Does Karan Johar still have it? That was the big question as the filmmaker marked his 25th year in the industry with Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (RARKPK). As the Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt-starrer hit the screens yesterday, the answer is a yes, albeit not an emphatic one. The film is poised to earn between Rs. 11-13 crore on its first day.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh admits that the opening collection of RARKPK pales when compared to Johar’s box-office history, but notes that it’s an encouraging starting point for the family dramedy.

“The footfall has been affected by the torrential rains. The opening is not as one would have expected from a Karan Johar film, but looking at the romantic genre in the post-pandemic era, it’s a positive sign. Somewhere down the line, we forgot to make romantic films. We were only making metro-centric films. But family dramas cut across centres,” he says.

Distributor Raj Bansal, however, opines that Singh’s recent poor run has a role to play in the film’s average opening. “Nobody can take away from Ranveer that he is a very good actor. But after three back-to-back failures, he seems to have lost his charm with the audience. Ideally, you’d expect a Rs. 20-crore opening from a Karan Johar film, especially one that has veteran actors like Dharmendra, Shabana Azmi and Jaya Bachchan.”

He also highlights that the influencer marketing may have left audiences disillusioned. “A night before the release, Twitter influencers and media were praising Rocky Aur Rani to the skies. The audience finds it difficult to trust such heightened praise. The industry needs to stop encouraging influencers,” asserts Bansal.