Box office collection: 'Dunki' continues to struggle at ticket windows
Shah Rukh Khan has had a dream run in 2023 with two consecutive successes: Pathaan in January and Jawan in September. His third 2023 release, Dunki, was expected to replicate the same mammoth success, but it seems to be reeling under the weight of mixed to negative reviews. It opened lower than expectations on Thursday, and then on Friday, it witnessed a steady drop in audience turnout, making it difficult to touch even Rs. 50cr at the domestic box office.
Looking at 'Dunki' in numbers
Trade tracker website Sacnilk reported that the film opened at Rs. 29.2cr on Thursday and collected Rs. 20.5cr on Friday, taking its total collection to Rs. 49.7cr. Importantly, compared to Thursday, it suffered a 29.79% drop in collections and had an overall occupancy of just 31.22%. For an SRK film to do such mediocre business is startling and can be attributed to the unencouraging reviews Dunki received on Thursday. It also faces a monumental fight from Prabhas's Salaar.
Plot and cast of the film
The comedy-drama revolves around an illegal immigration method called "donkey flight" and boasts an ensemble cast including Boman Irani, Vikram Kochhar, Taapsee Pannu, and Anil Grover. Vicky Kaushal, who earlier worked with Dunki director Rajkumar Hirani in Sanju, also has a special appearance. Hirani wrote the screenplay with Abhijaat Joshi and Kanika Dhillon. Dunki had several hopes pinned on it because it marked SRK's first collaboration with Hirani, a director with a 100% track record of commercial successes.
Why 'Dunki' failed to charm viewers
The reasons behind Dunki's downfall are clear: it is not entertaining, its screenplay is drudged, and its performances are sometimes over-the-top. Also, the film feels hollow since it is bereft of any emotional heft, which is considered a hallmark of Hirani's movies. The lack of surprise elements and a predictable storyline, alongside stale jokes, have also contributed to Dunki's negative reviews. Here's our review of Dunki.
SRK's next will be more 'age-real'
Meanwhile, now that the euphoria about his grand return has settled down, SRK has begun planning for his next project. In a conversation with Lebanese journalist Raya Abirached, he recently opened up about his next film and said, "I think I will start one in March-April now." "I have been attempting now to do a film which is more age real to me and play it still as the protagonist and the star of the film," he added.
