Aamir Khan’s big failure at the box office; What was the reason for Lal Singh Chadha’s failure?

When you add the figure of KGF 2 Hindi Dubbed 54 Crores on the first day of its release, you can understand how much Chadha has fallen.

First Published Aug 26, 2022, 9:39 AM IST

An Aamir Khan film will hit the theaters after almost four years. Lal Singh Chadha was a film with the strength of anticipation and budget. The budget was Rs 180 crore. The official remake of the highly acclaimed, commercial and critically acclaimed Forrest Gump. The movie came with high expectations, but failed in the country. Thugs of Hindostan failed in 2018. But film experts say that Chadha’s is an even bigger fallout.

It is estimated that Chadda Atapatalam has fallen like Mela which was released in 2000. Earlier two Ameer Khan films like this fell during the festival. Mela and 1947 Earth. The film, which the makers and filmmakers in general thought would energize the entire Bollywood, failed when the figures were added and subtracted. A week after its release, Chadha collected 49 crores from all the theaters in the country. When you add the figure of KGF 54 crores on the first day of its Hindi dubbed release, you can understand how much Chadha has fallen.

Gangubhai Kathiyawadi, Bhool Bhulaiya, The Kashmir Files, etc. are the only Hindi films that have been successful so far this year. Akshay Kumar’s Samrat Prithviraj, Ranveer Singh’s Jayeshbhai Jordaar and Kangana’s Dhakdu all fell apart. RRR was followed by KGF followed by Karthikeya 2. Bollywood was dying to see dubbed movies taking over the market. Chadha was the breath of life that the region had been waiting for during this wave. The failure of the film means that Chadha’s crew is not the only one hurt.
The main reason for this defeat was the hate campaign and boycott calls that were fueled by remarks made on a television program years ago. Not only that.

An old example can be used to base the argument that sole cause is not exclusionary. Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat. Apart from the boycott, the film also saw violent protests. But still it collected more than one hundred crore rupees in the first week itself. Then what will happen to Chadda? A major factor is the change in audience taste and preferences. You already know what Chadda is. A movie that came out in America years ago. Even if it is said that the problems, crises and realizations experienced by Gump, including the Vietnam War, are transferred to the Indian story environment, it only presents the difference in the background scenes to the general audience. It should be remembered that Forrest Gump was released in 1994.

A retelling of over 28 years. Will those who saw and liked Gump then have a curiosity about it after all this time? Will those who didn’t see it then and those who saw it sometime later be left with curiosity? Will the new generation be interested in what is not new? All these questions are relevant. For Chadha, viewing pleasure is not an indispensable element of the theater experience. Today, the average viewer wants a viewing experience that goes beyond that comfort when different worlds of cinema arrive in different forms in the home. A world-class visual experience, or an outdoor production, or a thrilling experience. Otherwise, the new habit is to wait weeks for movies to hit OTT platforms. Apart from the boycott and this election, the reviews of the film were not positive enough to attract viewers. None of these factors are enough and the boycott backfires.

Addendum

Lal Singh Chadha was defeated only in Nadu. The film is a success in the international market. Chadha grossed more than any other hit movie of the year within a week of its release. According to market estimates, Lal Singh Chadha earned 59 crores. Gangubai Kathiyawadi, which collected 58.3 crores, is leading the figures so far. Films like Bhool Bhulaiya 2 and The Kashmir Files are on the third and fourth positions. (Telugu mega hit RRR is nowhere close to this figure. Rajamouli’s hit collected 2 million dollars from the international market). The release of Lalsingh Chadha in China has not been decided. The reason for the uncertainty is that China has no interest in bringing in and showing films from other countries post-Covid. Aamir’s Dangal and Secret Superstar were hits in Annad back then. If Chadda can be released, if people are interested in Aamir and the money comes in, the producers of Chadda will not suffer much.

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Last Updated Aug 26, 2022, 9:39 AM IST