'Sarfira' opens at ₹2.40cr; Akshay Kumar's lowest in 15 years
What's the story
Akshay Kumar's latest film, Sarfira, a Hindi remake of the National Award-winning 2020 film Soorarai Pottru, debuted with a disappointing ₹2.40 crore on its opening day, according to industry tracker Sacnilk.
This figure is significantly lower than Kumar's previous big-ticket film, Bade Miyan Chote Miyan, which earned ₹16.07 crore on its debut.
The lackluster performance reportedly marks Kumar's lowest box office debut since his 2009 film 8X10 Tasveer, which opened at ₹1.8 crore.
Audience response
'Sarfira' struggles with low occupancy on opening day
Sarfira saw an overall occupancy of just over 13% on its first day.
In Mumbai, where there were 472 shows, the film witnessed an occupancy of 14%.
However, in Delhi and NCR with 570 shows, the occupancy was slightly lower at around 11.75%.
The film stars Kumar alongside Radhikka Madan and Paresh Rawal.
It clashed with Kamal Haasan's Indian 2 (released on Friday) and Kalki 2898 AD, which has been on rampage mode since June 27.
Past performances
'Sarfira' falls short of Kumar's previous box office hits
Sarfira's ₹2.4 crore debut falls short of even Mission Raniganj's ₹2.8 crore opening, Selfiee's ₹2.5 crore debut, and the ₹2.7 crore that mid-pandemic release Bell Bottom opened with.
Despite his recent struggles at the box office, barring Sooryavanshi and OMG 2, Kumar has had no other hits in recent years.
Notably, in OMG 2, he had an extended special appearance and not a lead role.
Sarfira is helmed by Sudha Kongara, who also directed Soorarai Pottru.
Actor's perspective
Kumar reflects on recent box office struggles
Despite delivering four ₹200 crore hits in a single year five years ago, Kumar has seen seven of his recent films underperform.
In a recent interview with Galatta Plus, he reflected on this period saying, "I've seen people who work selectively, and their films flop as well. In our industry, what happens is that people stop offering you work if you deliver flops."
His next release is Khel Khel Mein, scheduled for release on Independence Day.