Diwali is one of the most-awaited festivals. During this auspicious occasion, filmmakers release their films to take the extra advantage of the holidays and the extended weekend. We have analyzed and concluded that the business of films boosts by around 15-20 percent during this period. That is the primary reason why filmmakers announce their films and book this slot to mint good money at the box office. And while films with substandard content get rejected by the audience, they still manage to get a decent opening due to the Diwali holiday.
Since the past decade, we have witnessed that this slot is booked by big films, which has biggest stars and a big budget. Sometimes two big releases lock horns in the festive season to get maximum footfalls in theaters. From the past five years, every Diwali, Bollywood has earned over Rs 200 crores at the box office, which itself shows why this festival is the perfect date for the makers. (Also Read: Ekta Kapoor Diwali Party: Sanjay Dutt to Akshay Kumar and Mouni Roy to Bipasha Basu, Every Bollywood and TV star attended Ekta’s party- View Pics)
Since Secret Superstar and Golmaal Again are clashing at the box office this Diwali, let’s look at the performance of the films which released during the festival in the past few years.
2016: Ae Dil Hai Mushkil & Shivaay
Though both the biggies entered the Rs 100 crore club, it turned out to be one of the ugliest clashes of all time. Both the films were plagued by personal and political attacks. While ADHM turned out to be a successful affair, Ajay Devgn’s Shivaay was a below average grosser due to its high cost of production.
2015: Prem Ratan Dhan Payo
The buzz around PRDP was humongous since Salman was reuniting with director Sooraj Barjatya after the gap of 16 years. Fans were excited to see Salman reprise the role of his boy-next-door character, Prem. On release, the family drama opened to an impressive collection of above Rs 40 crore on day 1 and went on to collect around Rs 208 crore during its theatrical run.
2014: Happy New Year
The multi-starrer Farah Khan directorial, featuring SRK in the lead role, had all the ingredients of becoming a typical masala entertainer. With the reunion of the blockbuster trio of SRK – Deepika and Farah Khan, Happy New Year turned to be a hit at the box office by raking in around Rs 205 crore. The film still holds the record of having the highest opening day collections for a Bollywood film, given that it had made Rs 44.97 crores on the first day.
2013: Krrish 3
The 3rd installment of Krrish franchise was one of the highly-anticipated films of that time. Hrithik Roshan’s superhero avatar and high-tech VFX was loved by the audience, especially kids. The film made a whopping collection of above Rs 240 crore at the box office and is still considered as Hrithik’s highest grosser of all time.
2012: Jab Tak Hai Jaan & Son of Sardaar
The clash between Jab Tak Hai Jaan and Son of Sardaar, was one of the most controversial clashes. Jab Tak Hai Jaan was the last directorial venture of the legendary filmmaker, Yash Chopra and featured his favorite star, Shah Rukh Khan. Ajay Devgn faced a lot of criticism for announcing the release date after Jab Tak Hai Jaan and sticking to the same date even after the demise of Yash Chopra. Nonetheless, both films fared very well at the ticket windows.
2011: Ra.One
One of SRK’s most ambitious projects, Ra.One was considered as one of the most expensive Bollywood films of that time. Though Shah Rukh Khan’s superhero avatar received a mixed response and failed to strike a chord with the audience, the film managed to attract a good amount of cine-goers. The film was highly was applauded for its advanced technology and VFX.