In today’s times, when even completing 50 days in theatres for movies is a feat, a Gujarati film, Chaal Jeevi Laiye, has managed to do the unthinkable. Released on February 1, 2019, it is currently running in its 34th week in around 10 cinemas! What’s more, it’s still getting record occupancy, sometimes even more than that of latest releases!

To explain the madness, let us give you an instance of the film’s historic run in a theatre named Inox Raj Imperial in the city of Surat, Gujarat. In the previous weekend, the film had 42 admits and 57 admits on Friday September 13 and Saturday September 14 respectively, in a 75 seater screen. On Sunday September 15, it ran with full occupancy. On Sunday August 25, Chaal Jeevi Laiye was running with 4 shows a day in this Surat multiplex and the average occupancy was a mind-boggling 81%! During ‘dry weeks’, that is, when there were no major Hindi or English release, Chaal Jeevi Laiye was similarly allotted multiple shows and it did very well. Not just that, on May 17, the day the Ajay Devgn-starrer De De Pyaar De released, Chaal Jeevi Laiye was in its 16th week and the morning show occupancy in a 220-seater screen was nearly 68%, that is, more than that of the former! The nett collections of the film in Inox alone are a huge Rs. 6.40 crore.

However, lovers of Gujarati cinema are not aware of the monumental achievements of Chaal Jeevi Laiye. A chief reason is that producers never talked about it in the first place. Any other filmmaker would have promoted this fact but the producers of Chaal Jeevi Laiye – Coconut Motion Pictures – chose not to. Producer Rashmin Majithia explains, “We had pre-decided that we won’t boast about our film’s success by giving box office figures. Chaal Jeevi Laiye is an emotional film and its vibe would have been affected if we had gone all out by bragging about its record figures.”

That’s precisely the reason why the CEO of Coconut Motion Pictures, Ritesh Laalan, refused to share the exact all-India nett collections till date, to this writer. He however reveals, “The gross collections of the film are more than Rs. 50 crores. The film is in its 34th week and is running in more than 10 cinemas. Recently, our director Vipul Mehta was in Bhuj and he told us that the film was still running there.” He further adds, “In places like Surat this has not happened but in other centres, the exhibitors don’t give shows to Chaal Jeevi Laiye on Friday and Saturday due to multiple new releases. But from Sunday onwards, they cancel the shows of those films that are not doing well and replace it with that of Chaal Jeevi Laiye!”

A success of this sort must have been impossible to predict for most but Ritesh Laalan partly disagrees. He explains, “I used to tell people around me before the release that Chaal Jeevi Laiye would emerge as Gujarati cinema’s biggest film. But obviously, nobody believed me. Some of them used to even laugh at me and ask me ‘kitna kar lega’. When the film breached the Rs. 25 crore mark, I expected the collections to fall down rapidly. But the film crossed Rs. 35 crore mark. Again, I thought that this is it. However, I soon realized that people just want to see a good Gujarati film and this film is ideal in this regard. In the last six months, it’s only the repeat audience that’s coming to see the film as a well-made Gujarati film is missing.”

Rashmin Majithia adds here, “Moreover, we haven’t given the film on any OTT platform or on television. So the only option to see the movie is in cinemas. Viewers are going again to laugh and to cry with the characters. I believe that viewers are ready to accept Gujarati films with open arms but it has to be worth their time and money. And the way it has worked in urban and even semi-urban places like Bhuj shows that Chaal Jeevi Laiye has connected across various sections of audiences.”




What Ritesh Laalan and Rashmin Majithia were not able to pre-empt was how Chaal Jeevi Laiye would be received outside Gujarat. Rashmin exults, “In the first 20 weeks, Mumbai was dominating and was contributing to 25% of the film’s collections. Usually, Ahmedabad contributes 50% of a Gujarati film’s collections but for the first time, Mumbai outperformed. Ahmedabad did come up ultimately but still both cities were neck to neck. And that was unexpected since there’s a difference between Gujarati viewers in Mumbai, who are more inclined towards Bollywood, and that of Ahmedabad.” He then adds, “Chaal Jeevi Laiye ran for 26 weeks in Mumbai, in Carnival Moviestar and for around 22-23 weeks in Sangeeta Cineplex.”

What Rashmin Majithia shares next is surely impossible to believe. He tells, “In a city like Pune, it ran for more than 15 weeks, that is, it crossed 100 days. We couldn’t believe it. Not just that, it completed 8 weeks in Nashik and 4-5 weeks in Kolhapur. At a town near Kolhapur, it was there for around 3-4 weeks!” What about down South? “In cities like Bengaluru and Chennai, the film ran for only a week or two. After that, viewers would ask for special shows,” he says which also is an achievement for a Gujarati movie. Needless to say, Chaal Jeevi Laiye is the first Gujarati film to achieve these feats. “Even Chello Divas had a record run but not for such a long time in these centres,” says Rashmin Majithia.

Not just in India, but Chaal Jeevi Laiye made its mark overseas too where it released on March 15. As per Rentrak, it earned $130,000 in USA, $80,000 in United Kingdom, $50,000 in Australia, $15,000 in New Zealand and $25,000 in the rest of the world. So the total overseas collections of the film stands at $275,000, which is, Rs. 1.94 crore approx. Ritesh Laalan states, “Chaal Jeevi Laiye also released in Germany, Singapore, Canada and many countries of Africa and even there, it did very well.”

Even on weekdays and despite completing more than 30 weeks, Chaal Jeevi Laiye continues to get viewers. In the current week in Inox Raj Imperial, Surat, for instance, the film has been allotted two shows in Screen # 4 – one at 11:40 am and the other 5:05 pm. For the Monday September 23 5:05 pm show, already 4 tickets have been sold 2 and a half hour before.



The makers are not surprised however, at least not anymore! Rashmin Majithia says, “No show has run without any viewer. At Rajkot, on a Sunday, the film runs with 90% occupancy. We don’t disclose these numbers also because many people are not able to believe.” And it’s not just Gujaratis that are watching this film. Ritesh narrates, “Even Marwaris are coming out in large numbers. I was watching Chaal Jeevi Laiye in Mumbai and the entire auditorium was filled with them. I asked them whether they can understand Gujarati and they replied in the affirmative.” Mind you, there are no subtitles in this film either!

The Coconut Motion picture management’s next target is to reach the 50th week, which will happen on January 17, 2020. “We had done a celebration when the film completed 100 days, since we were not that confident about its run from thereon. But then it did silver jubilee and we celebrated that feat as well. Now I am sure very soon, we’ll be celebrating the 50th week completion of Chaal Jeevi Laiye too,” says Rashmin Majithia confidently.

To say that the producers are laughing all the way to the bank would be an incorrect statement. For they are donating the 100% of the share! Rashmin Majithia tells, “From 100th day onwards, we announced that whatever the film will earn, we’ll use it for the service of old people. Every week we publish an ad of the film in newspapers where we mention that if you are watching this film now, the proceeds are going to charity.”

Chaal Jeevi Laiye is the story of a workaholic son who takes his terminally ill father to a holiday in Uttarakhand to fulfil the latter’s last wish. On the way, they meet a girl named Ketki and the trio take an unexpected and most satisfying journey of their lives. Starring Siddharth Randeria, a superstar of Gujarati theatre and cinema along with Yash Soni and Aarohi Patel, it is directed by Vipul Mehta and has music by Sachin-Jigar, who has also made a mark in Bollywood. Even the Hindi film industry have noticed the film and praised it. Notable among them was Madhuri Dixit, who tweeted in praise of the film on May 22.

Chaal Jeevi Laiye was also one of the 28 films shortlisted by the Film Federation of India for official selection at the 92nd Academy Awards.

Just watched #ChaalJeeviLaiye & I must say what an endearing story with such a simple yet effective narration! Direction, cinematography, music... everything binds the film together. Kudos to #VipulMehta, @SachinJigarLive and the entire team on such a brilliant job 👏🙂

— Madhuri Dixit Nene (@MadhuriDixit) May 22, 2019

On October 2 this year, all movie buffs were venturing out to experience War, Joker and Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy on the big screen. But in Inox Raj Imperial in the city of Surat, Gujarat, there was one more film that was drawing huge crowds – Chaal Jeevi Laiye. Despite such a tough competition from the new releases, Chaal Jeevi Laiye was running in 3 shows and was able to pull 350 viewers, that too in its 35th week! And it’s hardly a surprise anymore since the film is on a record-breaking spree ever since this film released on February 1, 2019. Filmy Fenil had exclusively revealed the journey and success story of the film and how it has emerged as the biggest grosser of Gujarati cinema, earning more than Rs. 50 crore gross.

And now we bring to you another exclusive revelation. This much loved film is all set to be remade in multiple languages! CEO of Coconut Motion Pictures, Ritesh Laalan, says, “We are now remaking Chaal Jeevi Laiye in Hindi. Vipul Mehta would again be the director. We are already in talks with the actors and the film will go on floors in September 2020. We want to shoot the film in Uttarakhand with the greenery at its finest and hence we chose this particular month.”

Instead of parting with the rights of the film, the producers have decided to instead produce the remakes themselves. Producer Rashmin Majithia tells, “A lot of people approached us for the remake rights not just in Hindi but also for Tamil, Telugu, Marathi and Punjabi. However, we don’t want to part with the rights. Instead, we’ll like to also produce the remakes. So we start with Hindi first and then in future, we’ll produce the Tamil and Telugu adaptations of Chaal Jeevi Laiye.”

Chaal Jeevi Laiye is the story of a workaholic son who takes his terminally ill father to a holiday in Uttarakhand to fulfill the latter’s last wish. On the way, they meet a girl named Ketki and the trio take an unexpected and most satisfying journey of their lives. Starring Siddharth Randeria, a superstar of Gujarati theatre and cinema along with Yash Soni and Aarohi Patel, it is directed by Vipul Mehta and has music by Sachin-Jigar, who has also made a mark in Bollywood. Chaal Jeevi Laiye was also one of the 28 films shortlisted by the Film Federation of India for official selection at the 92nd Academy Awards.

In its 34th week, Chaal Jeevi Laiye was running in 10 cinemas in Gujarat. Ever since the film completes 100 days, the producers are donating their entire share for the cause of the old people. Rashmin Majithia tells, “From 100th day onwards, we announced that whatever the film will earn, we’ll use it for the service of old people. Every week we publish an ad of the film in newspapers where we mention that if you are watching this film now, the proceeds are going to charity.”

At a time when people are of the belief that cinema business is going to diminish from here on, it’s heartening to see that the Gujarati blockbuster film Chaal Jeevi Laiye has managed to excel in cinemas, and how! Believe it or not, this film has completed 2 years in cinemas! Yes, you read it right. Today, that is, February 1 marks its second anniversary. Needless to say, not just the makers but even the exhibitors screening the film are grinning from ear to ear.

 

In fact, so happy are the multiplexes that for the anniversary week, they decided to increase the shows. Ritesh Laalan, CEO of Coconut Motion Pictures says, “The multiplexes have added the shows on their own. We haven’t told them to do so. The film this week is running in more than 200 shows across the country. Till last week, it had 50 shows, in Gujarat and Mumbai.”

A quick glance at the ticketing website, Book My Show, shows that the shows of Chaal Jeevi Laiye have indeed increased in places like Ahmedabad (currently running with 27 shows in a day), Surat (24 shows), Vadodara (17 shows) and Anand (12 shows). In Mumbai, it has the third highest number of shows, at 23. Interestingly, Chaal Jeevi Laiye has re-released in Pune, Bengaluru and Delhi-NCR with 3 shows each and in Hyderabad with 2 shows. In Kolkata, it will have one show daily. And very surprisingly, the city of Patna, too, has one show daily this week. The prices of most of these shows are priced at less than Rs. 100.

The collections of Chaal Jeevi Laiye till date are expected to be around Rs. 44-45 crore net. In comparison to Bollywood and South films, it might not seem significant but it’s a feat for a Gujarati film to reach till this mark. Also, what sets it apart is that the film has managed to find audiences for two years and yet, it’s not showing any signs of slow down. Ritesh Laalan adds, “In the week of Makar Sankranti, the collections had doubled as compared to the previous week.”

It’s no wonder that the makers are ecstatic about this feat. A success bash was organized yesterday in Ahmedabad and another one a week later, in Mumbai for the cast and crew.

 

Chaal Jeevi Laiye is the story of a workaholic son who takes his terminally ill father on holiday to the Himalayan state of Uttarakhand to fulfil his last wish. On the way, they meet a young woman named Ketki and the trio undertake the most unexpected but satisfying journey of their lives. Starring Siddharth Randeria, a star of Gujarati theatre and cinema, along with Yash Soni and Aarohi Patel, the film has been directed by Vipul Mehta with music by popular composer duo Sachin-Jigar.

Last year, the makers had revealed that they plan to remake this film in Hindi. In fact, they had spoken to Rishi Kapoor and were about to get Ranbir Kapoor on board as well. However, the plans went kaput after the veteran actor passed away, on April 30, 2020. Yet, the remake plan is on and they are currently hunting actors for the lead characters.

Chaal Jeevi Laiye is a Gujarati film making waves ever since it released on February 1. This is a feel-good family film with a few lessons on the importance of communication, Generation gap and work-life balance thrown in. The film has some lovely moments and raises some pertinent points. Also, the pre-climax and climax is very touching and takes the film many notches higher. The twist in the tale might be predictable but still works. On the flipside, the film is quite over-the-top in many scenes. A few developments are unconvincing and even silly. More than half of the film has been shot in Uttarakhand and the makers have used too many tourism shots as filler clips. One can see that the long tourism-friendly shot is filmed when its sunny and in the immediate shot after, the weather is cloudy and it seems so embarrassing. So if you are able to overlook these glitches for the message and emotional and funny quotient, do give this film a try. Not to forget, the performances are also quite good. Siddharth Randeria, the badshah of Gujarati cinema and drama, shockingly tries too hard to be funny in the beginning and fails. But he gets better as the film progresses. He shines in the emotional scenes. One of his best scenes is when a tea stall owner, whom he last met 20 years ago, recognizes him. Yash Soni is decent. Aarohi is charming and gives a first rate performance. She should have avoided over-repeating ‘OMG’ at regular intervals though. A fine effort, all in all, and here’s hoping Chaal Jeevi Laiye gets a Hindi remake soon! It’s high time Bollywood gets a fine family drama like this one!

My rating - *** ½ out of 5!

Bachu Ni Benpani is a Gujarati film which released way back on August 27 and continues to run in cinemas successfully. It is the story of a hypochondriac who goes on a trip of a lifetime to Thailand. The film is produced by Coconut Motion Pictures that also made Chaal Jeevi Laiye, the 2019 historic Gujarati blockbuster that is STILL running in cinemas (believe it or not). Bachu Ni Benpani’s plot reminds one of that film, as well as Kangana Ranaut’s Queen. Chaal Jeevi Laiye was funny but also very moving, while Bachu Ni Benpani hardly has any serious moments. It provides dollops of laughter and at the same time, also manages to make viewers ponder about life. The film has been mounted on a large scale, with the majority of its shooting taking place in Thailand. On the flipside, a few developments are very silly. Although the idea was to provide audiences with a rocking time, one wishes that the serious bit had been explored a bit more. Also, a crucial track was left abruptly. Siddharth Randeria, as expected, nails the character effortlessly. Ratna Pathak Shah puts up a confident act and her chemistry with Siddharth is lovely. Devarshi Shah (Vicky) leaves a mark while Yukti Randeria (Jassi) has a fine screen presence and is impressive. Prince Limbadiya (Aagam), Jahnvi Chauhan (Preeti) and Gopi Desai (Chandrika) do well. Songs are fine with 'Havan Karaavo' standing out as it is sung by Amit Trivedi. All in all, Bachu Ni Benpani makes for an ideal watch with family and friends.

My rating - *** ½ out of 5! 

One of the most anticipated Gujarati films of 2023, Bushirt T-Shirt, was released on May 5. Starring superstar Siddharth Randeria in the lead, the family entertainer has been performing quite well at the box office. What’s impressive is the drop in the second week is very negligible which shows that the film is sure to have a long run.

As per our information, Bushirt T-Shirt’s first-day collections were around Rs. 23.10 lakhs. The collections jumped to around Rs. 44 lakhs on Saturday followed by around Rs. 60.50 lakhs on Sunday. Thus, its first weekend collections stood at around Rs. 1.27 crores. On the weekdays, it held steady and collected around Rs. 84 lakhs between Monday and Thursday. The first week-collections were around Rs. 2.11 crores.

On its second Friday, the collections showed a slight rise as compared to Thursday, which is always a good sign. While Bushirt T-Shirt collected around Rs. 22 lakhs on Friday, it earned around Rs. 38.50 lakhs on Saturday while on Sunday, it accumulated Rs. 55 lakhs. Hence, in its second weekend, it collected Rs. 1.15 crores. The ten-day collections of Bushirt T-Shirt are Rs. 3.27 crores.

On the weekdays, Bushirt T-Shirt, as expected, continues to hold well. In Bahar Cinema, Vile Parle, Mumbai, the film is running with all three shows a day. In many centres, dominated by Gujarati audiences, the night and evening shows are already almost sold out. Even in Gujarat, it is super strong.

The collections of Rs. 3.27 crores might seem lesser to many readers. Also, Kehvatlal Parivar (2022), Siddharth Randeria’s last film with the same producers (Coconut Motion Pictures), had collected around Rs. 5 crores in its first week. However, Bushirt T-Shirt faced tough competition from The Kerala Story, which was also released on May 5. The Adah Sharma-starrer is performing exceptionally at the box office and is all set to cross the Rs. 200 crores mark. Hence, given the situation, Bushirt T-Shirt is doing quite well. Unlike Hindi films, it doesn’t have the pressure of scoring big time during the first weekend. Gujarati films have a long run at the box office and looking at its trend, Bushirt T-Shirt is sure to slowly and steadily do wonders at the box office.

The ten-day collections of Bushirt T-Shirt are as follows
Friday - 23,10,000 apprx
Saturday - 44,00,000 apprx
Sunday - 60,50,000 apprx
Monday - 22,00,000 apprx
Tuesday - 22,00,000 apprx
Wednesday - 20,00,000 apprx
Thursday - 20,00,000 apprx
Week One - 2,11,60,000 apprx
Friday - 22,00,000 apprx
Saturday - 38,50,000 apprx
Sunday - 55,00,000 apprx
TOTAL - 3,27,00,000 apprx

Besides Siddharth Randeria, Bushirt T-Shirt also stars Kamlesh Oza, Vandana Pathak and Reeva Rachh. It is directed by Siddharth Randeria's son Ishaan Randeria and produced by Rashmin Majethia's Coconut Motion Pictures. Siddharth Randeria and Coconut Motion Pictures have had a historic partnership. Their 2019 film Chaal Jeevi Laiye has created a record as it continues to run in cinemas even more than four years after its release. It is also the biggest Gujarati grosser ever. Kehvatlal Parivar, meanwhile, was also a super-hit.

Gujarati cinema is regularly coming up with some very fine entertainers. However, Coconut Motion Pictures has carved a niche for themselves with their entertaining, touching and super-hit films, especially the ones involving music director duo Sachin-Jigar and superstar Siddharth Randeria. In 2019, they delivered the monstrous blockbuster Chaal Jeevi Laiye, which is still running in cinemas. This was followed by Kehvatlal Parivar in May 2022. Now, exactly a year later, they are back with Bushirt T-Shirt. The trailer was hilarious and raised expectations and thankfully, the film turns out to be a wholesome family entertainer.

The story of the movie: Bhupat Pandya (Siddharth Randeria) lives with his wife Manju (Vandana Pathak) and son Harsh (Kamlesh Oza) in Ahmedabad. Bhupat has seen several hardships in his life. He once had a thriving catering business. But it shut after he went into losses. With no other option, he had to take up a job in a party planning company, run by a ruthless boss Hemang Shah (Manan Desai) who threatens Bhupat that he'll fire him if the latter doesn't adapt to the changing technology. Hence, Bhupat wishes that his son Harsh should aim for a MBA degree which will later help him get a well-paying job. Harsh, however, is not interested in studying MBA. He wants to pursue music. Bhupat is against this idea and he compels Harsh to get admitted in a college for higher studies. This results in a constant war of words between the father and son. One day, a miracle takes place, resulting in confusion and chaos.

After a lovely introduction, Bushirt T-Shirt drops a bit as the makers take their time to build-up the story. The scene of Harsh meeting the principal, however, stands out. But the real fun begins once the miracle happens and also, the reason behind it. From hereon, the film goes on a different level. One scene that is very memorable at this point is when Harsh blackmails Bhupat over going to Goa in front of Manju. After the interval, the fun continues and also, the film scores emotionally. The madness also goes one level up, in the hospital scene and where the duo chases a woman. The finale is sweet.

Speaking of performances, Siddharth Randeria, as always, is in top form. His comic timing is legendary, as we all know. And like always, he also manages to shine in the emotional scenes. This time, he gives a surprise to his fans as he pays tribute to a famous dialogue from one of his well-known plays. He also goes a bit theatrical in the scene where he gets drugged and is sure to be loved by those who enjoy his performance on stage. Kamlesh Oza initially is decent but springs a surprise when the miracle happens. Vandana Pathak is fine but sadly, gets limited screen time. Reeva Rachh (Payal) is memorable and sweet. Hardik Sangani (Divyang; Harsh's friend) and Kuldeep Gor (Jamnadas; Harsh's friend) do well. Manan Desai is apt for the part and one wishes his character had more to do as there was a scope. Muni Jha (Ajay) is likeable. The same goes for Rajesh S Khatri (Navjee). Bhakti Kubavat (Mansi), Dilip Rawal (Jitu; Manju's brother) and Sunil Vishrani (Kotak) are fair. The actor playing the college principal, Kuldip Singh Chaddha and Kusum Karsandas are fair.

Sachin-Jigar's music is crowd-pleasing. 'Kaka Kamarne Halaav' is foot-tapping while 'Dahyo Babo' is okay. 'Mara Dariya' is sweet. Advait Nemlekar's background score is appropriate. Pratik Parmar's cinematography is neat. Chirayu Bodas' production design is very realistic. Niki Joshi's costumes are damn good and suit the characters well. The costumes worn by Siddharth Randeria in the later half are appealing. Tushar Parekh's editing is sans complaints as the film moves at a nice pace.

Ishaan Randeria's story is novel and has all the trappings of a commercial hit. Ishaan Randeria's screenplay is effective. He has peppered the narrative with lots of crazy and sweet moments that keep the interest going. Siddharth Randeria's dialogues are witty and funny.

Ishaan Randeria's direction is first-rate. As expected, technically, he’s very sound and storytelling-wise, he keeps viewers firmly engaged. Overall, he does justice to the unique plot in hand. What’s impressive is that he doesn’t turn the film into a tearjerker. Also, it takes into account the valid points of both the generations. Hence, the youth as well as the old-aged viewers both would be happy with the narrative.

On the flipside, the beginning 30 minutes could have been better. The character of Manju doesn’t get the screen time that she deserves, especially when she is the one who causes the madness. The character of the boss should have also been meatier, considering his ruthless introduction and personality. The track of Mansi and Kunal is not summed up well. In fact, too many developments take place in the end and mid-credit scene and it can be slightly difficult to digest.

On the whole, Bushirt T-Shirt is a fun-filled family entertainer. It’s a clean film with a great message and most importantly, it’s done without being preachy. At the same time, the unique storyline, hilarious moments and splendid performances by Siddharth Randeria and Kamlesh Oza will get thumbs up from all sections of moviegoers. Bushirt T-Shirt was released on Friday, May 5 and has taken a fine opening. At this rate, it can emerge as one of the biggest hits of Gujarati cinema and also the highest grossing Gujarati film of 2023!

My rating - *** ½ out of 5!

THE TIMES OF INDIA (September 22, 2019)

Kolkata: Zoya Akhtar’s ‘Gully Boy’, featuring Ranveer Singh as an aspiring rapper, has been selected as India’s official entry in the International Feature Film category at the Oscars this year, the Film Federation of India (FFI) announced on Saturday.

Director Aparna Sen, who chaired the jury, made the announcement in Kolkata in presence of other members, who were chosen by the FFI.

“The process was democratic. We took a long time and discussed the films threadbare. Each person was asked to write down three films in order of preference. After that we took a vote; we discussed the films and then we arrived at one film finally, and that is ‘Gully Boy’. The energy of the film was infectious. It will speak to the audience,” Sen said.

Initially, 28 films were in contest. One Gujarati movie, ‘Chaal Jeevi Laiye!’, was disqualified, hence, the number came down to 27. The screenings started in Kolkata. “The selection of the Ranveer Singh-Alia Bhatt-starrer is a very good choice. We are thankful to jury members for having done the job meticulously,” said FFI president Firdausul Hasan.

Gully Boy, produced by Ritesh Sidhwani and Farhan Akhtar, features an up-and-coming rapper who sets out to achieve his dream by rhyming about his life on the Mumbai streets.

“Gully Boy has been selected as India's official entry to the 92nd Oscar Awards. #apnatimeaayega. Thank you to the film federation and congratulations #Zoya @kagtireema @ritesh_sid @RanveerOfficial @aliaa08 @SiddhantChturvD @kalkikanmani & cast, crew and hip hop crew,” he wrote.

The superstar of Gujarati cinema, Siddharth Randeria, has given one more major hit in the form of Bushirt T-Shirt. The comedy-drama was released on May 5 and ever since, it is running successfully in cinemas. It faced competition from several movies in these 11 weeks. In fact, it clashed with the Bollywood blockbuster, The Kerala Story. Yet, it managed to withstand all these challenges thanks to Siddharth Randeria’s star power and of course, a very positive word of mouth resulting from a strong script.

Bushirt T-Shirt was released in around 250 screens and collected Rs. 2.11 crores in the first week. The film was steady in its second and third weeks wherein it registered just an 8-10% drop. The drops were a bit more in the subsequent weeks which is normal. Yet, the film remained steady. It suffered a loss of screens in the seventh week due to the release of the biggie, Adipurush. In that week, it collected Rs. 13.04 lakhs. But after Adipurush crashed on the weekdays, Bushirt T-Shirt gained as it got more screens than the previous week. It also led to higher collections in the 8th week, that is, Rs. 16.13 lakhs. Incidentally, this feat was achieved in the same week when Bushirt T-Shirt completed 50 days.

Now, Bushirt T-Shirt is all set to complete 100 days in less than 3 weeks, on August 11. It has collected Rs. 8.86 crores approx. till now and it’ll be interesting if it manages to cross the Rs. 9 crore mark by then. It has suffered a major competition this week with the release of Bachubhai. It also stars Siddharth Randeria and is doing huge business in Gujarat and Mumbai. Nevertheless, Bushirt T-Shirt can continue to perform, as it usually happens with successful movies.

The eleven-week collections of Bushirt T-Shirt are as follows
Week One – Rs. 2,11,60,000 approx
Week Two – Rs. 1,90,02,298 approx
Week Three – Rs. 1,75,31,279 approx
Week Four – Rs. 1,39,00,058 approx
Week Five – Rs. 80,85,387 approx
Week Six – Rs. 42,42,256 approx
Week Seven – Rs. 13,04,600 approx
Week Eight – Rs. 16,13,282 approx
Week Nine – Rs. 8,95,161 approx
Week Ten – Rs. 5,39,992 approx
Week Eleven – Rs. 3,76,542 approx
TOTAL – Rs. 8,86,50,855 approx

Besides Siddharth Randeria, Bushirt T-Shirt also stars Kamlesh Oza, Vandana Pathak and Reeva Rachh. It is directed by Siddharth Randeria’s son Ishaan Randeria and produced by Rashmin Majithia‘s Coconut Motion Pictures. Siddharth Randeria and Coconut Motion Pictures have had a historic partnership. Their 2019 film Chaal Jeevi Laiye has created a record as it continues to run in cinemas even more than four years after its release. It is also the biggest Gujarati grosser ever. Kehvatlal Parivar, meanwhile, was also a super-hit.