15 weeks to go before 2011 ends and 38 film releases to go. There are 10 biggies out of these 38 that accumulate to Rs. 5000 million budget. It is not the money alone that makes this scenario big and crucial but the kind of tussle we are going to witness makes it more interesting.
In the last 24 months or so, Aamir,Salman and even Ajay Devgan had delivered one blockbuster after another and Shah Rukh is feeling the heat. SRK has to prove his mettle again at box office with 'Ra.One' and 'Don 2'. Younger brigade would also try to earn few brownie points i.e. Shahid with 'Mausam', Ranbir with 'Rockstar', and Ranveer with 'Ladies Vs. Ricky Bahel' plus usual B grade stars would desperately try to break into A grade with potential blockbuster in their hands i.e. Saif's 'Agent Vinod', John's 'Force' and 'Desi Boyz', Ajay and Sanjay with 'Rascals' and Akshay Kumar with 'Desi Boyz'.
So lets try to predict the box office fortune of 10 biggies releasing in next 15 weeks -
Ra.One Shah Rukh Khan,Kareena Kapoor,Arjun Rampal,Sanjay Dutt,Priyanka Chopra,RajnikanthPluses World class special effects,music is chartbuster,high decibel marketing,satellite rights already sold for highest ever 40 crores!,hot lead pair,3D release,action packed story line which is good as per recent box office trend and above all Diwali release without any significant competition
Minuses Budget is whooping140 crores and too much expected out of it
BO Nos. 140 crore budget,Collections will be minimum 140 crore nett from domestic market and overseas should add 100 crore nett (highest ever)
DON 2 Shah Rukh Khan,Priyanka Chopra,Lara Dutta,Boman Irani,Om Puri,Kunal Kapoor
Pluses Farhan returns as director after 4 years,SRK as anti hero cum villain is always a treat to watch,pulsating action,more stylish than prequel,first look already generated a lot of buzz,if 'Ra.One' does well at box office then this will take a record opening for sure plus solo Christmas release
Minuses At this point nothing except may be too early to release SRK biggie with the gap of only 2 months after 'Ra.One' (first time for SRK after 1997)
BO Nos. Budget is 70 crore,Collection will be 155 crore nett from India and 90 crore nett from overseas looks probable
AGENT VINOD Saif Ali Khan,Kareena Kapoor
Pluses Saif is coming back on screen as solo hero after gap of almost 2 years plus paired with Kareena, espionage thiller,international look,coming of age action
Minuses There are rumours that it might release early next year which is already crowded with potential blockbusters line up every week in Jan and Feb 2012
BO Nos. It can be first 100 crore nett flick for Saif, Budget is 60 crore
MAUSAM Shahid Kapoor,Sonam Kapoor
Pluses Directorial debut of acting legend Pankaj Kapoor,melodious music,lead pair looks fresh,no major release for 2 weeks
Minuses Concept is a bit old fashioned
BO Nos. 60 crore nett looks good against the budget of 40 crore
FORCE John Abraham,Genelia,Vidyut
Pluses Directed by Nishikant who won accolades with his directorial debut 'Mumbai Meri Jaan',remake of south hit,promos look promising,John in action role after long
Minuses Music is not chart buster
BO Nos. 45 crore nett minimum will make it a hit as budget is only 20 crore
(Note - 2nd part of this article will be posted next Tuesday)
