Thank God advance booking touches ₹1 crore-mark; Ajay Devgn, Sidharth Malhotra film may open at ₹10-12 crore

This Diwali sees the release of two Hindi films on Tuesday. Thank God, which stars Ajay Devgn, Sidharth Malhotra, and Rakul Preet Singh, hits the screens alongside Akshay Kumar’s Ram Setu. While the buzz and scale of the film is definitely lower than Akshay’s release, Thank God is nevertheless expected to open fairly well given the festive rush. As per trade sources, the film has crossed ₹1 crore in advance booking for day one, and despite the low number, is expected to touch double figure in nett collections on day one. Also read: Ajay Devgn, Sidharth Malhotra named in case filed against Thank God for ‘hurting religious sentiments’

Thank God features Sidharth Malhotra as man who meets CG (a version of Chitragupt played by Ajay Devgn) after a near-death experience. He must now set things right and face his vices to get a second chance at life. Rakul stars as Sidharth’s cop wife in the Indra Kumar comedy.

As per trade tracker Sacnilk, by Monday evening, the film has sold tickets worth ₹1.08 crore in advance bookings for day one. It is likely to finish somewhere in excess of ₹1.25 crore by the time advance bookings end later on Monday night. The figure is low if compared to some of the recent double-digit openers (films that netted ₹10 crore or more) but trade sources indicate that owing to Goverdhan Pooja holiday in most parts of the country on release day, it is likely to earn somewhere around ₹10-12 crore on day one.

The figure, however, is an optimistic one, insiders warn. It depends on a number of factors including the critical reception the film gets and the word of mouth it generates. However, since Diwali releases have almost always done better than usual opening days, the signs look positive.

The film may not be able to touch the lofty mark set by Sooryavanshi, which released last Diwali. The Rohit Shetty actioner benefitted from being the first big Hindi film to release after the second wave and minted ₹26.5 crore on day one in nett collections across India.