Alia Bhatt-starrer Gangubhai Kathiawadi has opened to much critical and financial acclaim. The Sanjay Leela Bhansali movie has registered a successful weekend at the box office, which is often critical for the overall success of the movie. The movie collected a sizeable Rs 10.50 crore on opening day, before expanding its ticket sales to Rs 13.32 crore on Saturday (February 26) and growing to Rs 15.30 crore on Sunday (February 27).

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The movie’s success comes as welcome relief for the film industry as theatres and cinemas have once again opened after the Omicron variant-dominated third wave of COVID-19 has passed over the country for the most part.

Also read: Gangubai Kathiawadi movie review: A landmark film in Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Alia Bhatt’s cinematic oeuvre

Film trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared his report on the weekend collections for the movie, while adding that there may be more reasons for cheer on March 1. Total collections for the movie over the weekend come out to a total of Rs 39.12 crore.

“Gangubai Kathiawadi brings cheer, confidence and cinegoers back, solid total in Wknd 1… Day 3 sees big gains …Mumbai, Thane, Pune, Gujarat, Delhi, SouthIndia

#GangubaiKathiawadi brings cheer, confidence and cinegoers back, solid total in Wknd 1… Day 3 sees big gains … #Mumbai, #Thane, #Pune, #Gujarat, #Delhi, #SouthIndia

"#GangubaiKathiawadi #Overseas: Opng Wknd biz…#UK: £ 243,853

Also read: PVR says Omicron impact fading; Valimai, Gangubai Kathiawadi collections encouraging

Though Adarsh added that the movie will need to show a healthy trend on February 28, with an expected boost on March 1 due to it being the occasion of Mahashivratri, a holiday for many. March 2-3 would remain the most important days for the movie if it hopes to cross over-Rs 60 crore in collections in its first week itself, he added.

The movie’s success and a possible path to a Rs 100-crore collection is welcome news for many. Despite the fact that Mumbai’s theatres are currently at 50 percent operating capacity, the strong showings highlight an increasing appetite for moviegoers to finally return to theatres.

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(Edited by : Shoma Bhattacharjee)