Secret Superstar box office prediction: Aamir Khan and Zaira Wasim starrer to earn Rs 4 crore on Day 1

Secret Superstar box office prediction: Aamir Khan film could collect Rs 4 crore on its opening day, says Girish Johar.

Dangal actor Aamir Khan is back on the silver screen with Secret Superstar, a coming-of-age story about an aspiring singer. But contrary to expectations, Aamir is doing only an extended cameo in the film. Its main lead is Zaira Wasim who also essayed the role of a young Geeta Phogat in Dangal. Helmed by Advait Chauhan, Secret Superstar is hitting the theaters on October 19.

One can easily say that Secret Superstar will be a content-driven film as this small-budget film chronicles how a young Baroda girl Insia becomes an internet sensation even after facing resistance from her father. So, how will it perform at the box office? Indianexpress.com got in touch with trade analyst Girish Johar and here’s what he has to say.

Talking about the number of screens Secret Superstar has captured and how it is expected to perform in the first weekend, Girish says, “Secret Superstar team is targeting the screen count to be more than 1100. Since it is a high content film targeting metro cities and A-tier cities, it could start a little slow. Also, because it is clashing with Golmaal Again which is a huge brand film. Well, everyone knows that Aamir Khan has a special appearance in the film, so it could bank heavily on its word of mouth.”

Girish says that Secret Superstar could have a mellow start of Rs 4 crore but quickly pick up pace with strong word-of-mouth it is expected to get. “I feel it will start somewhere around the Rs 4 crore mark and after that it really depends on the film’s content and word-of-mouth. If it is excellent, it can jump more than 50-60% on day 2 of the week as well,” he quipped.

Considering that Aamir and Zaira’s last venture Dangal was a record-breaking hit, some assume Secret Superstar that could cash in on the Dangal popularity and lure audiences to the theaters. Girish says, “I think both are different films and coming from Aamir Khan, everyone knows that Secret Superstar is going to be a content-driven film. Aamir has anyways been very true while promoting the film, saying that it is a small-budget film, as he always does. And obviously, if you are coming with some success behind your belt, it always certain kind of expectations from fans.” But he also adds how audiences have become wiser these days and they judge a film only on its merits. He remarked, “But audience these days are too smart, they merit the film on the present content mostly.”

Bollywood may have seen a number of Diwali releases but seldom does it happen that a Bollywood film is released on the day of Diwali itself, as is the case with Secret Superstar. So, will it turn out to be a smart strategy by Aamir Khan? Girish says, “This is probably their move because the team believes that their content is very strong and it will probably help them get whatever the first-day audience is, a day in advance. It will also spread the word-of-mouth appreciation before Friday. So, the actual day gets all the more better numbers. I think that’s the strategy behind their release. Aamir Khan is definitely showing confidence in his film by releasing it on 19th.”

Well, we don’t expect any less from Mr Perfectionist Aamir Khan who is also backing this project. In fact, the director of the film too has worked as Aamir’s manager for almost five years before Secret Superstar happened. Expectations are definitely high from this content-driven drama. Will it live up to them?