Having netted over PKR 200 crores worldwide — and still counting — Dil Dhadakne Do, now in its third week at the box office, has been declared a winner. Interestingly, while DDD still trails behind Tanu Weds Manu Returns’s enviable 300-plus gross in India itself, the situation is quite different in Pakistan where this Zoya Akhtar family drama, shot on a lavish scale at a luxury cruise,
Lahore
Having netted over PKR 200 crores worldwide — and still counting — Dil Dhadakne Do, now in its third week at the box office, has been declared a winner. Interestingly, while DDD still trails behind Tanu Weds Manu Returns’s enviable 300-plus gross
in India itself, the situation is quite different in Pakistan where this Zoya Akhtar family drama, shot on a lavish scale at a luxury cruise, has fared better than most of the other big hits of the year so far — including, of course, TWMR.
As official figures go, DDD has outperformed TWMR in major metropolitan territories of the country, finishing week two at over Rs. 6 crores. “Its overall business has been outstanding,” says Nadeem Mandviwalla, the owner of Atrium and Centaurus cinemas in Karachi and Islamabad respectively.
“At Atrium, the attendance is 90 percent, even on weekdays, which is humungous,” he adds. “Centaurus has seen up to 92 percent occupancy. The collection from the two sites has reached Rs. 1 crore 10 lacs. In comparison, TWMR grossed Rs. 90 lacs.”
Released by Summit Entertainment, Dil Dhadakne Do has even withstood the might of Jurassic World and newer Bollywood films such as ABCD2 and Hamari Adhuri Kahani.
Khorem Gultesab, General Manager, Super Cinemas, has similar stories to tell of DDD’s dream run at the ticket windows in Pakistan. “The audience turnout was 99 to 100 percent in the evening shows on the MM Alam Road multiplex, till last week,” he says. “Obviously, it was affected as Ramzan started. But then that’s the general trend in cinema business during the holy month; it does not mean the public interest in the film is waning.”
So, what actually is pulling crowds into theatres? According to Ali Chaudhry, co-owner of the Cine Star cinemas in Lahore and Multan, “the presence of stars!”
He goes on to explain, “As a nation, we are very star-struck. Even though it opened to mixed reactions — there were people who didn’t like the film, and then there were those who were seeing it for the second or third time over —DDD took a stupendous initial, mainly on the strength of its ensemble cast.
“Tanu…, on the other hand, began slow despite positive reviews from critics, because it didn’t boast a superstar. Later, of course, the film benefited from a great word of mouth. But its total collections remain lower than DDD, insofar as Pakistan is concerned.”
Starring two of Bollywood’s hottest ladies today — Anushka Sharma and Priyanka Chopra — alongside the ball of energy that is Ranveer Singh and the very likeable Farhan Akhtar, not to mention the evergreen Anil Kapoor and a bunch of powerful performers such as Shefali Shah, DDD takes the audiences on a grand musical sea voyage to Istanbul’s sun-kissed Bosphorous beach, its imposing Hagia Sophia museum, the bustling Taksim Square, and the colossal Blue Mosque which deservedly gets the best shots from above.
As Mandviwalla says, “It’s a great-looking film!” The public seems to have especially liked the performance of Anil Kapoor who takes on the role of grey-haired patriarch with complete grace.
Kapoor’s chemistry with his onscreen son Kabir (Ranveer Singh) is worth a dekho. It is said that the two are related in real life as well —Singh is the nephew of Kapoor’s wife Sunita. Behind-the-scenes stories reveal the two were quite a riot on the sets. The music of DDD also has a strong pull, especially the numbers ‘Gallan Gooriyan’ and the title track both of which are quite a rage these days.
