Mary Kom Opening Weekend Box Office Collection: Mints Money

Mary Kom which was released in about 1,800 screens in India and raked in Rs.28.32 crore in the opening weekend with maximum collections from Delhi and Mumbai.

However, trade analysts said that the film is going houseful in Assam and Meghalaya, but the overall contribution to the Box Office earnings from the region is just one percent. The biopic about the Olympic medal-winning boxer M.C.Kom hit 72 cinemas in Assam and just two in Meghalaya. The contributions from that area is not much.

"The subject of the film is known and Mary is from the northeast, so naturally there are sentiments attached," a distributor from Assam told.

"There were many students who watched it on the first day itself. In both Assam and Meghalaya, the shows were houseful. Many were left inspired and clapped in the end of the film too," he added.

Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Manipur, Mizoram, Tripura and Sikkim has a handful of operational cinema halls but the contributions from this region is mere one percent.

"The Assam government is trying to pull the crowds by exempting entertainment tax on Mary Kom. But only one percent contribution was made to the domestic box office collection," said the distributor.

Assam's Ashiq Zaman, a government official, watched it on the first day and said it is "inspiring", but he was not too convinced with Priyanka Chopra in the title role.

"Northeast states are hardly highlighted in mainstream cinema, so I wanted to see how they would present Manipur and its people. Priyanka has done well, but it was like watching Tom Hanks (Hollywood actor) playing Muhammad Ali (former African American boxer)," said Zaman.

"There were lot of Manipuri people in the audience. About 50 percent of the audience must have been Manipuri who are staying in Assam," he added.

Meanwhile, producers are trying to release the film in Kom's hometown, where around 60 to 70 films in Meitei language are made in a year. But Hindi films screenings are banned since early 2000 due to an insurgent groups' diktat.

"Manipur release was initiated earlier, but there was no positive response as Hindi films are not screened there. However, all efforts are in the direction of getting a theatrical release in Manipur," said a source from Viacom18 Motion Pictures.

The film has opened to positive reviews down south.

"It's a hit in the multiplexes, but not in smaller markets as audiences here favour watching a male superstar's Hindi film," said trade analyst Trinath.

Omung Kumar's directorial debut, which was co-produced by Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Viacom18 Motion Pictures, is minting money in metro cities.

"Maximum business is from Mumbai and Delhi. It should be able to earn Rs.45 crore in one week at least. The subject and Priyanka's performance are the highpoints of the film," said Rajesh Thadani of Multimedia Combines.