Sunny Deol’s Gadar 2 becomes the second-highest Bollywood opener of 2023 after Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan which earned Rs 57 crore on the day of its release.
Sunny Deol is back as Tara Singh in Anil Sharma’s latest directorial, which is the sequel to 2001 blockbuster ‘Gadar: Ek Prem Katha’. ‘Gadar 2: Ek Katha’ finally arrived in cinemas on Friday (Aug 10) after a long wait and has taken the internet by storm. The film has already been declared a superhit by trade pundits as most of cinema halls went jam-packed on Friday.
Before the movie arrived in theatres, ‘Gadar 2’ earned a hefty amount through advance bookings. As per noted film critic Tarn Adarsh, the film managed to sell over 2.7 lakh tickets in advance bookings, which translates to Rs 15 crore in revenue. While the official first day collection is yet to be revealed by the makers and critics, it is expected that the film is most likely to collect anywhere between Rs 40-45 crore on its opening day.
Brief info
Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel’s recently released film Gadar 2 is set to create a storm at the ticket counters. The movie that has released in theatres on Friday is most likely to register an opening of Rs 35 crore, reported industry tracker Sacnilk. On its opening day, the film had a 36.73% Hindi occupancy, which is expected to grow over the weekend.
With this, Gadar 2 becomes the second-highest Bollywood opener of 2023 after Shah Rukh Khan’s Pathaan which earned Rs 57 crore on the day of its release. The other Hindi films which performed decently on their opening day and had a double-digit opening at the ticket counters are Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan (Rs 15.81 crore), Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar (Rs 15.73 crore), Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (Rs 11.10 crore), and Bholaa (Rs 11.20 crore).
Gadar 2, helmed by Anil Sharma, is a sequel to the 2001 film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha. It is the story of a father, Tara Singh (played by Sunny Deol), who crosses the border and goes to Pakistan to rescue his son Jeete (Utkarsh Sharma). The film also features Ameesha Patel who reprises her role of Sakeena.
Also read | Gadar 2 movie review: Sunny Deol film offers nothing new
A few hours before Gadar 2’s release, film trade analyst Taran Adarsh reported that the film sold approximately 2.75 lakh tickets in advance bookings at national cinema chains. He wrote on Twitter, “#Gadar2 FINAL advance booking status at *national chains* [till Thursday night] … Note: DAY 1 biz…⭐️ #PVR: 1,16,000 ⭐️ #INOX: 1,01,000 ⭐️ #Cinepolis: 57,000 ⭐️ Total: 2,74,000 tickets sold.” The film’s director Anil Sharma claimed that the film sold 20 lakh tickets in advance.
The Beautiful Saga of Love
Gadar 2: The Katha Continues, directed by Anil Sharma and starring Sunny Deol, Ameesha Patel and Utkarsh Sharma has taken a bumper start at the box office in India as it has collected around Rs 38 to Rs 40 crores nett on its first day based on early estimates. The numbers can slightly vary from the actuals as collections from few mass centers take time to get computed. The Sunny Deol starrer has made a mockery of all pre-release expectations and estimations very handsomely. Although the film is a sequel to the all time blockbuster film Gadar: Ek Prem Katha, there was some sort of skepticism since both Sunny Deol and director Anil Sharma were returning with a not-so-good track record behind their belt.
Gadar 2 Has Taken The Second Biggest Opening For This Year
The opening of Gadar 2: The Katha Continues is second only to Pathaan in 2023 for a Hindi film in the Hindi language. It has secured the third biggest opening for a film for its Hindi version post pandemic after Pathaan and KGF: Chapter 2. The film did face some programming issues since it released alongside another reasonably sized film OMG 2. Had it got more screens and show-timings, an even bigger opening was assured. Regardless, the film has a long 5 day weekend to satiate the demand of its target audience. The budget of the Gadar sequel is not too high. With hefty sums received for its non-theatrical rights, every rupee earned as share will be profit for the makers.
Watch the Gadar 2: The Katha Continues Trailer:
Gadar 2: Salman Khan Congratulates Sunny Deol as his film opens to Rs 40 crore approx; says ‘Dhai Kilo k Haath’
Gadar 2 stars Sunny Deol, Ameesha Patel and Utkarsh Sharma in the lead roles, who reprised his roles of Tara Singh, Sakeena and Jeete respectively. Simrat Kaur and Manish Wadhwa are the new addition to the film.
Sunny Deol and Ameesha Patel-starrer ‘Gadar 2’ has created a storm at the box office within its first day of release and the audience has been showering love on the film. According to reports, the movie has collected around Rs 40 crore on Day 1 and Salman Khan has come forward to congratulate Sunny Deol on his big success.
Congratulating Sunny Deol on ‘Gadar 2’ success, Salman Khan wrote on Instagram, “Dhai kilo ka haath equals chalis cr ki opening. Sunny paaji is killing it. Congrats to the entire team of Gadar 2.”
Talking about ‘Gadar 2, Sunny Deol said in a statement, “Gadar – Ek Prem Katha’ has been an eminent part of my life, personally as well as professionally. Tara Singh from ‘Gadar’ isn’t just a protagonist but went on to become a cult icon that defied all odds and crossed all boundaries for his family and love. Collaborating with the team after, 22 years was a creatively enriching experience.”
He earlier revealed that Bollywood and distributors did not support ‘Gadar’ before its release. At The Kapil Sharma Show, he said that everyone’s perspective towards ‘Gadar’ changed when the audience showered the film with love. He said, “There is excitement but also nervousness. When the film had released then, everyone in the industry… (gestured thumbs down). But aap logo ne jaise uthaya, sab ke sab palat gaye.”
At the trailer launch event, the actor also talked about the tensions between India and Pakistan and said that there is love in both countries. “There is love on both sides (India-Pakistan). It is the political game that creates all this hatred. And you will see the same in this film as well that the people do not want us to fight with each other,” he said.
‘Gadar 2’ also stars Utkarsh Sharma who reprised his role of Jeete, whereas, Simrat Kaur and Manish Wadhwa are the new addition to the film.
