Controversial film 'Adipurush' witnesses steep box office decline amidst backlash

Mumbai: 'Adipurush', a cinematic retelling of the revered epic Ramayana, experiences a significant decline in its box office earnings as the controversy-laden film accumulates Rs 35 crore on the fourth day. The film's Monday figures are significantly lower than what it earned on its opening weekend: Rs 140 crore on day one, followed by Rs 100 crore each on day two and three.

The total collection of 'Adipurush', starring Prabhas and Kriti Sanon, currently stands at Rs 375 crore gross globally, production banner T-Series claimed Tuesday. 'Adipurush' has come under attack for its dialogue, colloquial language and VFX.

According to trade analyst Taran Adarsh, the film's collection 'collapsed' on Monday due to 'negative word of mouth'. 'After a strong opening weekend, #Adipurush COLLAPSES on Monday. #Hindi version. #India biz', he tweeted.

A report by Box Office India stated that 'Adipurush' witnessed a drop of around 78 per cent on Monday. According to BOI, the film's nett collection for the first four days was around Rs 112 crore with the movie earning Rs 105 crore nett on the opening weekend but making only Rs 7.5 crore nett on Monday.

In the wake of the backlash, the film's dialogue writer Manoj Muntashir Shukla on Sunday said the makers would 'revise some of the dialogues' and the changes will be incorporated in the movie in a week. 'Adipurush' is also produced by Krishan Kumar, Raut, Prasad Sutar, and Rajesh Nair of Retrophiles, Pramod, and Vamsi of UV Creations. The movie has been released in Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and Tamil.

Distributor-exhibitor Akshay Rathi, who owns theatres in Chhattisgarh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, said 'Adipurush' has experienced a reduction of 65 per cent in its business at the ticket window.

'The audience has a mind of its own and we have to respect it, the drop is because people have not liked the film, it is unfortunate. There has been a drop of 65 to 70 per cent, Rathi told PTI. He hoped that the movie would find a new audience after the changes are included in the film.

'The verdict matters and none of us in the industry are to question the verdict of the audience because we make movies for the audience. If the audience likes a movie, they will hail it. If they don't like something, they don't', he said.

Vishek Chauhan, an exhibitor from Bihar, claimed to have seen a decline of 50 per cent due to the negative reaction to 'Adipurush'. He believes the alterations to the dialogues will have no significant impact on the film's box office earnings. 'The reports about the film are bad, people are not liking it. If people would have liked it, it would have been a historic blockbuster. The film has flaws, it is not a good film. By changing a few dialogues, it won't make much of a difference', Chauhan said.

Meanwhile, a trade organisation has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and demanded a ban on 'Adipurush'.

The film is a 'complete disaster of our faith in Shri Ram and Ramayan', stated the All Indian Cine Workers Association (AICWA).

'Prabhu Shri Ram is a god for everyone in India no matter what religious faith one comes from, this movie depicts lord Ram and even Ravan who looks like a character of a video game, with dialogues hurting every Indian in the country and across the globe', it added.
(With PTI inputs)