Dismal. That’s the word to describe the opening which Knock Out has taken today (October 15). The producers of the Sanjay Dutt and Irrfan Khan starrer may have found solace yesterday when a division bench of the Bombay high court reversed the order of a single bench, staying the release of the film because it was found to be copied from 20th Century Fox’s Hollywood film, Phone Booth. But the joy must’ve been short-lived because barely 15 hours after the division bench permitted the makers to go ahead with the release (but only after they had deposited Rs. 1.5 crore in the court, pending the final disposal of the case filed by the Hollywood studio) came the news that the film had opened to weak houses throughout the length and breadth of the country. There were just 15 people in the auditorium at Velocity multiplex in Indore in the 9.45 a.m. show today.
If the initial of Knock Out was miserable, the start of Aakrosh was also below the mark. It may not have been as dull as that of Knock Out but the first show collections of the Ajay Devgan and Akshaye Khanna starrer were far from impressive. At the same Velocity multiplex in Indore, Aakrosh saw an attendance of just 109 people in the morning show. An sms received from a leading exhibitor of Gujarat reads: ‘Both movies very bad opening. Knock Out is worst ever seen.’
When star cast films like Aakrosh and Knock Out have opened so badly, one can well imagine the state of the animation film, Ramayana The Epic. As it is, animation films are not popular among the traditional audience in India. Ketan Mehta’s film on Ramayana has firstly got very few shows in the multiplexes. Besides, its opening show’s collections are so miserable that it would be a wonder if it is able to pull through for the entire week.
