By:
Taran
Adarsh,
IndiaFM
Thursday,
September
07,
2006
Slow
and
steady
wins
the
race.
It
happened
with
Munnabhai
M.B.B.S.
It's
happened
again
with
Lage
Raho
Munnabhai,
the
second
film
in
the
franchise.
A
tepid
start
at
the
box-office
is
perilous.
With
weekend
business
contributing
enormously
to
the
booty,
the
first
three
days
have
become
the
most
crucial
phase
for
any
and
every
film.
And
if
the
film
carries
a
heavy
price
tag
of
Rs.
2
crore
+
[ratio
per
major
territory],
it's
crucial
to
open
with
big
numbers.
Contrary
to
the
pre-release
expectations,
Lage
Raho
Munnabhai
didn't
open
to
a
glorious
or
an
earth-shattering
response.
In
fact,
the
opening
wasn't
commensurate
with
the
merits
and
tremendous
appreciation
for
the
film.
The
opening
was
70%
at
places
[it
was
best
in
Mumbai/Maharashtra],
but
in
circuits
like
Uttar
Pradesh,
Punjab
and
Madhya
Pradesh,
it
was
approx.
50%
+.
Expectedly,
the
multiplexes
had
a
slow
start
on
Friday
[30%].
That's
because
the
settlement
between
Vidhu
Vinod
Chopra
and
the
multiplexes
happened
only
on
Friday
morning
[1.30
a.m.]
and
the
distributors
didn't
get
ample
time
to
publicize
the
fact
in
the
morning
newspapers.
But
the
tide
started
changing
on
Friday
itself.
The
all-round
appreciation
and
a
strong
word
of
mouth
spread
like
wild
fire
and
the
evening
shows
started
filling
up,
even
at
multiplexes.
In
fact,
at
several
multiplexes,
the
occupancy
was
in
the
range
of
95%
+,
which
is
fabulous
considering
the
number
of
shows
most
multiplexes
are
conducting
these
days
[14/16
in
this
case].
Day
2
[Saturday]
brought
in
favorable
news.
The
collections
picked
up
throughout
the
country.
The
response
to
the
film
at
multiplexes
was
superb,
while
single
screens
continued
to
behave
exceedingly
well.
Serpentine
queues
were
witnessed
outside
movieplexes
and
'house
full'
boards
[gathering
dust
since
last
two
weeks]
sprang
up
again
at
almost
every
venue.
On
Day
3
[Sunday],
the
steady
growth
in
business
gave
ample
reason
for
everyone
associated
with
the
film
to
pop
champagne.
The
film
had
struck
a
chord
with
the
elite,
the
yuppie
crowd,
aam
junta,
the
hoi
polloi...
all
sections
of
moviegoers.
In
fact,
I
haven't
come
across
a
single
person
who
hasn't
loved
the
film.
The
business
touched
the
zenith
and
the
glowing
feedback
from
moviegoers
and
media
only
strengthened
its
box-office
status.
At
Cinemax
Versova
[one
of
the
best
multiplexes
in
Mumbai],
the
film
had
approx.
80%
occupancy
in
16
shows
on
Saturday,
but
the
management
decided
to
increase
the
shows
from
16
to
18
from
Sunday
onwards.
Lo
and
behold,
it
was
100%
in
18
shows
on
Sunday
[Monday
was
60%
in
18
shows,
while
Tuesday
shot
up
again
with
80%
in
18
shows].
A
jump
like
this
is
a
rarity!
At
Indore
[considered
one
of
the
vital
barometers
of
business,
after
Mumbai],
the
film
also
showed
a
major
jump
as
days
progressed.
Delhi,
Kolkata,
Nagpur,
Pune...
it's
the
same
story.
There's
no
stopping
Lage
Raho
Munnabhai.
The
weekdays
are
always
crucial
and
a
decline
in
collections
is
considered
normal.
The
decline
of
25%
to
40%
is
no
cause
for
worry,
but
a
50%
+
drop
sends
shivers
across
the
trade.
Lage
Raho
Munnabhai
fell
by
approx.
25%
on
Monday
and
Tuesday,
but
the
film
continued
to
rock
everywhere,
with
some
shows
even
performing
90%
+.
Businesswise,
Lage
Raho
Munnabhai
is
a
'Hit'
for
sure.
The
escapades
of
Munna
and
Circuit
have
been
given
a
jadoo
ki
jhappi
by
moviegoers
throughout
the
country,
thereby
strengthening
its
position
at
the
box-office.
The
transition
from
'Hit'
to
'Super
Hit'
should
take
place
in
the
next
few
days.
hai
mamu!
The
title
is
Jaane
Hoga
Kya,
but
you
don't
need
to
tax
your
brains
to
guess
its
fate
at
the
box-office.
With
no
hype
surrounding
the
film
and
not
much
awareness
amongst
the
paying
public,
the
collections
had
to
be
disastrous.
An
also-ran
product!
THIS
WEEK
IN
2005
[Weekend:
September
2-4,
2005]
Why
are
most
producers
in
a
tearing
hurry
to
release
their
films?
Agreed,
they
have
their
reasons...
But
how
does
the
common
man
cope
with
four
films
in
a
single
week?
He
may
be
an
avid
film
buff,
he
may
be
the
first-day-first-show
type,
he
may
be
craving
to
watch
his
fav
stars
on
screen,
but
how
does
he
take
time
out
from
his
busy
schedule
to
watch
two,
three
or
four
films
in
a
week?
This
Friday
witnessed
the
release
of
four
films,
Pyaar
Mein
Twist,
Aashiq
Banaya
Aapne,
Ramji
Londonwale
and
Dansh.
Obviously,
the
opening
day
business
was
divided.
While
Aashiq
Banaya
Aapne
garnered
the
best
opening
[40%-50%
+],
Ramji
Londonwale
and
Pyaar
Mein
Twist
had
to
be
content
with
a
25%
+
initial.
As
for
Dansh,
the
opening
numbers
were
shockingly
low.
The
business
on
Saturdays
and
Sundays
shows
an
upswing
during
most
weekends
and
the
business
of
Ramji
Londonwale
and
Pyaar
Mein
Twist
was
upbeat
on
these
two
days.
Aashiq
Banaya
Aapne
also
remained
afloat
till
Sunday,
but
the
business
of
all
films
came
sliding
downwards
from
Monday
onwards.
THIS
WEEK
IN
2004
[Weekend:
September
3-5,
2004]
Two
eerie
flicks
starring
topnotch
names
hit
the
marquee.
And
both
--
Rakht
and
Hum
Kaun
Hai?
--
proved
a
nightmare
for
their
distributors.
While
RAKHT
at
least
managed
a
40%
to
60%
opening
at
places,
the
response
to
Hum
Kaun
Hai?
sent
shock
waves
throughout
the
film
industry.
Its
opening
ranged
from
7%
to
10%
at
several
screens.
The
promotion
of
Rakht
was
quite
low-key,
while
Hum
Kaun
Hai?
came
literally
unannounced.
The
producers
started
promoting
the
product
[Hum
Kaun
Hai?]
barely
6-7
days
before
this
desi
version
of
The
Others
was
to
hit
the
screens.
Naturally,
even
die-hard
Bachchan
fans
weren't
aware
of
this
flick.