Trade experts in Pakistan had predicted a thunderous opening for Salman Khan and Anushka Sharma-starrer "Sultan" and living up to their expectations, the film has indeed opened to a phenomenal response.
"Sultan" has shattered the records of Pakistani film "Jawani Phir Nahi Ani" (JPNA), which recorded the highest opening weekend total when it released last year during Eid. "Jawani Phir Nahi Ani" (JPNA) had minted Rs. 74.5 million and now Bollywood film "Sultan" has easily surpassed that figure by earning Rs. 116 million in the first three days at the Pakistani box office.
The Salman-Anushka starrer earned Rs. 76 million on its opening and the second day and on the third day the business witnessed a good jump. "Sultan" earned Rs. 40 million on its third day.
"It has broken all previous records for highest opening collection which is beyond our expectations," a spokesperson for Geo films, which distributed the film in Pakistan, told the Press Trust of India.
"We are expecting 'Sultan' to touch the Rs 150 million mark in its opening weekend. Tickets for the first five days have already been sold out in advance at most cineplexes and single screen theatres," the spokesman added.
Film exhibitor Nadeem Mandviwala, who predicted a good box office run, reasoned why "Sultan" worked well at the box office in Pakistan. "'Sultan' got the advantage of long holidays. Basically Eid holidays have run from Wednesday to Sunday because of the weekend."
Talking about Salman's star power, he added that, "'Sultan' doing a record breaking business, despite its pirated copies being released on DVDs on Eid day, spoke highly of the star power of Salman."
Not only previous records, "Sultan" also affected the collections of Pakistani film "Sawal 700 Crore Ka," Hollywood movie "Tarzan" and Pixar's animated film "Finding Dory."
"Sultan" was released in 75 screens and due to high demand, special shows of the films were running at the Pakistani box office. "We are running extra shows but every show is packed in advance. There are also black tickets being sold openly," a worker at Capri cinema told PTI.
"Sultan," directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, was released on July 6 worldwide.
