Shamshera, another huge blow to the Bollywood box office, industry analyzes the failure

A dacoit drama after decades. Ranbir Kapoor after four years in a film produced by the prestigious banner Yash Raj Films….It couldn’t get any posher than Shamshera in the movie theatres. The collections, however, have shocked the film industry, already reeling under a heap of flops. The opening day’s figures were a meagre Rs 10 crores, the lowest ever for a Ranbir Kapoor starrer. And it did not get any better on Day 2. By Sunday theatres in many parts of the country had to cancel shows. To what factors do we owe this abysmal box office performance of one of the most costly productions of the year? Says trade analyst Amod Mehra, “The verdict is out. Bunty Aur Babli 2 , Jayeshbhai Jordaar , Samrat Prithviraj and now _Shamshera_ . Fourth disaster in a row from for Yash Raj Films. To resurrect his banner, Aditya Chopra must throw out his chamchas, grant himself a sabbatical leave, reinvent himself, direct a film he sincerely believes in. Dacoit films were accepted in the 1980s mainly because the revenue from single screens and B & C centres were BIG.. today B&C class centres have vanished and most single screens are shut. That automatically makes a film like Shamshera outdated.. plus instead of promoting the film YRF was concentrating on promoting Ranbir Kapoor with his dogs etc. That sent wrong signals.”

Suman Sinha, a respected film exhibitor in Bihar says, “Old wine, old bottle, old formula, Ranbir wasted. Where is the audience to watch such an oft-repeated storyline? Lord Krishna with his own hands submerged Dwarka because it was beyond redemption. Bollywood too is beyond redemption because the men in control have no clue of the present scenario. Subhash Ghai, O P Ralhan, J Om Prakash knew and they withdrew gracefully. It’s time for Karan Johar and Aditya Chopra to abdicate the throne.” Says film critic Raja Sen, “I haven’t watched Shamshera, but I think the writing on the wall is clear: to spend hard-earned money and time, audiences demand more than the mere presence of A-list stars. The film itself has to intrigue and appeal, and I daresay the days of films getting big opening numbers simply because of some hero might be behind us. Or so I hope — as a viewer frequently disillusioned by stars making bad choices, and by movies relying too heavily on stardom.” Filmmaker Vivek Agnihotri who has given the box office _The Kashmir Files_ , a certifiable blockbuster this year says, “Two things are evident: firstly, the star system has crumbled and there is no star today who has the charisma to carry a film on his shoulder, secondly, project- making has bombed,content-making has won.” Subhash K Jha is a Patna-based film critic who has been writing about Bollywood for long enough to know the industry inside out. He tweets at @SubhashK_Jha. Read all the  Latest News ,  Trending News ,  Cricket News ,  Bollywood News ,  India News  and  Entertainment News  here. Follow us on  Facebook,  Twitter and  Instagram.