The Christopher Nolan-directed Tenet, slated to hit screens in India on Friday (December 4), is expected to open to a good response at the box office despite the Covid-19 pandemic. Speaking to DH, trade analyst Joginder Tuteja says that the opening day collection is likely to be around Rs five crore.
“As Tenet is releasing on a Friday, the net opening day figure is likely to between Rs four crore and Rs five crore. The advance booking is quite good especially in the IMAX screens,” he adds.
Tuteja, however, feels that Tenet would have collected around Rs 12 crore had it released under ‘regular circumstances’.
The film, the first Hollywood biggie to hit the theatres after the Covid-19 lockdown, will face no competition at the box office as the Hindi movie Suraj Pe Mangal Bhari has its run course while the critically-acclaimed Sir has proved to be a non-starter. Nolan’s popularity among the ‘Gen Y’ audience might work in the biggie’s favour especially in the urban centres.
Tenet is likely to make a decent impact at the Chennai box office, an important market for Hollywood films in India. Speaking to DH, tracker Ramesh Bala says that the opening day gross collection might be less than Rs 50 Lakh.
“My guess is that the day-one collection will be less than 50 Lakh,” he adds.
He feels that the figure would have been near Rs one crore had the biggie released under ‘normal’ circumstances.
“The figure would have been double if it had released under normal circumstances,” says Bala.
If Tenet exceeds expectations at the box office, it might help theatres regain the lost mojo. If the magnum opus, however, ends up being a commercial failure, several big-ticket movies might opt for an OTT only release as opposed to a theatrical one.
Tenet, touted to be a thriller, has a stellar cast headlined by John David Washington and Robert Pattinson. It revolves around what happens when a secret agent alters the flow of time to avert World War 3. The supporting cast includes Bollywood star Dimple Kapadia, Martin Donovana and Yesterday actor Himesh Patel.