Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan's Haiwaan arrived in cinemas on Friday, but the much-anticipated crime thriller got off to a slow start at the box office. The Priyadarshan directorial had already faced a lukewarm response in advance bookings, and the film now appears to be struggling amid strong competition from Mirzapur The Movie and Hanuman Ansh. According to early estimates, Haiwaan collected around Rs 3 crore on its opening day.
Haiwaan marks Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan's return to the big screen together after 18 years. The two actors were last seen together in the 2008 film Tashan, making their reunion one of the film's key talking points.
However, the reunion hasn't translated into a strong opening so far. Advance bookings for Haiwaan remained subdued before release, while the film received mixed reactions from audiences after hitting theatres. That combination appears to have affected its first-day business.
According to an early trend report by Sacnilk, Haiwaan earned Rs 3 crore on its opening day. These are preliminary figures and could change once official box-office data is released.
The competition in cinemas has made things tougher for Haiwaan. Mirzapur The Movie continues to draw audiences, while Hanuman Ansh has also seen a sudden rise in popularity.
Both films are receiving a positive response from viewers and have secured a significant number of screens. As a result, Haiwaan has had to compete for audience attention and screen space in the Hindi market.
‘Mirzapur The Movie’, meanwhile, earned Rs 9 crore net on Day 8 and has crossed Rs 225 crore in worldwide gross collections, giving ‘Haiwaan’ stiff competition at the box office.
‘Hanuman Ansh’ has continued to hold its ground at the box office, adding Rs 10.50 crore to its India net collection on Day 36. Its total India net now stands at Rs 173.63 crore.
With viewers divided between the three releases, the Akshay Kumar-Saif Ali Khan starrer couldn't make the kind of opening-day impact that may have been expected from the reunion of the two stars.
Directed by Priyadarshan, Haiwaan has been produced by Venkat K. Narayan and Shailaja Desai Phan under the banners of KVN Productions and Thespian Films.
The film features Boman Irani, Shriya Pilgaonkar and Saiyami Kher in important roles. Mohanlal also makes a cameo appearance.
Haiwaan is the Hindi remake of Oppam, the Priyadarshan-directed film starring Mohanlal.
