After a shockingly limp start, Sunny Deol’s showed a jump of 55 percent at the box office on Sunday, and amassed an impressive 15 crores on one day.
Trade Guru Taran Adarsh, who had predicted the jump, says, “ Jaat has shown substantial growth over the weekend, especially on Saturday and Sunday. A slow start on Friday led many to believe the film wouldn’t perform well over the weekend. However, strong reports and a positive response from its core audience – particularly the masses – have turned the tide. The single-screen audience in the mass belts is loving it, which explains the significant jump in numbers on Sunday. The growth over the weekend reaffirms that well-made masala entertainers continue to resonate with the masses, and Jaat stands as a shining example of that.”
Says Kumar Abhishek, Manager Cinepolis Patna, “We expected the film to open well. It didn’t, although it is a terrific action film with Sunny Deol doing a South Indian-styled Gadar. It didn’t pick up on Friday or Saturday, either. But on Sunday, there was a massive jump. Monday, though a holiday, there was no substantial jump.”
Adds trade analyst Atul Mohan, “Yes, the mass centres absolutely exploded on Sunday — Jaat really took off! I think word of mouth had a big hand in this. People connected with the film, and once the buzz started, it just grew stronger. The reviews were decent overall, but what really stood out was the unanimous feeling that this is solid, full-on massy entertainment. For the first couple of days, the film was just kind of floating — especially with very little coming in from the multiplexes. But Sunday changed everything. It was a holiday, plus Baisakhi, and we saw massive footfall in theatres, especially in the heartland. People came in groups, families, friends — it was great to see that energy back in cinemas. Even today, the numbers so far are better than Friday.”
The leap at the box office for Jaat has come in the nick of time, what with the producers worried that the losses would be insurmountable.
