Mini Mathur says Omicron affected 83’s box office numbers, fan points out ‘Spider-man, Pushpa had no such trouble’

Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone-starrer 83 was released last year in December. On Monday, filmmaker Kabir Khan’s wife Mini Mathur took to Instagram to share that the film has now been made available for streaming on Disney+ Hotstar and Netflix India. Sharing a long post, Mini wrote how Omicron virus affected the film’s box office numbers. An Instagram user reacted to Mini’s post and said that the film “didn’t do poorly because of Omicron.” (Also Read: Kapil Dev reveals Ranveer Singh’s 83 did not affect him on first watch)

Sharing a poster of the film, Mini wrote, “It’s finally here. For those of you who could not make it to the theatres to see this exhilarating, feel good film on India’s first iconic World Cup victory. Widely acclaimed as one of the best films to come out of @kabirkhankk and @ranveersingh ‘s already impressive repertoire!! This is a film that briefly transformed theatres into stadiums but our friend omicron also released on the same day as the film did.”

She added, “The immeasurable love and admiration that this film has got for the magical cast and the director is unprecedented and I’m thrilled that you, your parents and kids can watch it together from TODAY ! Do write in here to let us know what you felt. 83 is now streaming on @netflix_in and @disneyplushotstar.”

One person commented on her post, “Lol the movie didn’t do poorly because of Omicron.” Mini replied to the comment and said, “Oh ok toh aap hi batao (so you tell me). BTW which film distribution business do you run because you’re clearly an expert. I’m sure I would have remembered your name Vagisha.” 

The person then pointed out that Spider-Man and Pushpa, which released a week before 83 were a hit at the box office. The comment read, “@minimathur Miss Mathur, if Omicron was such a big issue in India impacting the movie business, the competitor movies surely would have flopped the way this one did. Spider-Man (released on December 16, 2021) and Pushpa (released on December 17, 2021) seemed to have no trouble bringing in audiences.” 

83 underperformed at the box office. According to Bollywood Hungama, the film collected ₹109 crore nett in India and ₹63.94 crore nett overseas. The film minted a total of ₹193.73 crore nett worldwide. The total budget of the film was said to be around ₹280 crore.

According to Hindustan Times review of the film, “Yes, the film is about India’s win but Kabir doesn’t hesitate to tell us how most Indians never believed that India could win the World Cup. The mockery and sarcasm hits you hard through some scenes. I particularly loved the references to how a game of cricket can take precedence over communal violence and bring people from all strata of society under one roof. The scene where a woman delivers her baby right when Team India is playing their final match, and how the family names him ‘Kapil’ as soon as the country wins, is heartwarming.”