The highly anticipated romantic sports drama ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi,’ starring Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor, has struck a chord with audiences, as evidenced by its record-breaking advance ticket sales. Directed by Sharan Sharma, the film premiered today, and the excitement around this release has reached its zenith.
A report from Pinkvilla reveals that ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ has achieved the highest advance ticket sales of 2024 for Hindi titles, surpassing even the major box office contenders. It has outperformed big-budget films with renowned actors like Hrithik Roshan’s ‘Fighter,’ Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff’s ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan,’ Deepika Padukone’s ‘Maidaan,’ and others. The film sold an astounding 2.15 lakh advance tickets, setting the stage for a massive opening.
The film’s phenomenal advance sales have been significantly boosted by the Cinema Lovers Day initiative, with tickets priced at a mere Rs 99 for today. This initiative aims to attract more moviegoers to cinemas, making movie outings more affordable and thus pushing footfall higher.
Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone’s action-packed venture ‘Fighter’ managed to sell 1.45 lakh advance tickets, putting it in second place. Yami Gautam’s ‘Article 370’ followed closely with 1.25 lakh tickets sold, while the thriller ‘Shaitaan’ moved 81.5k and ‘Crew’ sold 65k in advance. ‘Maidaan’ lagged significantly behind with only 18k advance tickets sold. The Pinkvilla report also noted that Akshay Kumar and Tiger Shroff’s ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ sold 1.03 lakh advanced tickets, securing its position behind ‘Fighter.’
‘Article 370’ also benefited from the Cinema Lovers Day initiative, which offered significant discounts on ticket prices, making it no surprise that it stands third in the advance ticket sales ranking. Backed by Aditya Dhar, known for his directorial prowess in ‘Uri: The Surgical Strike,’ ‘Article 370’ was released on February 23, and it leveraged the Cinema Lovers Day buzz to its advantage.
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For Janhvi Kapoor, ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ marks her fourth theatrical release following ‘Dhadak,’ ‘Roohi,’ and ‘Mili.’ Rajkummar Rao, on the other hand, is coming into this film fresh off his acclaimed biopic ‘Srikanth.’ Both actors have already carved niches for themselves in Bollywood, but this film’s success could elevate their careers to new heights.
Cinema Lovers Day had already proved its potential for generating massive footfall during its previous edition in February. The initiative saw films like ‘Article 370’ performing exceptionally well, partly owing to the massively discounted ticket prices. MAI president and PVR CEO Kamal Gianchandani expressed optimism about this second edition of Cinema Lovers Day, suggesting it might be even more successful than the first.
“Tickets are priced at Rs 99, as they were in February. The anecdotal feedback from cinemas indicates that a large number of youth and families, who perhaps find regular theater outings unaffordable, have come out to support this initiative,” Gianchandani stated. The low ticket price has seemingly worked wonders to draw in crowds that might ordinarily steer clear of theaters.
Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor’s palpable on-screen chemistry, coupled with director Sharan Sharma’s deft storytelling, has seemingly made ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ a big hit even before its official release. The film, centering around romantic elements interwoven with sports drama, seems to offer something unique that has captivated the audience’s imagination.
The mega-success of ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ at the advance box office portends well for its theatrical run. Given the sky-high expectations and the number of tickets already sold, industry analysts are predicting a possibly record-breaking opening weekend.
This uptick in advance sales not only bodes well for the film but also reflects changing audience behavior amid economic uncertainties. Initiatives like Cinema Lovers Day help democratize the cinema-going experience, ensuring that everyone can enjoy new releases without financial constraint. The phenomenal advance sales for ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi’ herald a thriving future for the film industry, underlining that with the right incentives, cinema can still draw in massive crowds.
As the curtains rise on ‘Mr and Mrs Mahi,’ all eyes are on how it performs during its theatrical run. This film may set new benchmarks not just for Rajkummar Rao and Janhvi Kapoor, but for Hindi cinema in 2024.
