look news india
In the history of Indian cinema, very few such films are seen which destroy all the box office equations by being made without any big superstar and with a micro budget of just a few crores. The devotional drama film ‘Hanuman Ansh’, made under the direction of Dr. Vishal Chaturvedi and based on the divine life of Saint Shri Neem Karoli Baba, has made this unimaginable charisma come true. This film, which was released in theaters on August 7, is now moving towards completing its two months i.e. 60 days in theaters. Even on the 58th day of its release i.e. the eighth Saturday, the storm of the film does not seem to be stopping at the ticket window. On Saturday, the film again surprised everyone by earning crores of rupees at the box office.
Despite the presence of big budget films like Ajay Devgan’s ‘Drishyam 3’ in theatres, the audience of ‘Hanuman Ansh’ shows remains intact. This spiritual drama got full benefit of weekend holiday on Saturday as compared to Friday. According to box office tracker Sacknilk and trade reports, the film has collected an impressive net collection of around ₹1.59 crore to ₹2.10 crore at the domestic box office on its 58th day. Even after a long journey of 58 days, a film’s daily collection registering in crores is considered a rare phenomenon in the Indian film industry. With this latest figure, the total domestic net collection of the film has crossed the magical figure of ₹321.22 crore.
According to film trade experts, the total Indian gross collection of ‘Hanuman Ansh’ has now crossed ₹379.96 crore. After being released abroad by Hombale Films from September 11, it is also getting full support from the overseas market. The film’s worldwide gross collection in 58 days has crossed the historic milestone of ₹417 crore. It is noteworthy that the film was produced with a limited budget of just Rs 2 crore. Making a profit of more than 20,000% against the budget, this film has entered the top list of most profitable films in the 113 year history of Indian cinema.
At the local level, an amazing turnout is being seen for the film in the Hindi speaking states of North India. Occupancy ranging from 40% to 50% was recorded on Saturday in multiplexes and single screen theaters in Uttar Pradesh’s capital Lucknow, Varanasi, Prayagraj, Kanpur and Patna and Muzaffarpur in Bihar. This film is being seen as a festival especially among the devotees of Neem Karoli Baba and families with spiritual interest. In many cinema halls of Delhi-NCR, including Lucknow’s Wave Cinema and Phoenix Palacio, the viewership of morning and afternoon family shows is giving tough competition to newly released films. The audience is accepting it not just as entertainment but as a form of spiritual peace and cultural inspiration.
The film’s director and writer Dr. Vishal Chaturvedi has prepared the first installment of this trilogy based on his autobiographical book ‘Divine Detour: That Changed My Life’. Set against the backdrop of pre-independence India, this story depicts the divine journey of young Lakshmi Narayan from his childhood to becoming Saint Neem Karoli Baba with utmost simplicity and authenticity. The soulful performances of Shobhinav Satya and Chandan Anand in the lead roles have touched the hearts of the audience. The film, which started without any aggressive PR, big advertisements or pre-release hype, has achieved this position only on the basis of ‘word of mouth’ i.e. mutual appreciation of the audience.
Trade pundits estimate that due to the holiday on the 59th day i.e. Sunday, its collection may see an additional growth of 30% to 40%. The film can easily touch ₹2.50 crore to ₹3 crore nett business on Sunday, which will take its domestic nett collection straight to ₹324-325 crore. Veteran filmmakers of Bollywood have also termed this historic success of ‘Hanuman Ansh’ as an important ‘case study’ for the cinema world, which has proved that if there is truth and emotional depth in the subject matter, then the boundaries of big budget and stardom are broken.