The Tamil film, KARUPPU, which released last Friday has emerged a huge HIT as collections on Monday have held up extremely well. The film features Suriya who is a big star in the Tamil film industry but has been seen a lot of flops recently including the huge disaster KANGUVA released in 2024. It released in Hindi and proved to be a disaster in Hindi as well.

KARUPPU started on Friday with 14.50 crore nett on all versions and Monday has done around 12.50 crore nett which is just 15% down from the Friday. The home market of Tamil Nadu is leading the way with 45 crore nett apprx over the first four days and a 100 crore nett total is a BLOCKBUSTER figure in the circuit for this film and it has good chances to get there.

There has not been a grosser in the Tamil industry for some time as the biggest film JANA NAYAGAN was unable to get a censor clearance due to political reasons earlier this year. Last year COOLIE and GOOD BAD UGLY were the only films to cross 100 crore nett as both films did around 115 crore nett in the state.

KARUPPU has also fared well overseas as it grossed $4.5 million over the weekend. The worldwide weekend was around 117 crore for the film with Overseas giving 43 crore and India being 74 cr GBOC. 

The collections of KARUPPU across India are as follows.

Friday - 14,50,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 21,00,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 25,50,00,000 apprx

Monday - 12,50,00,000 apprx 

PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO collected 16.50 crore nett over its first weekend but this is on paper as the Sunday collections were all over place as national chains showed insane growth of 60% plus while some places were just in the regular 10-15% bracket. Figures in some cities doubled up from Saturday when normally the growth in these places is just 20-30% with a blockbuster film.

The number on Sunday went to 7.50 crore nett but it can be taken with a pinch of salt as the real collections will be lower. The feeding maybe for a digital kicker or media perception but at the end of the day, it hardly makes a difference whether a film is 15 crore nett of 16.50 crore nett. Its pretty much the same thing.

PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO has a long way to go for even respectable numbers, let alone success, and for a chance of success, the Monday collections cant afford to drop more than 20-30%. That is the real collections not the boosted ones if the same is to be done on Monday.

The collections for PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO are as follows.

Friday - 3,65,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 5,25,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 7,50,00,000 apprx

The other release of the week, AAKHRI SAWAL, picked up 1.75 crore nett over its first weekend with good growth on Saturday and Sunday but its pretty much irrelevant as the collections are low.

The collections for AAKHRI SAWAL are as follows.

Friday - 30,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 55,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 90,00,000 apprx

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PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO had a 20% drop on Monday from the Friday which takes the figures of the film to 19.25 crore nett over the first four days. Despite the hold the film probably needed to be even closer to the first day figure as the first day figure was so low. Also generally the box office has seen good holds this Monday as can be seen with holdover films. The film collected in the 2.75-3 crore nett range on Monday.

The holds for PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO are better in the chains which was expected after the Sunday results. But unlike Sunday where growth was minimal for many, Monday have these also hold well in that 20-30% range. This does not really alter the fate for the film much as 19 crore nett is not much in four days and even if it can get 45 -50 crore nett it is just a face saving number though there is a long way to go for that.

The figures for PATI PATNI AUR WOH DO are as follows.

Friday - 3,65,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 5,25,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 7,50,00,000 apprx 

Monday - 2,85,00,000 apprx

AAKHRI SAWAL collected 20 lakhs nett on Monday which takes the collections of the film to around 1.95 crore nett and it looks the week will end at around 2.50 crore nett.

The collections for AAKHRI SAWAL are as follows.

Friday - 30,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 55,00,000 apprx

Sunday - 90,00,000 apprx

Monday - 20,00,000 apprx

BHOOTH BANGLA maintained well enough over its fifth weekend considering there was competition with new releases. The film collected around 3.25 crore nett in its fifth weekend with good collections on Sunday. The trend is not much different from last week and the film could be showing another week where the drop is around 50%. The collections of the film now stand at 152 crore nett plus and a 155-160 crore nett finish looks on the cards.

The film is now scoring very well in Delhi/UP and even East Punjab. The film had started with an over performance in Mumbai circuit but that has changed over the last two weeks with Delhi/UP leading. In the first week, Mumbai circuit had done around 25 crore nett and Delhi/UP was around 17 crore nett. But the fourth week saw Delhi/UP with a better figure and its the same for the fifth weekend.

The collections of BHOOTH BANGLA till date are as follows.

Friday - 60,00,000 apprx

Saturday - 1,10,00,000 apprx 

Sunday - 1,50,00,000 apprx

After performing his new play Jaane Pehchaane Anjane in Mumbai last weekend, Anupam Kher is bringing it to Delhi. The veteran actor is also fresh off a proud international moment. He won the Best Supporting Actor award at the UK Asian Film Festival earlier this month for the 2025 Indo-Canadian film Calorie.

Even after over four decades in cinema, the 71-year-old says that an award still gives him a high, especially on a global stage. He tells us, “It may sound dramatic, but actors don’t get to officially represent their country globally like how sportspersons do... Whenever I work abroad, I say ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai’ before every project; I’m representing 1.4 billion people.”

But celebrating such wins, he feels, has become difficult now. “I was just talking to (actor) Anil Kapoor that people have stopped celebrating life and their wins because they think usko bhi log kuch na kuch bol denge,” the actor opines, adding, “We used to have such amazing Bollywood parties earlier by (filmmakers) Yash Chopra or Subhash Ghai; we don’t have them today anymore kyunki logon ko celebrate karne mein darr lagta hai, ki kahin na kahin koi kuch galat nikaal lega.”

As an example, Anupam points to the trolling faced by actor Alia Bhatt after her recent appearance at the ongoing Cannes Film Festival: “Losers who have nothing to do in life just want to get noticed by criticising something iconic. Criticism has become the favourite national pastime. I don’t get angry with them anymore, I feel pity.”

The actor is currently busy with his new theatre play Jaane Pehchaane Anjane, which comes to Delhi this week after being staged in Mumbai last weekend. “I have been performing my one-man show Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai for the last 21 years. But this is a new play, and this is the first time we have so many actors in one play,” he shares.

Based on a Marathi play, it has been turned into a musical by composer Anu Malik, with Anupam singing the title track himself. “Theatre shows me that I can still push my boundaries and it keeps me alive as a person, not only as an actor,” he adds.

He grabbed attention online when he took the Vande Bharat from Jaipur to Delhi, in support of PM Narendra Modi’s save fuel campaign and austerity measures. In a Reel on Monday, he urged people to use public transport where possible: “Where possible, we should use public transport, do carpooling. We should avoid taking out our car for short distances... In our daily lives, we should make small changes.”

The biggest name to have come out of the PKP cast is Kartik, who is currently one of the most sought-after leading men in Bollywood. It took a while for him to find that footing, and it happened with another of his collaborations with director Luv Ranjan in Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety (2018). After that, he built it up with hits like Luka Chuppi, Pati Patni Aur Woh (both 2019) and then solidified that place with Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (2022) and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 (2024). He also gave critically acclaimed performances in Satyaprem Ki Katha (2023) and Chandu Champion (2024). Now, Kartik has Captain India, Naagzilla and director Anurag Basu’s romantic drama in the pipeline.

The after effects of PKP and Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety success worked for Nushrratt too, who went on to be part of films like Dream Girl (2019), Chhalaang (2020) and Akelli (2023). The actor also headlined the horror franchise Chhorii with its two films released in 2021 and 2025, respectively. Last seen in the silent comedy film Ufff Yeh Siyapaa last year, Nushrratt has Ghooskhor Pandat and Bun Tikki in her kitty next.

Divyenndu wasn’t a part of the PKP sequel (2015), but embarked on a solo career on his own. He did films like Chashme Baddoor (2015), Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017) and Madgaon Express (2024). But his breakthrough role came as Munna Tripathi in the web series Mirzapur. While his character was killed in the show after two seasons, he will return to the franchise in its big-screen outing, Mirzapur: The Movie, this year. Divyenndu will also appear in Ram Charanstarrer pan-India film Peddi next month.

After PKP, Sonnalli went on to star in films such as PKP 2, Jai Mummy Di (2020) and Aseq (2023), but none managed to work out well. She appeared in the web series Illegal Justice, Out Of Order and Anamika, but found little success. Sonnalli has several unreleased projects, including Noorani Chehra and Boondi Raita, which have been on the back burner for years. On the personal front, she got married to hotelier Ashesh L Sajnani, and the couple welcomed their first child, daughter Shukar in 2024.

Post the success of PKP, Raayo was the face that didn’t come out as often. He did a film, Ishk Actually (2013), but it disappeared without a trace. The actor did a few offbeat projects including 706 (2019), short film Guzara (2019) and the music video Hoon Main Alag (2024). He ventured into theatre last year with Kaneez: A Musical Love Story and was last seen in the micro drama Mera P A Don in March this year.

Ishita went on to star in Meeruthiya Gangsters (2015), PKP 2, Yaaram (2019) and Wild Wild Punjab (2024), but found little success. She also did special appearances in dance numbers in Prassthanam (2019), Chatrapathi (2023) and Kapkapii (2025). Her last work on screen was this year’s release, action crime thriller Human Cocaine, but the film didn’t get much exposure.

Over a career spanning more than three decades, Saif Ali Khan has explored genres across films and OTT, from intense dramas like recently released Kartavya to beloved romcoms such as Hum Tum (2004) and Salaam Namaste (2005). But the actor now feels Bollywood-style rom-coms may no longer connect with audiences the way they once did. “I loved doing romcoms, but I feel they were like an anomaly in Indian cinema, which might have even started and finished with me in a sense,” Saif says, adding, “Romcoms are a failed experiment, although a beautiful one.”

According to the actor, audiences today struggle to relate to the genre’s classic “confused privileged guy” archetype. “People wonder what his problem is,” he says, adding that such characters no longer feel relevant after a certain age. Laughing, the 55-year-old shares that actor-wife Kareena Kapoor Khan once told him he could no longer convincingly play a confused young man, and joked that actor-son Ibrahim Ali Khan should now take over “the family business”.

Still, Saif says he remains open to returning to romance on screen: “I loved those movies and they mean a lot to me. I’d love to do a love story, or even a comedy that ends in romance. There’s still one romcom left in me.”

The actor also reflected on the growing intensity and violence in modern storytelling, calling it a reflection of the times. “It’s not enough anymore to just tell a story. It has to shake you up, punch you a bit and sometimes even put you off,” he says. Saif believes violence in cinema works only when it serves an emotional purpose. “Even violence is an art form and it has to connect. If it’s just gratuitous, you want to shut your eyes,” he says, adding that audiences today respond to deeper and more intense portrayals than they did a decade ago.

Actor Aamir Khan reflected on the box office failure of his 2018 film Thugs Of Hindostan at a Mumbai event on Friday. The 61-year-old compared the film to Ramesh Sippy’s classic Sholay (1975) and revealed that repeated script changes caused the story to lose its essence.

Aamir shared, “Thugs Of Hindostan is (basically) Sholay. In Sholay, you have Sanjeev Kumar’s Thakur, who needs to take revenge for his family being wiped out. And two people, Jai and Veeru, come in to help. Over here, it’s Zafira (Fatima Shaikh) needs same help and Firangi (Aamir) comes in.”

Admitting that while he usually prioritises the story above all else, here he placed his character above the story, which “bounced back badly”.

Speaking at the Screen Academy Masterclass, he shared, “For casting reasons, we kept changing the script. I wouldn’t know I’d make a fundamental error. We should not have changed the script. So, when you’ve seen Thugs, you haven’t seen the original script that Victor wrote.”

Directed by Vijay Krishna Acharya, Thugs Of Hindostan was made on a reported budget of over Rs. 300 crore, and ended up as a massive box office failure.

Ahaan Panday and Ananya Panday dancing to ‘Saat Samundar’ at Alanna Panday’s sangeet; (right) Ahaan dancing to ‘I Am The Best’

He is not an internet star, but even before he broke out with Saiyaara (2025), Ahaan Panday was already being talked about. The reason? His dance videos from sister Alanna Panday’s wedding had gone viral. While everyone expected Yash Raj Films (YRF) and Mohit Suri to cash in on it in his debut film, the director opted to keep his character intense. But here’s the clincher — fans wanted to see him dance. So, in his second, yet-untitled film directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, Ahaan will play the quintessential larger-than-life hero, complete with dance numbers.

“Ahaan, [who is currently shooting in the UK], is going to can a dance number next month, prep for which is underway. A four-day shoot for the song is being planned in Manchester. The sequence will show Ahaan in his effortless best and that’s how Aditya Chopra and Ali want to present him onscreen,” informs a source, adding that the shoot will happen at the end of the UK schedule.

YRF will lock a top choreographer for the number in the next few days “because the visual and dance forms have to be unlike anything YRF has done before”.

“Apart from daily dance rehearsals, he has also been working on stamina, body conditioning, camera [placements], music beats, expressions, signature hooksteps, and building the effortless swagger needed for a big Bollywood hero song since the number is designed as a high-energy commercial track mounted on a large scale,” adds the source.

These days, Randeep Hooda finds himself smiling between takes. The actor, who welcomed daughter Nyomica in March with athlete-actor wife Lin Laishram, says fatherhood has brought him a joy he hasn’t felt since his teenage years.

“As a person, I feel a bit weaker in the knees. I want to go home more than ever since I got married because it is another reason to go back to. I often find myself sitting in a corner and smiling to myself thinking of my daughter,” Hooda tells mid-day, his eyes lighting up at the mention of the little one.

As he settles into fatherhood, the actor says every day brings a new lesson. “I am still a new dad. It has been two months, but there is more to discover every day. As my parents say, it is the best achievement of my life,” he grins.

While he is still in the early stages of fatherhood, we wonder whether becoming a parent will influence his creative choices. On that front, Hooda is clear that nothing has changed.

“I have never made choices that will embarrass me later in front of my kids or anybody else’s kids. So, that is not going to change,” assures the actor, who will next be seen in Eetha, alongside Shraddha Kapoor.

The Laxman Utekar directorial venture, based on Tamasha artiste Vithabai Bhau Mang Narayangaonkar, recently wrapped up filming. Refusing to divulge details about the project, Hooda says he could talk about it, but “I don’t know whether it will be in good taste”. He prefers to wait for the makers’ green signal before discussing the film further. “I don’t want to tom-tom about myself,” he smiles.

Three years after Gadar 2, director Anil Sharma has officially begun work on his next action entertainer, Arjun Naga. The film went on floors on Sunday (May 17) with its cast and crew attending the special event. According to a source close to the production, the team moved into its first major schedule soon after the launch.

“The mahurat happened on Sunday at Royal Palms with the entire core team present. A few scenes were also shot on the first day itself. From Monday (May 18) onwards, the unit has started filming an elaborate song sequence choreographed by Ganesh Acharya,” the insider revealed.

The song, mounted on a grand scale, is currently being shot in Goregaon and is said to be among the film’s first big set-pieces. The film stars Utkarsh Sharma in the lead, while Arjun Rampal has been cast as the primary antagonist. However, the actor was not part of the mahurat schedule and is expected to join the shoot shortly.

There is also industry chatter around the Rajasaab fame, Nidhhi Agerwal being cast as the female lead, though the makers are yet to officially confirm her involvement.