Thugs of Hindostan Box Office: Why The Cold Reception to Aamir Khan's Film Is Making Us Worried For Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar's 2.0
2.0, also starring Amy Jackson, is directed by S Shankar and is scheduled to release on November 29.
In what could be termed as the biggest disappointment of 2018 when it comes to Bollywood, Thugs of Hindostan turned out to be a huge misfire. The much-hyped pirate saga had Aamir Khan in the lead, and the actor is known for not making any move wrong when it comes to choosing the right film. It was also the first time that Aamir Khan and Amitabh Bachchan, two of the biggest stalwarts in Hindi cinema, shared the screen together. Thugs of Hindostan was also backed by one of Bollywood's biggest production houses, Yash Raj Films. So the expectations were riding quite high on this Vijay Krishna Acharya film. Thugs of Hindostan Movie Review: Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif's Pirate Saga Needed Less of Jack Sparrow Buffoonery and More of Amitabh Bachchan Badassery.
Thugs of Hindostan took off to a flying start when it released on November 8, taking advantage of the hype train, Aamir Khan's box office pull and the Diwali holidays. It had the third-best pre-sale records and recorded the highest opening day collections (Rs 50.52 crore) for an Indian film. However, the movie was met with negative reviews and mixed reactions from the fans. This had led to a decline in collections and occupancy for the film in the next couple of days.
While Aamir Khan's film may cross the Rs 100 crore barrier, that is no longer a legit benchmark for the film. The official grapevine about the movie's budget is that it is reportedly made for Rs 300 crore (though after seeing the film, it is hard to believe these claims). If we take this claim as true, there is nearly impossible chance that Thugs of Hindostan will recover its costs, considering its business is on a steep decline. Thugs of Hindostan: 8 Ridiculous Things in Amitabh Bachchan, Aamir Khan and Katrina Kaif's Pirate Film That Make Little Sense (SPOILER ALERT)
Seeing how Thugs of Hindostan has performed at the box office, we are worried about another biggie, mounted on another huge budget, coming out in a couple of weeks. Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar's sci-fi film, 2.0, is reportedly made on a Rs 500 crore plus budget and that's a really scary thought. Now.
The blame of the burgeoning budget is blamed on the rework done for the VFX. The movie has to make more than Rs 700 crore to be even called profitable. In short, 2.0 HAS to make much, much more than what Baahubali 2 made at the box office. 2.0 Trailer: 13 Thoughts That Came to My Head While Watching the Promo of the Rajinikanth-Akshay Kumar Film.
The issue is, like Baahubali 2, 2.0 has to win over the entire country as well as the overseas audiences to achieve that mission. It is not an impossible task, for sure. But Baahubali 2 had a Baahubali 1 to lay a nice pitch for the film to perform all over the country. In the case of 2.0, its predecessor, the 2010 film Enthiran aka Robot, might have been a huge hit in Tamil Nadu and even in the US, but it failed to impress the audience in North India, despite the presence of Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the cast.
There is also the fact that the 2.0 trailer didn't exactly create the best of the impression, unlike the Baahubali 2 trailer, as many found issues with the patchy VFX and Akshay Kumar getting a raw deal in the promos. Not to mention, Rajinikanth is not exactly looking comfortable playing Chitti (both benign and roguish). All these are warning signs for sure, and while the movie may take off to a flying start at the box office, whether 2.0 will sustain itself in the days ahead, remains to be seen. And looking at the movie's budget, it has to do that! Rajinikanth and Akshay Kumar's 2.0 Trailer is Larger Than Life But Twitterati is NOT Convinced!
2.0, also starring Amy Jackson, is directed by S Shankar and is scheduled to release on November 29.
(The opinions expressed in the above article are of the author and do not reflect the stand or position of LatestLY.)
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Nov 11, 2018 09:50 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).