Mumbai (Maharashtra), March 31: Bollywood superstar Salman Khan’s much-anticipated film Sikandar hit theatres on Sunday, coinciding with the festive occasion of Eid. Despite receiving a mixed reception from critics and audiences, the film, which also stars Rashmika Mandanna in the lead role, performed reasonably well at the box office on its opening day.
According to the makers, Sikandar grossed Rs 54.72 crore globally on its first day. However, trade analyst Taran Adarsh noted that the opening collections were comparatively lower than those of Khan’s previous films. He highlighted that, given the post-pandemic trends for highly anticipated films, an opening day collection of over Rs 40 crore was expected. “Even though Sikandar had the biggest release for a Hindi film in India—5500 screens and about 22,000 shows per day—the film didn’t make it to Salman Khan’s Top 5 opening days list,” Adarsh wrote.
While Sikandar performed better in mass markets, Adarsh expects the film’s collections to see a jump on Monday due to the ongoing Eid festivities. However, he cautioned that the real test would come after the initial boost.
Directed by AR Murugadoss, Sikandar‘s box office performance may have been affected by piracy. Film trade analyst Komal Nahta reported that the movie had been leaked online before its official release. Though efforts were made to remove it from over 600 piracy websites, the damage may have already been done, according to sources.
In response to the leak, Sikandar‘s producer, Sajid Nadiadwala’s team confirmed that piracy agencies were working actively to address the situation. However, they did not confirm the details of the leak.
Despite a slow start, Sikandar is expected to gain momentum on Monday due to the holiday season, with further performance to be evaluated in the coming days.
‘Sikandar’ also features Sharman Joshi, Kajal Aggarwal, and Sathyaraj among others.