Since Airlift (2016), Akshay Kumar’s last five releases have all hit the coveted ₹100-crore club. Except of course, Naam Shabana (2017), but then the actor only had a supporting role in the film. The Indian evacuation drama, Airlift earned ₹123.46 crore net; Rustom (2016) made ₹124.45 crore net; Housefull 3 (2016) managed ₹108.07 crore net; Jolly LLB 2 (2017) amassed ₹107.77 crore net; and finally Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017) collected ₹132.07 crore net.
Now, Kumar’s upward streak has hit a snag with Pad Man — R. Balki’s film based on the true story of Tamil social activist Arunachalam Muruganantham who developed low-cost sanitary pads. Since its release on February 9, the film’s box office revenue is an average ₹70 crore net. The film has reportedly been made on a budget of ₹35 crore since Kumar let go of his acting fee in lieu of a revenue share. Despite the fact that the film has already recovered its costs, the steady decline in collections is noteworthy: they’ve gone from ₹16 crore net last Sunday to ₹3.75 crore net this weekend. “It’s been a muted opening for Pad Man compared to Toilet: Ek Prem Katha which released in August last year,” says Shailesh Kapoor from Ormax Media, a firm that specialises in film trade insights.
Considering its current trajectory, Pad Man is expected to touch ₹80 to ₹90 crore net at the end of the week, effectively ending its extended theatrical run. But there are rumours that Balki might remake the film in Tamil with Dhanush. “They may just be bullsh**ing to get Tamil audiences to watch the film,” says Sreedhar Pillai, a trade analyst, adding that there have been snide comments made in passing by audience members. Pillai is referring to the film’s protagonist being a North Indian when the real-life hero hails from the South. “Arunachalam attended a screening and said [the protagonist had to be North Indian] to reach wider audiences since 80% of women in the North don't use pads,” he says. Unfortunately, Pad Man is only performing well in urban multiplexes where it’s preaching a sermon to the choir, seemingly rendering the fiilm’s intentions quite ineffective.
While Kapoor says that February is not conducive to big releases, Kumar’s film also suffered from big release before and after it hit theatres. A month after its release, Padmaavat still made ₹1.50 crore net on Pad Man ’s opening Friday. A week later, Black Panther arrived, further eating into the Hindi film’s second week business. The other February 17 release, Neeraj Pandey’s Aiyaary collected ₹7.50 crore net so far compared to Black Panther ’s ₹19.35 crore (according to a statement issued by Marvel).
What does this mean for Kumar’s stardom? For starters, the actor has taken an unconventional stand so far when it comes to his films. His contemporary peers choose to deliver one or two films a year. Shah Rukh Khan put out Raees and Jab Harry Met Sejal in 2017 while Salman Khan did Tubelight and Tiger Zinda Hai . Kumar, meanwhile, aims for three annual releases, often going up to four, each catering to a different audience. He does a film like Rustom for urban multiplexes but has no qualms starring in Housefull 3 that does well in single screens. “Kumar’s films are not grand with big sets and songs,” says Kapoor. “ Housefull 4 [which is slated for a 2019 release] is the kind of film Kumar would do up until five years ago. He’s been trying to balance all [sorts of] audiences.”
In another actor’s (except the Khans’) hands, trade experts say a film like Pad Man would not have managed a ₹10-crore opening. That’s Kumar’s star power and his strategy has worked well so far and will continue to do so. Take for instance his 2018 line-up that includes the bilingual 2.0 starring Rajnikanth ( expected to be a sure-fire mass hit ); the period Gold based on India winning the Olympic gold medal in hockey in 1948 (a multiplex movie); and Mogul, the biography of Gulshan Kumar, which might get pushed to 2019 (another multiplex effort).
