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It`s raining dollars in Bollywood: The Times of India
New Delhi, July 10: After a long drought, it`s raining hits in Bollywood and also in the overseas market, with films like Chalte Chalte and Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon.
New Delhi, July 10: After a long drought, it's raining hits in Bollywood and also in the overseas market, with films like Chalte Chalte and Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon.
Both the films continue to be among the top 25 in the UK. The Shah Rukh Khan-starrer, Chalte Chalte, has slipped from number 13 to 18 in its fourth week, but has already crossed the million-dollar mark. Main Prem Ki Diwani Hoon opened impressively at number 8, only to slide down quickly to 24 in its second week, but has already made over half a million dollars, according to trade magazine Variety.
In the US, where it has fared better, Main Prem... has raked in over a million dollars already. For the week ending July 3, it is at number 19, three notches below Gurinder Chadha's Bend It Like Beckham, which is running into its sixteenth week. Industry pundit Taran Adarsh rates the films' overseas performance as excellent. "Indian films had taken a backseat after September 11, but the overseas market is once again growing by leaps and bounds," Adarsh says.
In fact, he is so bullish about the trend that he predicts upcoming biggies like Ram Gopal Varma's Darna Mana Hai, Harry Baweja's Qayamat and Mani Shankar's Rudraksh heading the same way.
Ironically, critics have completely panned both Chalte Chalte and Main Prem... back home. Not just that, they predicted doom for films with big banners and bigger stars at a time when small budget films were turning out to be surprise hits. Despite poor reviews, Chalte Chalte has turned out to be a runaway hit at home, topping the box office charts in its fourth week. Collections for Main Prem... for the first week ranged from remarkable to fairly good, but have dropped considerably. Trade analysts predict the multi-starrer will, at best, manage an average run.
So, was it Shah Rukh's charm and Hrithik's biceps that worked wonders with the NRIs? Adarsh contends big names may help pull in people initially, but they cannot make a film successful. "What difference does a review make? Sholay was similarly panned."
He gives credit to directors Aziz Mirza (Chalte Chalte) and Sooraj Barjatya (Main Prem...) for churning out flicks with "strong content"; And a strong showing, you could say.
In the US, where it has fared better, Main Prem... has raked in over a million dollars already. For the week ending July 3, it is at number 19, three notches below Gurinder Chadha's Bend It Like Beckham, which is running into its sixteenth week. Industry pundit Taran Adarsh rates the films' overseas performance as excellent. "Indian films had taken a backseat after September 11, but the overseas market is once again growing by leaps and bounds," Adarsh says.
In fact, he is so bullish about the trend that he predicts upcoming biggies like Ram Gopal Varma's Darna Mana Hai, Harry Baweja's Qayamat and Mani Shankar's Rudraksh heading the same way.
Ironically, critics have completely panned both Chalte Chalte and Main Prem... back home. Not just that, they predicted doom for films with big banners and bigger stars at a time when small budget films were turning out to be surprise hits. Despite poor reviews, Chalte Chalte has turned out to be a runaway hit at home, topping the box office charts in its fourth week. Collections for Main Prem... for the first week ranged from remarkable to fairly good, but have dropped considerably. Trade analysts predict the multi-starrer will, at best, manage an average run.
So, was it Shah Rukh's charm and Hrithik's biceps that worked wonders with the NRIs? Adarsh contends big names may help pull in people initially, but they cannot make a film successful. "What difference does a review make? Sholay was similarly panned."
He gives credit to directors Aziz Mirza (Chalte Chalte) and Sooraj Barjatya (Main Prem...) for churning out flicks with "strong content"; And a strong showing, you could say.