SS Rajamouli's magnum opus, RRR. The film, starring Ram Charan, Jr NTR, Alia Bhatt, Ajay Devgn, among others, is set to release on March 25 in four languages. Given the scenario, who would have thought that a film like The Kashmir Files would pose a tough competition to a film like RRR?

Speaking about the same, industry experts reason with IndiaToday.in as to why they think even with The Kashmir Files storm, RRR will emerge victorious. Trade expert and film exhibitor Akshaye Rathi said, "Both movies have an audience and in that scenario, both movies are expected to do phenomenally well simultaneously. As much as we are talking about the impact of The Kashmir Files on Bachchhan Paandey, in the first week of The Kashmir Files' release, when it was becoming a rage, we had Jhund, Valimai, ET, and a whole lot of other movies running equally well on the first Sunday. So, as long as RRR has the merit to do well, I don't think anything else is going to stop it. Yes, there may be a tiny dent at the opening, but I think eventually, with the merits of the film, nothing will be able to stop it."

Predicting the box-office collection of RRR, Rathi states, "Across languages (Hindi, Telugu, Kanada, Malayalam), the film will be able to collect a bare minimum of Rs 60-70 crore on the first day. And in the first weekend, the film could collect close to Rs 175-180 crore across languages."

Agreeing with Rathi, film trade expert and producer Amul V Mohan said, "The Kashmir Files is doing the numbers that it is doing, that is not changing right now. Obviously, there was a slight drop yesterday and Bachchhan Paandey's collection did get affected. But RRR is a bigger film. The problem with RRR is that the advances are very low across the country, especially the Hindi version, which was touted to be one of the biggest Hindi films this year. The advances do not reflect the sentiments of the anticipation that the film had maybe even a few weeks or months ago. That is a tricky situation for the film. Having said that, the film will still open big, especially the Telugu version, which is the home version of the film. But the Hindi version has almost negligible advances across the country."

He further added, "Going forward, The Kashmir Files might not have an impact like it did last weekend when it went on to make over Rs 71 crore just over the weekend. But, it will still make money over this weekend, it just won't be of that level. Now the film has found a plateau in terms of the numbers, it won't be hitting major numbers every day like it was in the first 14 days of its release.”

Film critic and trade expert Taran Adarsh states, "The Kashmir Files was in the second week when the wave had just begun. That's when Bachchhan Paandey released. The wave was so strong! It was not a wave actually, it was a moment that people wanted to watch and rewatch The Kashmir Files. That is the primary reason why Bachchhan Paandey got hit so badly. Now as the film enters the third week, will it affect the release of RRR? Well, it all depends on two factors. How strong is RRR in terms of content? No one has watched the film yet, even when I spoke with the actors, Jr NTR and Ram Charan, neither of them had watched the film yet. So, we can't really comment on what the merit of the film is. So, it all depends on how strong the merit of RRR is. In any case, RRR is a big release and since The Kashmir Files enters the third week, the screen counts of the Vivek Agnihotri film will be reduced to accommodate RRR. Especially with Bachchhan Paandey not doing well, the screens will be shared mainly between RRR and The Kashmir Files."

"Having said that, I still feel that over the weekend, especially in multiplexes and also beyond the metros during the weekend, The Kashmir Files would also hold a strong number. The film has caught on and it will not slow down. But, we will have to wait and see how RRR turns out," Taran said in conclusion.