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Lights, camera, little action: ‘Bell Bottom’, ‘Chehre’ yet to pull crowds

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Two back-to-back big releases — Akshay Kumar’s ‘Bell Bottom’ and the Amitabh Bachchan star vehicle, ‘Chehre’, both well-received by critics — may have buoyed the spirits of film exhibitors, but their box-office collections have been far from encouraging.

‘Bell Bottom’, which was released on August 19, according to trade analysts, has grossed Rs 18.55 crore till date. Compare this with the Rs 64.99 crore collected in its opening weekend by ‘Good Newzz’ (with Diljit Dosanjh), Akshay’s last film before the first nationwide Covid-19 lockdown. And that was far less than the extended opening weekend earnings — Rs 97.56 crore — of the other big 2019 film, ‘Mission Mangal’.

A number of factors have contributed to this significant drop in earnings: cinema theatres are still under lockdown in Mumbai and Pune, depriving Bollywood of 25 per cent of its revenues; the requirement in a number of malls for patrons to produce double vaccination certificates before being allowed in, which is affecting attendance in theatres located in malls; and, significantly, the closure of 1,500 single screens across India because of the pandemic-induced economic stress.

On ‘Chehre’, which opened on Friday, the analysts were not very bullish about box-office figures. Karan Taurani of Elara Capital predicted that it would make a “lifetime collection” of Rs 5-6 crore because of its “niche” storyline that only a “discerning audience” would appreciate.

Taurani also pointed out that collections have been low because of “very low occupancy in morning shows and night shows not being allowed”. He also blamed the low occupancies forced by social distancing norms being in force. Also, over the last eight days, barring this past Sunday, which did see a spike in Delhi as a result of Raksha Bandhan festivities, attendance in theatres was at an all-time low across Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

Exhibitors, however, are cautiously optimistic about their business coming back to life, even if partially, because of ‘Bell Bottom’ and ‘Chehre’.

Gautam Dutta, CEO, PVR Limited, said in a conversation with IANS: “Post the reopening of cinemas after the second wave, ‘Bell Bottom’ was the first big Bollywood movie to have hit the big screen. And it has done reasonably well within the restrictions in capacity, show limitations and weekend closures.”

He also emphasised the lockdown still in place for cinema theatres in “major markets such as Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Kerala.”

The sentiment was share by Rajender Singh Jyala, Chief Programming Officer, INOX Leisure.

Speaking to IANS, he said: “We have always said that the industry needed a couple of mass entertainers to kick off the recovery process, and we are glad that these have arrive and are doing phenomenally well, despite the restrictions.”

“We positively hope that the momentum built by the fantastic response to ‘Bell Bottom’ in the week gone by, and the hype around ‘Chehre’, would mark the onset of our revival journey.”

For Dutta, more than the initial numbers, it is the momentum that matters. He said to IANS: “We are encouraged by the release of the long-awaited ‘Chehre’ today. Hope this will encourage producers from the Bollywood fraternity to announce their big films for theatrical release and get movie-goers back to cinemas.”

Entertainment

Shruti Haasan tells dad Kamal Haasan on his birthday: You are just the rarest of the rare Appa!

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Chennai : Actress and singer Shruti Haasan, who is also the elder daughter of actor, producer and parliamentarian Kamal Haasan, on Saturday penned an adorable birthday wish for her dad in which she called him a “glorious uncut diamond” and a person who was “the rarest of the rare”. Taking to her Instagram page to pen the birthday wish to her dad, she wrote, “Happy birthday Appa dearest! I think you’ll appreciate very much that I don’t wax eloquent on here as to why I love you the most but I’ve not always been the best at taking your advice (smiley face).” She went on to say, “I spoke to you this morning to wish you and one of the first things you did was recommend a movie you’d just watched and then proceed to break down why it is that you love that movie so much… years and years in your favourite playground of cinema haven’t jaded, not even a little bit the love and with which you live this magical life and the gifts you give us through your craft.”

Stating that the heart of the little boy who looked up at his first bright light on his very first movie set was vibrant, alive and always searching for more, she said, “You are just the rarest of the rare Appa,the most glorious uncut diamond sparkling in the way only you can. Love you to the moon and back.” Meanwhile, birthday wishes have been pouring in for actor Kamal Haasan from various people cutting across film industries. Raaj Kamal Films International, the actor’s production house, wished the actor a happy birthday by releasing two new stills from his just titled film, ‘Sandiyar’.

Seeking to mark Kamal Haasan’s birthday on Saturday, Raaj Kamal Films International had on Friday announced on its X timeline that the film had been titled ‘SANDIYAR’. The production house also released a poster from the film that showed Kamal Haasan sporting an intense look and holding a revolver. Kamal Haasan was seen leaning into a car through its window. Blood marks on the car’s door gave the impression that the film would be a grim action thriller. The film boasts of a fantastic technical team. It will have music by one of the film industry’s best music directors Anirudh Ravichander. Stunts for the film are to be choreographed by National Award winning stunt masters Anbariv. Cinematography for the film is to be by Sunil KS. While production design is being handled by C S Balachander, costumes in the film are being designed by Amritha Ram. The film is to be produced by Kamal Haasan and R Mahendran, with S Disney joining in as co-producer.

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Alia Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor’s ‘little unicorn ’ Raha turns four, actress shares fun pics from her Bluey-themed party

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Mumbai : Bollywood superstar Alia Bhatt on Saturday gave fans a glimpse into daughter Raha Kapoor’s fourth birthday celebrations. Sharing a series of pictures from the intimate, cartoon-themed bash on her social media account, Alia revealed all the fun that took place at the event. The first picture featured Alia and Ranbir Kapoor with Raha as they appeared to celebrate her special day together. Alia captioned it, “she’s 4” followed by a teary-eyed and a rainbow emoticon.

Another picture showed Raha, dressed in a grey checked outfit with a floral skirt, walking barefoot across the lawn, with hair styled in multiple tiny sections decorated with colourful clips. Alia captioned the adorable frame, “our little unicorn”. The actress also shared a close-up moment of herself planting a kiss on Raha’s cheek. The picture was captioned simply, “obsessed”. In another picture, Raha can be seen colouring a rainbow-themed sheet, and a birthday cake featuring hand-drawn cartoon characters was also captured in the carousel. Alia captioned the cake picture, “blessed.” The final picture showed Alia posing happily in front of a colourful birthday backdrop. The birthday event setting featured balloons, a cartoon-style bus and the words “Raha’s 4th Birthday”. Alia captioned the picture, “& ever”.

For the uninitiated, Raha was born on November 6, 2022, to Alia and Ranbir, who had tied the knot in an intimate ceremony at their Mumbai home on April 14, 2022. The couple announced that they were expecting their first child in June 2022, with Alia sharing a picture from her sonography session. Recently, Ranbir in a conversation around his film “Ramayana”, described Raha as the “diya” of his life and said the coincidence of playing Lord Ram while becoming a father had been a turning point for him. He had also spoken about how fatherhood changed his priorities and his outlook towards life. Alia, too, has previously spoken about Ranbir as a hands-on father. She described him as sensitive and said that his love for Raha is evident in the way he interacts with her. The couple had revealed Raha’s face to media and fans on Christmas in 2023. A few months after that, they started to keep Raha away from the public eye.

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Entertainment

Aksharaa Haasan’s heartfelt wish for Kamal Haasan: Not everyone has the ability to be a dad

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Mumbai : Veteran actor and politician Kamal Haasan’s younger daughter, Aksharaa Haasan, wished the ‘Indian’ actor with a loving post on IG. On Saturday, Aksharaa dropped a goofy photo with Haasan and penned, “Anyone can be a father but not everyone has the ability to be a dad, friend and inspiration. Happiest birthday dearest Bapuji @ikamalhaasan “. Aksharaa’s sister and Kamal Haasan’s elder daughter, Shruti Haasan, called her father a “glorious uncut diamond” and a person who was “the rarest of the rare”. Her birthday post for her father went, “Happy birthday Appa dearest! I think you’ll appreciate very much that I don’t wax eloquent on here as to why I love you the most but I’ve not always been the best at taking your advice (smiley face emoji).”

“I spoke to you this morning to wish you and one of the first things you did was recommend a movie you’d just watched and then proceed to break down why it is that you love that movie so much… years and years in your favourite playground of cinema haven’t jaded, not even a little bit the love and with which you live this magical life and the gifts you give us through your craft.” Shruti went on to add. “The heart of the little boy who looked up at his first bright light on his very first movie set is vibrant , alive and always searching for more. You are just the rarest of the rare Appa,the most glorious uncut diamond sparkling in the way only you can,” the ‘Salaar’ actress went on to add. Shruti concluded the post by expressing her immense love for her father. Wishes have been pouring in from all sides for Haasan on his special day from both the entertainment and political world.

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