Box office: 'Lal Salaam' earns Rs. 4.3cr on opening day
Aishwaryaa Rajinikanth's much-anticipated directorial venture, Lal Salaam, featuring Vishnu Vishal, Vikranth, and a cameo by her superstar father, Rajinikanth, arrived in theaters on Friday. It was released on the same day as Shahid Kapoor's Teri Baaton Mein Uljha Jiya and Ravi Teja's Telugu film Eagle. Despite high expectations, the Tamil sports drama had a sluggish start on the opening day. Let's look at its first-day earnings.
Why does this story matter?
Lal Salaam is Aishwaryaa's fourth directorial venture, which marked her return to direction after a seven-year gap. She started her filmmaking career with 2012's 3, followed by Vai Raja Vai in 2015 and the documentary Cinema Veeran in 2017. Although her latest effort received positive reviews for its social commentary on religious harmony, it didn't translate into significant box office numbers. The film's success now relies on sustaining momentum over the weekend.
'Lal Salaam' in numbers
As per Sacnilk, LS minted Rs. 4.3cr (early estimates) on its opening day, with a Tamil occupancy of 30.35% and a Telugu occupancy of 18.73%. While some may contend that Lal Salaam doesn't align with a typical Rajinikanth film, the makers strategically marketed it as such. Notably, Rajinikanth's role (Moideen Bhai), albeit as a cameo, reportedly extends to nearly a full-length character in the movie.
Meet star-studded cast and crew of 'LS'
Lal Salaam was penned by Vishnu Rangasamy, who also co-wrote the screenplay with Aishwaryaa and handled cinematography. The film's music is composed by AR Rahman. Bankrolled by Subaskara Allirajah of Lyca Productions, the film also features Jeevitha, Senthil, KS Ravikumar, and Thambi Ramaiah in supporting roles. It also has a cameo by cricket legend Kapil Dev. LS marked Jeevitha's return to screens after a lengthy hiatus of almost three decades.
'Lal Salaam' trails behind 'Eagle,' 'TBMAUJ'
In contrast, Teri Baaton Mein Aisa Uljha Jiya—directed by Amit Joshi and Aradhana Sah—raked an estimated Rs. 6.5cr on Friday. The film narrates the tale of an engineer (Kapoor) who falls in love with Sifra, an AI (artificial intelligence) female robot played by Kriti Sanon. Meanwhile, Teja's Eagle also had a decent start, earning an estimated Rs. 6cr. Both films managed to surpass the first-day collection of Lal Salaam.