War 2 box office collection: Hrithik Roshan`s film makes Rs 52 cr on first day

War 2, starring Hrithik Roshan, Jr NTR, and Kiara Advani, debuted to dismal reviews on Thursday. Poor word of mouth surrounding the film`s release appears to have also had an impact on its box office performance. According to industry tracker Sacnilk, the picture grossed Rs 52.5 crore on its first day of release, which sounds almost as amazing as Pathaan but is actually troubling. The Hindi portion of Rs 52.5 crore is only Rs 29 crore, while the Telugu share is Rs 23.25 crore. 

For instance, Saiyaara, starring two newbies, grossed Rs 21.5 crore on its first day of release. War 2 was expected to have a strong opening in Telugu states because it represents Jr NTR`s debut in a Bollywood film, however given that the film is part of a large Bollywood series and stars Hrithik, the opening of Rs 29 crore seemed disappointing. On its first day, the first War film grossed Rs 51 crore in Hindi alone.

War 2 had approximately 1100 and 1400 shows in the Mumbai and Delhi-NCR regions, respectively, with occupancy rates of around 22 and 31%. In Hyderabad, the film had approximately 500 Telugu shows, with a 77 percent occupancy rate. War 2 competed against Rajinikanth`s Coolie, which grossed roughly Rs 65 crore on its first day. War 2`s opening numbers are a major issue for YRF, which recently had a great hit with debutants Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda. Their film, Saiyaara, grossed more than Rs 322 crore nett in India in four weeks.

The first War, directed by Siddharth Anand and starring Tiger Shroff, grossed Rs 53 crore on its opening day, with Rs 51 crore coming from the Hindi version alone. The last Spy Universe film, Tiger 3, starring Salman Khan, launched on Diwali, a Sunday, and grossed Rs 44.5 crore. Pathaan, one among Shah Rukh Khan`s biggest hits of 2023, started at Rs 57 crore, with a Hindi share of Rs 55 crore.

Review of the film

So far, War 2`s reviews and audience reactions have been negative, and the film will aim to make up for it with a longer holiday weekend. The last time a YRF film had a huge opening but plummeted substantially on the second day was Thugs of Hindostan. The Aamir Khan-starrer earned Rs 52.25 crore on its first day, with Hindi accounting for Rs 50 crore, but dropped 44 percent on the second day. The film`s domestic box office earnings totalled Rs 151.3 crore.

Kiara Advani and Ashutosh Rana are among those who appear in War 2. The film was directed by Ayan Mukerji, who previously helmed the mega-budget misfire Brahmastra.  Alia will headline the next Spy Universe film, Alpha.