Tubelight box office collection week 1: Salman's film crosses Rs 100 cr but distributors face losses

It was earlier reported that Kabir Khan’s period drama Tubelight was gradually inching towards the coveted Rs 100 crore mark. Now, within a week from its release, Salman Khan’s film has managed to achieve that though it is still a disappointment in terms of its business in single screen theatres. [caption id=“attachment_3745815” align=“alignnone” width=“825”] Salman Khan with Matin Rey Tangu in Tubelight. Image via Twitter[/caption] Film critic Ramesh Bala tweeted on 29 June that Salman’s Eid release has crossed the Rs 100 crore mark and stands at Rs 105.86 crore on its seventh day as far as the domestic collection is concerned. However, trade analysts also point out that single screen theatre owners, the biggest beneficiaries of Salman’s films, have incurred major losses all across the country.

While this proves that a superstar presence will assure a certain opening for a film, it will not flourish until it connects with the masses at large. The opening numbers of Tubelight were also the weakest among Salman’s Eid releases in recent memory. Though the business picked up on Eid which was on Monday, the numbers went crashing down on Wednesday. The Indian Express reports that Tubelight could garner only Rs 5.75 crore on Wednesday, recording a sharp dip of 50% from Tuesday when it earned Rs 12 crore. As the film stood at Rs 99 crore on Wednesday, it was sure to cross the Rs 100 crore mark even if it recorded a little less than 50% dip on Thursday. It faced almost the same dip as it did on Wednesday and went on to earn Rs 105.86 crore within its first week. It is now the 11th Rs 100 crore film of Salman, though his past two releases - Ali Abbas Zafar’s sports drama from last year Sultan and Kabir’s 2015 film Bajrangi Bhaijaan - garnered over Rs 300 crores in their lifetime, an unlikely feat for Tubelight given its dismal progression at the box office. The makers have managed to break even from its India collection alone as the Rs 105.86 crore are supplemented by its satellite rights, sold for Rs 60 crore, and music rights, sold for Rs 20 crore , which add up to over Rs 185 crore, Rs 15 crore more than its budget of Rs 170 crore . However, the distributors’ have borne the brunt as the film has recorded a disappointment run at the box office, judging it by the standards of a typical Salman Khan entertainer.