Bollywood's Brahmastra: What's at stake for whom in this Ranbir Kapoor-Alia Bhatt starrer

Off to a strong advance ticket booking start, a lot is at stake for the Rs 400-crore film Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva not just for the team behind it, but also for the Hindi film industry reeling from back-to-back flops.  

What does it look like now?  

The film has sold 1,87,158 tickets in advance bookings for the opening day across the three theatre chains of PVR, Cinepolis, and Inox, according to trade portal Bollywood Hungama. This is much higher than the 92,000 tickets sold in advance by one of the biggest hits this year Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2.   

• Brahmastra – 1,87,158 [as of Thursday 9 am]  
• Laal Singh Chaddha – 63,000  
• Raksha Bandhan – 34,000  
• Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 – 92,000  
• Jug Jugg Jeeyo – 54,000  
• Gangubai Kathiawadi – 56,000  
• RRR (Hindi) – 1,05,000  

While some analysts estimate the film will open to Rs 20 crore-25 crore box-office collections on the first weekend and net a lifetime collection of Rs 130- Rs 200 crore, others say the film could do Rs 30 crore business on the opening day alone going by the advance ticket sales.  But content will decide the film’s run, experts agree.  

Also read: Troubled Bollywood needs 'Brahmastra' to work

Stars and producers need some stardust  

1. The film is produced by Fox Star Studios, Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, Prime Focus and Starlight Pictures. The film’s director Ayan Mukerji and actor Ranbir Kapoor are also producing it.  

2. Dharma Productions’ last venture Liger starring Vijay Deverakonda bombed at the Box Office, while its previous releases have been a mixed bag with theatrical release JugJugg Jeeyo and direct-to-OTT releases Gehraiyaan and Shershaah. It’s last big-ticket release Sooryavanshi made Rs 233.33 crore in Indian gross collections, although it was made on a Rs 200 crore-plus budget. 

3. Taking a page out of the marketing books of recent south Indian blockbusters, the makers have been promoting the film heavily among the Telugu audiences. 

4. Filmmaker SS Rajamouli is also adding his heft to it by presenting the film in the four south Indian languages.  

5. Lead actor Ranbir Kapoor is also in need of a big hit. His last outing Shamshera, which came after a four-hiatus following Sanju (2018), sank without a trace grossing about Rs 50 crore. 

Also read: Laal Singh Chaddha, Liger flop: Bollywood in the middle of another crisis

Ailing Bollywood needs a boost:  

1. Bollywood has had a lacklustre 2022 so far with even big star-backed films such as Aamir Khan’s Laal Singh Chaddha, Akshay Kumar’s Raksha Bandhan and Samrat Prithviraj, Ranbir Kapoor’s Shamshera and Ranveer Singh’s Jayeshbhai Jordaar tanking back-to-back at the box office.   

2. The best performers in Hindi this year so far have been The Kashmir Files and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 which made at Rs 297.53 crore and 221.33 cr in gross Box Office India collection, respectively, according to Bollywood Hungama. 

3. Hindi Box Office is slated to decline 22 per cent (vs pre COVID levels) in Q2FY23, as content has been below par so far, according to Elara Capital analysts. 
 
4. The year’s biggest hit so far is Kannada film K.G.F: Chapter 2 which has grossed Rs 1,008 crore at the Box Office.  

5. South Indian films have been giving Hindi films a run for their money with blockbusters such as RRR, Pushpa: The Rise in Telugu, KGF: Chapter 2 in Kannada and Vikram in Tamil.

Also read: Brahmastra box office collection Day 1 prediction: Ranbir Kapoor, Alia Bhatt movie set to end Bollywood's dry spell

Also read: Brahmastra review: VFX-heavy Ranbir-Alia starrer unfolds a grand vision

Also read: 15,000 tickets sold! How Brahmastra is scoring at Telugu Box Office on the Rajamouli factor