Everybody loves a love story: BO collection of Saiyaara inches close to Rs 100 cr as FOMO on this Mohit Suri film grips the nation
On Day 1, Mohit Suri’s Saiyaara earned the title of biggest opener of debutants. By Day 2, the big screen debut of Ahaan Panday and Aneet Padda made a collection of Rs 46.63 crore. As the love story inches close to Rs 100 crore, it not only has blockbuster written all over it, but also finding a place in the annals of cinematic history.
Saiyaara is in the company of those gems which keep alive the hysteria we associate with Bollywood, especially love stories and in times when other love stories have not worked their magic. Love might have been the flavour of July. But while Shanaya Kapoor’s debut film Aankhon Ki Gustaakhiyan tanked and Anurag Basu’s Metro… In Dino, despite favourable reviews, picked up only slow and steady, Saiyaara has come like a virtual Tsunami, sweeping viewers and even hard-nosed critics off their feet.
A breath of fresh air, a whiff of romance just when we thought Bollywood had forgotten how to make heart-breaking, lilting love stories. Trade analyst Sumit Kadel dubs Saiyaara, “A once in decade phenomenon, a departure from actioners, woke messaging and comedy, successfully tapping into audiences’ craving for pure romance.”
The craze among viewers is unbelievable. Reel of a man watching the film, an IV drip in tow has gone viral. So has of another fan, in frenzied mode screaming on the floor. Industry big wigs can’t stop raving about it. Karan Johar writes, “Tears flowing and yet the feeling of immense joy… Joy for the fact that a love story has conquered the silver screen and made the nation fall in love.”
Clearly lead actor Ahaan Panday’s cousin Ananya Panday is not the only one who cried unabashedly… audiences and reviews alike are talking of the film’s emotional tug of power lending weight to what Suri himself had said in his interview with The Tribune, “Often we overstate the importance of watching a film with head. But the body responds better.’ Come to think of it, the director who conquered hearts with Aashiqui 2 in 2013 professed to being nervous prior to the release of the film. Indeed, Saiyaara didn’t come on the sails of hubris ‘oh we have done it’ or any publicity juggernaut.
Calibrated PR strategy by producers Yash Raj Films kept the publicity interviews limited to the director Mohit Suri. The fresh pair was kept under the wraps, prompting filmmaker Sanjay Gupta to remark on X, “So, whoever took the decision at YRF to keep the lead pair of Saiyaara away from all the pre-release interviews, appearances and podcasts is a genius. They kept alive the freshness exclusively for the big screen. And look at how it’s worked.”
Behind the unprecedented success of the film, noted producer Rahul Mittra can sense the “decimation of star system.” No wonder release dates of Maddock Films Param Sundari and Ajay Devgn’s Son of Sardaar 2 have been pushed ahead. Experts are calling it the Saiyaara effect. Yet, YRF is not taking any chances. Despite strong occupancy on weekday (Monday), the makers have embraced the cheaper ticket offers on Tuesday which have become a norm with cinema halls since April. Naysayers, however, can’t help but strike a dis-chordant note and smell a rat in the discounted price strategy. YRF had announced concessional ticket price for the morning shows early on.
Are we celebrating too early…. perhaps, whether the film will beat the biggest grossers of Bollywood might be hard to foretell as of now. Right now FOMO on Saiyaara is gripping the nation real hard… Numbers don’t lie but nor do emotions. Viewers are in love… with Saiyaara of course. It may not be the greatest love-story ever told, but is honest storytelling at its best.
Lifestyle