Bollywood's second quarter has taken an average start with the Sunny Leone-starrer 'Ek Paheli Leela' collecting about Rs 13 crore in the opening weekend and beating other releases like 'Dharam Sankat Mein' and 'Broken Horses' by a big margin.
Exhibitor Rajesh Thadani says, "Leela's big opening was due to Sunny Leone's presence. The film's business grew over the weekend."
There are some who feel that Leela's USP was its music. Trade analyst Amod Mehra says, "Leela took a promising start on Friday as the music was a big hit. It has to do extremely well to break even as it is a costly film."
On the other hand, 'Dharam Sankat Mein' starring Paresh Rawal and Naseeruddin Shah managed to get about Rs 5.2 crore, despite an interesting story.
The comedy centers on a staunch Hindu man, who discovers that he was born Muslim and struggles with his identity crisis. Trade analyst Komal Nahata says, "Vidhu Vinod Chopra's 'Broken Horses' proved to be a disaster at the box office."
Hollywood action-thriller 'Furious 7', which had a big opening in India, saw a major drop last week and grossed just about Rs 10.5 crore. Its total collections stand at Rs 81 crore.
Box office stats
Rs 13 crore
'Ek Paheli Leela' (first weekend)
Rs 5.25 crore
'Dharam Sankat Mein' (first weekend)
Rs 50 lakh
'Broken Horses' (first weekend)
