The first day’s box office receipts for Maidaan fell short of Ajay Devgn’s expectations. Even though Maidaan had great reviews and was launched during the busiest Eid vacation, it was difficult to get viewers on its first day. On Wednesday, Maidaan debuted with a few paid screenings and made Rs 2.6 cr. It then had a full release on April 11, Eid, and made only Rs 4.50 cr. The first day’s total is Rs 7.10 cr.
This is a concerningly low start for an Ajay Devgn holiday release, but it’s consistent with the pre-release hype that was quite low even with the film receiving excellent reviews all around. The occupancy rate was below 16% throughout the day, suggesting that there was little enthusiasm in seeing the movie among the crowd.
With paid previews included, Maidaan’s first-day revenue is over 50% lower than those of Ajay’s last three releases. His Drishyam 2 had made Rs 15.38 cr on its first day, while his eerie movie Shaitaan, which was released last month, opened at over Rs 14.75. Even his action film Bholaa, which debuted in March of last year, brought in an impressive Rs 11.20 crore. The only other movie that had a poorer opening than Maidaan was Runway 34, his 2022 Eid release that took in Rs 3 cr.
The film, which is being directed by Amit Ravindernath Sharma, is now positioned for a fairytale comeback, with Saturday and Sunday being pivotal dates. Maidaan has to now hit double digits in the next two days to show an upward trend at the box office, which would give an indication if the audience has accepted the film.
It will also have to compete with Tiger Shroff and Akshay Kumar’s Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, the other Eid film, at the box office. Despite being released on the major Eid weekend, the Ali Abbas Zafar action film likewise had a slow start, earning Rs 15.50 cr. For there to be any possibility of a reversal, both films must now hold strong and make significant box office gains—especially since their production was anything from thrifty.
Although trade circles have remarked that the landing cost of Maidaan, after years of delay, amounts to Rs 250 cr, the budget of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan is apparently over Rs 350 cr. The low opening of both the films makes it an uphill task for them to come anywhere close to their reported budget, at least as of now.
