Mardaani 2, sequel to Rani Mukerji's Yash Raj Fims cop drama, makes Rs 3.80 cr on opening day

Rani Mukerji's high octane cop drama, Mardaani 2, which released on 13 December, has been getting rave reviews from critics. On its opening day, the sequel to her 2014 film Mardaani, earned Rs 3.80 crore.

Rani Mukerji in a still from Mardaani 2. Image from Twitter

According to trade analysts, the movie had a lukewarm start at the ticketing counters on Friday morning, but witnessed a sharp rise in occupancy in theatres after 3 pm. The movie has also been trending well in multiplexes.

Check out the opening box office figures of Mardaani 2

#RaniMukerji versus #RaniMukerji... *Day 1* biz...
2019: #Mardaani2 ₹ 3.80 cr
2014: #Mardaani ₹ 3.46 cr
2018: #Hichki ₹ 3.32 cr#India biz.

— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) December 14, 2019

Mardaani 2 has already outstripped the opening day figures of Rani Mukerji's earlier movies, Mardaani and Hichki. While Mardaani raked in Rs 3.46 crore, Hichki (2018) minted Rs 3.32 crore at the box office on its first day.

Check out the opening figures of Rani Mukerji's earlier movies

#RaniMukerji versus #RaniMukerji... *Day 1* biz...
2019: #Mardaani2 ₹ 3.80 cr
2014: #Mardaani ₹ 3.46 cr
2018: #Hichki ₹ 3.32 cr#India biz.

— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) December 14, 2019

Mardaani 2 is competing with the Hollywood biggie Jumanji: The Next Level, and Emraan Hashmi and Rishi Kapoor's thriller, The Body. Jumanji: The Next Level overtook Mardaani 2 on the first day, making Rs 6.20 crore. However, Mardaani 2 has been getting strong word-of-mouth publicity and may see a spike in collections during the weekend.

The film marks the directorial debut of Gopi Puthran, who served as a writer on the first installment, which was directed by Pradeep Sarkar. It featured Rani as a fierce cop who took on the kingpin of a child trafficking racket, played by Tahir Raj Bhasin.

While talking about the film, Rani had previously mentioned, "Shivani will face a cold, merciless villain who has no empathy, no fear of God and is pure evil. The character has been written superbly and I'm excited to find out who the actor will be."