Dangal China release: Country's biggest cinema operator snubs Aamir movie; fans disappointed

Aamir Khan's Dangal, the highest grossing Indian film of 2016, is set to release in China on Friday, May 5. While the sports biopic will get a wide release in 9,000 screens, millions of superstar's fans are disappointed. Here's why.

According to a report, Wanda cinemas – China's biggest cinema operator – will not screen the film in most of its theatres. The operator has more than 1,657 screens and only 37 screens have been allotted to Dangal. The Nitesh Tiwari-directorial gets only three shows on opening day in all of Wanda's theatres in Beijing, India Today reported.

Warda's decision has mostly affected cinema lovers in small towns as they have fewer alternatives than big cities like Beijing and Shanghai.

Cine-goers are baffled as to the reason behind Wanda's apparent 'boycott' of Dangal. Many angry fans took to Weibo, China's Twitter-like website, to question the cold treatment meted out to Indian films. Some fans claimed Aamir's movies carry a message to society and should not be ignored.

Aamir's previous film PK, which was screened in 4,000 screens in China, broke all China box office records by becoming the first Indian film to gross more than Rs. 100 crore in an overseas market.