Sunny Deol’s much-hyped pan-India action film struggles with low advance bookings, trails behind ‘Gadar 2’ and ‘Sikandar’.
Sunny Deol returns to the big screen with Jaat, his first pan-India action adventure backed by South India’s Mythri Movie Makers. Marketed as Sunny’s equivalent of Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan or Salman Khan’s Sikandar, Jaat aims to re-establish the veteran star’s dominance, particularly in South Indian markets. However, early box office indicators suggest that the film might fall short of expectations.
According to data from Sacnilk, Jaat managed a modest ₹2.37 crore in advance booking collections across India before its release on April 10. This figure pales in comparison to Deol’s previous blockbuster Gadar 2, which raked in ₹17.60 crore in advance bookings last year. In major territories, Jaat couldn’t cross even ₹1 crore in pre-sales, with the exception of the NCR region, triggering concerns in the trade circuit.
Despite the tepid pre-sales, Jaat benefits from Sunny Deol’s enduring popularity in tier-2 and tier-3 cities. Mass action films like this one often see strong spot bookings, and as per early trade estimates, Jaat had earned under ₹2 crore by noon on its opening day. The film is projected to close the day at around ₹10 crore net, making it Deol’s second-best opening after Gadar 2’s ₹40 crore debut.
However, the comparison is not flattering. Jaat is expected to earn only 40% of Sikandar, Salman Khan’s latest release, which itself had a lukewarm opening last Sunday. With Sky Force, Akshay Kumar’s patriotic drama, opening at ₹12 crore earlier this year, Jaat may also find itself trailing behind that film unless it benefits from strong word-of-mouth in the coming days.
Trade analysts suggest that for a film of Jaat’s scale and marketing push, anything under ₹15 crore on day one would be underwhelming. A ₹10 crore opening, while respectable, underscores the significant gap between industry expectations and audience turnout.
Directed by Gopichand Malineni in his Hindi directorial debut, Jaat features a stellar ensemble cast including Regina Cassandra, Randeep Hooda, Vineet Kumar Singh, Saiyami Kher, Ramya Krishnan, and Jagapathi Babu. Whether the film can gain momentum over the weekend remains to be seen, but for now, Jaat faces an uphill climb at the box office.
Sources By Agencies
