Bodyguard smashes all records

Everyone was forecasting " Bodyguard" to open to big box-office collections, but no one anticipated the massive response the movie ended up generating. The film, which opened on Eid on Wednesday, ran to packed houses in the country, with trade analysts predicting the collections to be in the range of `18-20 crore.

During the last couple of years, it was Salman's other big ticket release, "Dabangg" (`14.35 crore), and Aamir Khan's "3 Idiots" (`12.5 crore), which had shown the biggest openings.

Says trade analyst Taran Adarsh, "Salman is something else now. I think the movie has earned almost `20 crore on day one and over the weekend, it will cross `85-90 crore." Komal Nahta is more conservative in his estimates and pegs the weekend collection at `65-70 crore. However, Nahta says the film has broken all international records too. Says Nahta, "In Dubai, the movie opened on Tuesday because that's when Eid was celebrated. While "Dabangg" had opened with 7 lakh dirhams (`87 lakh), "Bodyguard" made 11 lakh dirhams (`1.36 crore). In London, the movie opened with a collection of 60,000 pounds (`44.4 lakh) on Tuesday, which too is unheard of. It has broken all previous records for any Bollywood film."

While analysts hail Salman and the film as a box office miracle, multiplex and single screen officials tell us that various strategies have come together to help the film. Says Tinku Singh, group president, SRS group, "In NCR, we ran 53 shows in Faridabad, and 22 and 30 shows in Gurgaon and Indirapuram. The total collection on day one was `24 lakh. It is houseful across the country. After the "Aarakshan" fiasco, everyone's rejoicing with this movie. And the thing to remember here is that the movie opened on a Wednesday, so it will have five days, plus two more weekends at least, to make a lot more money."

Also, "Boduguard" opened to weekend pricing across most multiplexes, giving them much more revenue. However, PVR Cinemas chose to go ahead with weekday pricing for Wednesday, and reported 95% occupancy in the morning shows, and 100% occupancy towards the evening. Out of 550 shows in PVR halls, approximately 325 were played in Delhi and Punjab. Says Deepa Menon, vice president, corporate communications for PVR Cinemas, "The movie saw an excellent opening in Delhi-NCR, ending the day with nearly 95% occupancy, which is quite phenomenal. This definitely is one of the biggest openings on day one that we've seen."

Even in single-screen theatres, the film has done record-breaking business in Delhi-NCR. While Vishal in Rajouri Garden reported a total of `4.5 lakh in four shows, all four shows were houseful in Delite, said Sunil Parashar, media coordinator for Dellite. Sheila Cinema in Paharganj too, saw four full shows, totalling a collection of over `3 lakh. Says Parashar, "During "Ready", ticket prices had been increased by 20% even in single-screen halls. But for "Bodyguard", even at normal single-screen prices, the movie has broken all records. Most single screens are houseful till Sunday."

Biggest opening days
Bodyguard: `20 cr
Dabangg (2010): `14.35 cr
3 Idiots (2009): `12.5 cr

Paisa vasool: 'Bodyguard' Salman wows box office home & abroad

He is Bollywood's biggest paisa vasool star today. That's what theatre-owner Rachit Malhotra thinks of Salman Khan. Malhotra owns Agra's Jwala cinema, a single-screen theatre with an abundant 1,139 seats. Yet on Wednesday (Eid) and Thursday, they weren't enough to accommodate the frenzied fans who queued outside for a ticket. Every show of Bodyguard, Salman's latest release, was houseful.

"For the audience, Salman is the film. Everything else is secondary. They aren't just whistling when he bares his chest. They are even dancing outside the hall. They know a Sallu bhai movie is always tension-free, with entertainment guaranteed," says Malhotra.

It's a similar tale in each of the four single-screen theatres and the three multiplexes in the city of the Taj. "Combined, there are about 60 shows of Bodyguard every day in Agra. Most are houseful. That's staggering," he says.

The success story is being replicated across India, even abroad. Trade expert Komal Nahta says the film raked in a record-breaking 11 lakh dirham (about Rs 1.36 crore) on Tuesday, the opening day in Dubai. Even in UK, the first-day collection of £60,000 (about Rs 44 lakh) was equally impressive.

"The movie could cross Rs 85 crore in the first nine days. Overall, it could end up netting around Rs 125 crore," says Nahta, editor, Film Information. Bodyguard's box-office figures - his third major recent hit along with Dabangg (2010) and Ready (2011) - might bring a smile on the lips of India's most famous bachelor. Smiling won't be easy though. Salman has trigeminal neuralgia, a condition that causes acute pain in the jaw. He is currently undergoing treatment in the US.

Like Bodyguard, Dabangg and Wanted (2009) were also released during Eid. "He has a huge following among the Muslim youth. With an Eid release he is able to capitalize on it," says Nahta. That's correct but not the full truth. The 45-year-old actor is equally popular among urban lower-middle class youth and the underclass across communities.

Social scientist Shiv Viswanathan believes the secret of Salman's popularity lies in his ability to combine machismo and irreverence, innocence and mischievousness. "He combines opposites effortlessly," he says.

Distributor Sanjay Mehta puts the second surge in the star's popularity in perspective. In the past 10 years, Bollywood was dominated by feel-good family dramas, love stories and naughty comedies. "Salman was the first to spot the shortage of action films. and its possible demand. With Wanted and Dabangg, he reinvented himself as an all-action hero who also delivers one-liners, makes people laugh. With a few changes, Bodyguard continues in the same vein," he says.

Salman's bulging biceps in Veergati (1995) spurred the 'bodybuilding' craze in small town India. Almost two decades later, he continues to be every neighbourhood gym's No. 1 poster boy. Yet, his major early hits were either romantic comedies or emotional dramas: Maine Pyaar Kiya, Hum Aapke Hain Kaun, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam .

The actor's reinvention as an action star became possible after the regular men of muscle -- Sunny Deol, Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgun and Akshay Kumar -- recast themselves as funny-face comics and uneasy romantics. The new Salman filled that gap. True, he was always at home in action flicks (Garv, 2003). But with Wanted and Dabangg, he repositioned himself as Bollywood's top action man.

Viswanathan says that part of Salman's charm lies in the fact that he makes no claims of being an intellectual. "He is just normal and healthy, a child of nature, the boy next door. And he is sheer entertainment. He is non-problematic intellectually. And that works in an age where everybody seems to be into problem solving," he says. Mehta says that Salman's rebellious streak has also endeared him to the masses. "They find him more human," he says.

In recent years, the actor has matured in real life. Salman doesn't make headlines any more for allegedly shooting black bucks or breaking glass panes of his girlfriend's home or reportedly driving over people sleeping on the pavement. Now he makes news primarily for breaking box-office records, for being able to figure out the people's pulse unerringly. Time and again. There is something about Salman Khan.