The Independence Day weekend will see two very different films, Awarapan 2 and Batwara 1947, arrive in theatres on August 14. While Emraan Hashmi returns with the sequel to his 2007 cult favourite, Sunny Deol stars in the Partition drama directed by Rajkumar Santoshi.
Ahead of the clash, Awarapan 2 has taken the early lead in advance bookings.
Awarapan 2 Leads
According to Sacnilk, Awarapan 2 has sold 62,431 tickets across 3,684 shows and collected around Rs 2.05 crore in advance bookings for its opening day, excluding blocked seats. Including blocked seats, the collection stands at Rs 3.51 crore.
Batwara 1947, meanwhile, has sold 19,816 tickets across 3,546 shows and collected Rs 55.51 lakh in advance bookings, excluding blocked seats. With blocked seats included, the figure rises to Rs 1.66 crore.
Trade See Awarapan 2 Ahead
Trade analyst Ramesh Bala told NDTV that Awarapan 2 currently has the advantage because of the popularity of the original film and Emraan Hashmi's fan following. However, he said Batwara 1947 could attract mass and family audiences.
Bala said Awarapan 2 had sold nearly 68,000 tickets and recorded around Rs 2.20 crore in advance sales, compared with about 37,600 tickets for Batwara 1947. This gives the sequel an 81% lead in ticket sales.
Trade analyst Taran Adarsh also believes Awarapan 2 has the upper hand. Speaking to Bollywood Hungama, he noted that while the original did not perform well in theatres, it later developed a strong fan base.
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Opening Day Expectations
Trade analyst Sumit Kadel expects Awarapan 2 to open at nearly twice the level of Batwara 1947. Speaking to NDTV, he said he expects the sequel to earn Rs 13-16 crore net on Day 1, with the possibility of reaching Rs 20 crore if it gets stronger single-screen shows. He has projected a weekend collection of Rs 50-60 crore.
For Batwara 1947, Kadel expects an opening of around Rs 7-9 crore net.
He also said Awarapan 2 has sold around 35,000 tickets across PVR Inox and Cinepolis, compared with about 8,000 tickets for Batwara 1947. He expects the final national-chain advance to reach 1-1.30 lakh tickets for Awarapan 2, while Batwara 1947 could remain below 35,000.
Awarapan 2 vs Batwara 1947
The two films are targeting different audiences. Awarapan 2 is relying on nostalgia and Emraan Hashmi's popularity, while Batwara 1947 brings Sunny Deol and director Rajkumar Santoshi together after 30 years. The duo previously worked on Ghayal, Damini and Ghatak.
For now, Awarapan 2 has the stronger advance booking numbers, but the audience response after release will decide which film wins the Independence Day clash.
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