Back‘Master’ is seventh highest Tamil film grosser ever
More than a thousand single screens shut across the country last year, unable to sustain losses amid the lockdown, along with uncertainty about people returning to cinemas
PremiumNEW DELHI: Having made Rs97 crore at the end of two weeks, Tamil superstar Vijay’s latest film Master has emerged as the seventh highest grosser of all times in home state Tamil Nadu.
“Even with the covid scenario, if this film was allowed 100% occupancy in Tamil Nadu (at the time of release), it would have been the highest Tamil grossing film in Tamil Nadu and perhaps even beaten the numbers of Baahubali - The Conclusion," movie trade website Box Office India said in a blog post.
Even before the ministry of home affairs had allowed cinemas to resume running at 100% capacity, many theatres in the state were already operating at full capacity which explains the figures that the film has managed to notch up.
Master is the first big-ticket local film in Indian theatres since the covid-19 lockdown. It had been touted as a boon to the movie business devastated by the pandemic and expected to contract by 67% in FY21.
More than a thousand single screens shut across the country last year, unable to sustain losses amid the lockdown, along with uncertainty about people returning to cinemas. Trade experts had said the pent-up demand among audiences in south India, known for its strong movie-going and star worship culture, coupled with Vijay’s massive popularity made Master the right fit to signal the start of recovery in the film theatre business. The movie stars Vijay Sethupathi as the antagonist, and the collaboration of the two superstars are seen as a big draw. Sethupathi, a star in his downright, often plays characters with grey shades.
Master is now expected to play a critical role in demonstrating to Hindi filmmakers that people are ready to come back to theatres if there is content that appeals to them and help in locking release dates.
Buoyed by the movie's success, trade experts say Bollywood studios and stars will soon announce a schedule for March, April and May, starting with Akshay Kumar’s Sooryavanshi, sports drama ’83, Salman Khan’s Radhe and Yash Raj Films’ Bunty Aur Babli 2.
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