Aanand L Rai’s Tere Ishk Mein has turned out to be the box-office surprise that Bollywood has been waiting for. The Dhanush and Kriti Sanon-starrer opened at over Rs 15 crore on November 28, and is expected to close the weekend at approximately Rs 60 crore. What about the film has worked when most Hindi movies struggle to stay afloat at the box office?

Delhi-based exhibitor Gurmeet Seble points to its depiction of the dark side of love. “There is a real pull for stories where love feels dangerous and high-stakes.”

Dhanush’s performance as the heartbroken lover is among the film’s biggest draws. Videos from theatres across Chennai, Hyderabad, Delhi, and Mumbai show crowds reacting to the climax with feverish energy. Trade analyst Girish Wankhede points out that it has as much to do with the leading man’s portrayal as with the unrequited love story’s writing.

Wankhede elaborates, “Saiyaara was Gen Z–friendly and stylish, and Ek Deewane Ki Deewaniyat found strong loyalty among tier-2 and -3 viewers. Tere Ishk Mein knows exactly whom it is speaking to. This one is for jilted lovers everywhere.”

Wankhede believes such love stories will almost always find takers in India. He reasons, “We’re used to such love stories – Khilona [1970], Darr [1993], Tere Naam [2003], and so on. Break-ups and unrequited love are part of our system. We love underdogs who are madly in love, but not getting that love back. We are a country of Devdas-es.”

Another encouraging sign is that Tere Ishk Mein is performing well across urban centres as well as mass pockets like Punjab, Bihar, and Rajasthan. Trade analyst Taran Adarsh notes that Rai’s movie has broken the recent pattern of Hindi cinema making “multiplex films catering only to five cities”. “It’s rooted. A common man in Jabalpur or Patna is responding to it just as much as someone in Mumbai is. [In the past few months], we alienated our mass pockets. Our actors became metro-centric. Those choices don’t get you numbers.”

On Dhanush’s crossover appeal, Adarsh dismisses old industry binaries. “Calling him a ‘Tamil superstar working in the North’— these are compartments we’ve created. The audience doesn’t care. They want a good story. And Dhanush delivers.”

He credits the film’s opening momentum to the trailer. “The trailer did the trick. People instantly connected with a man who falls in love, loses it and the tone felt raw. And importantly, it’s not a dubbed film. That authenticity matters.”

Adarsh also believes the cult following of Raanjhanaa has directly transferred to Tere Ishk Mein. “There’s a comfort the audience has with the Dhanush–Aanand L. Rai pairing. You can feel it in the film.”

What elevates the performance, he says, is Dhanush’s restraint. “A hallmark of a fine actor is that he doesn’t need to show off. Someone else from Bollywood might have gone louder. Dhanush keeps quiet, promotes less, and lets the work speak.”

He also uses the film’s reception to critique Bollywood’s recent approach. “Tere Ishk Mein is proof that when you give people a story with emotional heft, they turn up. Even the music broke internal trade assumptions. They saved a song like ‘Aawara Angara’ for later and now post-film, that's all over our social media."

Festival releases often translate into a box-office clash. With Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari and Kantara: Chapter 1, however, the war has begun even before they hit the theatres on October 2. The two releases are engaged in a screen war, which started when the distributors of the Rishab Shetty-starrer asked that the mythological action drama be allotted all single-screen theatres across the country and a dominant share of prime shows in multiplexes. This sparked a backlash from the makers of Sunny Sanskari Ki Tulsi Kumari, who have now insisted on equal screen division across key territories.

Even as the two movies’ advance booking has opened, exhibitors fear being the worst hit as they will end up disappointing at least one major distributor no matter what they decide. Single-screen owners, especially in Tier-2 and -3 towns, are said to be under intense pressure from each party to increase the respective film’s shows.

The ongoing clash has left the trade on edge. Delhi-based screen owner Gurmeet Seble told mid-day, “Such clashes hurt everyone — producers, exhibitors, and sometimes even the audience, who may find their choice of film unavailable at their nearest theatre.”

Ramesh Bala, a leading trade analyst, noted that while Kantara: Chapter 1 is expected to dominate screens in South India, the Varun Dhawan and Janhvi Kapoor-starrer will benefit in the northern region. 

“In the past, Kantara commanded the maximum share of screens in the South. In the North, the division of screens depends on advance bookings, with multiplex chains adjusting their show counts closer to release based on early demand. Dharma Productions has influence in the North, especially in multiplex circuits. That gives Sunny Sanskari... a negotiating edge in those markets,” he analysed.

Bala pointed out that the two films belong to different genres, and hence, will target different sections of the audience. “A middle ground will have to be found before the release weekend. By the Monday after the release, word-of-mouth will decide the hold.”

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh revealed that there isn’t a neat 50-50 division across Mumbai screens. “In most multiplexes here, Kantara is getting more screens. The buzz is based on the euphoria of the last part [Kantara, 2022]. Sunny Sanskari... is a happy family film with a wedding backdrop and will pull crowds in the North sector.”

Fears of a massive hike in ticket prices serving as a deterrent were allayed as SS Rajamouli’s RRR had a promising start at the box office. Its two-day collection figure sits at approximately Rs 370-crore (Friday — Rs 257.15-crore, Saturday — Rs 114.38-crore), giving trade analysts reason to cheer.

Analyst Taran Adarsh says, “S S Rajamouli is a star in his own right and is enough to pull a show. The fact that the film has [good] content will enable it to enjoy a good run. Now, every common man knows who the director of RRR is. It’s a well-made film. I wouldn’t like to bracket it as one belonging to the south market. Films such as this establish that the theatrical experience will always remain our first love. That people will watch films only on OTT is a misconception. OTT will never be the first choice.”

With Baahubali, Rajamouli was the first to showcase the influence that a south film can have on a pan-India audience. The success of recent offerings like Pushpa, and now, RRR, has only added credence to the narrative. The NTR Jr and Ram Charan starrer has lent a new lease of life to single screens, which struggled to stay afloat during the pandemic. 

Manoj Desai, executive director of G7 Multiplex and Maratha Mandir, says, “RRR is doing extraordinary business. The film is running to packed theatres at all my centres. It will surpass [the collection of] Pushpa: The Rise - Part 01. Post the pandemic, Sooryavanshi and The Kashmir Files from Bollywood, and Pushpa and RRR from the south film industry have performed well. There is immense craze for south films. The masses relate to the story, plot, emotions, visual effects, and the action in such films.”

With KFG 2 also gearing up for a release, things finally seem to be looking up for the theatre business. 

Gurmeet Seble of Delhi Single Screens Association had previously told mid-day that “unless a big money spinner came their way” single screens would be forced to remain shut. “Though these properties are self owned, they have staggering operational costs. So owners don’t wish to keep theatres running if people do not show up. RRR has brought the masses back in a big way.”