By:
Taran
Adarsh,
IndiaFM
Thursday,
April
13,
2006
With
the
onset
of
summer
vacations,
the
business
generally
shows
an
upward
trend
from
April
to
June,
but
the
low-key
response
to
two
of
the
three
films
that
opened
last
Friday
[April
7]
did
catch
a
number
of
industrymen
by
surprise.
In
fact,
barring
Shaadi
Se
Pehle
[good
first
week
billing
in
Mumbai,
Delhi-U.P.,
Rajasthan],
the
other
new
releases,
Banaras
and
Saawan,
generated
less
heat,
finding
it
difficult
to
stand
on
their
feet
in
the
opening
weekend
itself.
Shaadi
Se
Pehle
had
a
poor
start
on
Thursday
[Ram
Navmi
holiday].
In
fact,
the
opening
day
figures
of
this
Subhash
Ghai-produced
laughathon
were
in
the
range
of
20%
+,
although
a
few
centres
reported
a
much
lower
audience
turnout.
But
things
improved
on
Friday
and
the
collections
stabilized
on
Saturday
and
Sunday,
in
some
pockets.
Monday
was
dull,
but
the
holiday
on
Tuesday
helped
to
an
extent.
Although
the
audience
feedback
ranged
from
average
to
poor,
Shaadi
Se
Pehle
has
done
decent
business
in
Mumbai
[Mumbai
city-suburbs,
Gujarat],
Delhi-U.P.
and
Rajasthan.
In
fact,
the
distributors
of
this
moderately
priced
film
are
hopeful
that
they
would
be
able
to
recover
the
costs
in
days
to
come.
Banaras
was
the
worst
affected
of
the
lot.
In
fact,
the
collections
of
this
well-made
film
were
in
the
range
of
8%-10%
at
several
screens,
which
came
as
a
rude
shock.
Banaras
is
targeted
at
the
multiplex
audiences,
but,
surprisingly,
even
the
multiplexes
wore
a
deserted
look
during
its
show
timings.
One
of
the
prime
reasons
why
Banaras
went
unnoticed
was
because
the
promos
didn't
generate
any
heat
prior
to
its
release.
Also,
a
title
like
Banaras
-
A
Mystic
Love
Story
has
its
limitations.
However,
I
must
add
that
in
terms
of
audience
feedback,
Banaras
enjoyed
better
reports
amongst
the
three
releases,
but
it
caters
to
a
tiny
segment
of
viewers
and
hence,
such
poor
business
everywhere.
The
third
release,
Saawan,
took
a
better
start
in
the
Hindi
belt
[40%
+]
because
of
the
star
presence
of
Salman
Khan.
But
the
audience
reports
were
outright
negative;
consequently,
the
film
went
downhill
from
Day
2
itself.
In
fact,
the
moviegoers
felt
cheated
that
Salman
was
plastered
on
all
posters/hoardings
when
the
fact
remains
that
he
arrives
slightly
before
the
intermission
and
appears
in
parts
towards
the
second
hour.
There
was
talk
that
the
business
of
Saawan
might
get
a
boost,
courtesy
the
free
mileage
the
film
got
thanks
to
the
Salman
episode.
But
nothing
of
the
sort
happened.
Only
goes
to
prove,
yet
again,
that
any
amount
of
controversies
or
publicity
cannot
salvage
a
bad
film.
THIS
WEEK,
LAST
YEAR
[Weekend:
April
8-10,
2005]
If
the
first
quarter
of
2005
ended
on
a
tepid
note,
the
second
quarter
of
the
year
[April
to
June]
commenced
on
an
exhilarating
note.
The
much-awaited
season
of
biggies
commenced
with
Lucky
and
in
an
otherwise
arid
movie-going
scenario,
the
film
notched
a
fabulous
start
everywhere.
After
a
long,
long
time,
serpentine
queues
were
witnessed
outside
both
single
screens
and
multiplexes.
After
weeks
of
no-show,
the
'House
Full'
boards
sprang
up
at
the
entrance
of
cinema
halls,
which,
frankly
speaking,
is
such
a
rarity
these
days.
Salman
has
always
been
that
proverbial
dark
horse.
He
doesn't
have
the
Chopras
or
Johars
to
back
him,
he
doesn't
exercise
restraint
on
the
number
of
films
he
ought
to
do
every
year
[unlike
some
of
his
colleagues!],
he
doesn't
play
up
to
the
media,
his
personal
life
makes
more
news
than
his
professional...
Yet,
the
actor's
films
[most
of
them]
fetch
a
superb
start.
Promotion
also
played
a
crucial
role
in
creating
tremendous
excitement
for
Lucky.
The
quality
and
quantity
of
promos
were
both
splendid.
Besides,
T-Series,
the
masters
in
promotion,
left
no
stone
unturned
in
not
just
making
the
film,
but
releasing
it
with
the
hype
it
deserved.
Lukcy
performed
exceptionally
well
during
its
first
weekend.
The
film
had
a
wide
release
and
most
multiplexes
performed
six/seven
shows
every
day,
garnering
superb
collections
all
over.
With
a
fabulous
start
on
hand,
half
the
battle
was
won.
The
collections
did
totter
on
Monday
and
Tuesday
[Indo-Pak
cricket
match],
but
given
the
magnificent
start
of
the
film,
it
proved
a
plus
proposal
for
its
investors
eventually.