Salman Khan’s film Tubelight was touted as being different than a majority of his films, with Kabir Khan even saying that it is his most special film thus far. Unlike the characters he is usually seen playing, here he essays the role of a misfit with a developmental disorder. To add to this change in perspective, there is also the flak that this film has received flak from a majority of critics. The film has released across 4400 screens in India and 300 in the US, but has not fared as well as it was expected to.
In India, the film managed to climb to Rs 21.15 crore on Friday , earned roughly the same amount on Saturday, and saw a jump of Rs 1 crore on Sunday. Trade analysts predicted that the film’s earnings would receive a push from its collections on Eid, since a majority of Salman Khan’s projects are touted as ‘Eid releases’ and watched by many fans on this day. To the surprise of many, the earnings actually dropped on Monday.
Tubelight made Rs 19.09 crore on Eid, which means that it has not crossed Rs 30 crore on a single day. This is a clear exeption when it comes to Salman Khan’s films.
#Tubelight Fri 21.15 cr, Sat 21.17 cr, Sun 22.45 cr, Mon 19.09 cr [Eid]. Total: ₹ 83.86 cr. India biz.
— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) June 27, 2017
Factors that may have affected its box office collections, are the euphoria surrounding Dangal and Baaubali 2, its clash with several South Indian films, among others.
#Tubelight Fri 21.15 cr, Sat 21.17 cr, Sun 22.45 cr. Total: ₹ 64.77 cr. India biz... Eid festivities should boost biz today + tomorrow.
— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) June 26, 2017
The film did not fare well abroad either, earning only Rs 3.25-3.50 million in the three-day window between Friday and Sunday. As of Monday, the film’s collections crossed $1 million in the US. As of the Sunday figures, Allu Arjun’s Duvvada Jagannadham, a Telugu film, earned more in the US.
As of Monday - June 26th, @BeingSalmanKhan 's #Tubelight reaches the $1 Million mark at the #US Box office.. $1,027,829 [₹6.62 Crs ]
— Ramesh Bala (@rameshlaus) June 27, 2017
Trade analyst Ramesh Bala also provided a breakup of the worldwide box office collections of the film, which were a total of Rs 115.81 crore.
#Tubelight Jun 23rd - 25th WW BO:#India :
— Ramesh Bala (@rameshlaus) June 27, 2017
Nett - ₹ 64.77 cr
Gross - ₹ 93.26 cr
Overseas - ₹ 22.55 cr
Total - ₹ 115.81 cr
How does Tubelight fare in comparison to other films? Within the first four days of its release, Tubelight has become the seventh highest grosser of 2017, beating films like Half Girlfriend and Sachin: A Billion Dreams, but still left behind by Kaabil, Raees, Jolly LLB 2, and of course, the record breaking Baahubali 2, reports Koimoi.com. Despite the slump it suffered during its weekend, Tubelight did record the second highest opening this year, only beaten by Baahubali 2’s Hindi dubbed version, which earned Rs 41 crore. On the second day, however, it did not fare as well as Raees, which reportedly made 26.3 crore on the Saturday after its release.
In comparison to his own films, Tubelight is the lowest that Salman Khan has earned on an opening weekend. While his 2016 movie Sultan earned a whopping Rs 105.53 crore, even his 2011 release Bodyguard earned Rs 88.75 crore, which is roughly Rs 24 crore more than Tubelight.
Salman and Eid - opng weekend...
— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) June 26, 2017
2015: #BB ₹ 102.60 cr [Fri-Sun]
2016: #Sultan ₹ 105.53 cr [Wed-Sun]
2017: #Tubelight ₹ 64.77 cr [Fri-Sun]
Salman and Eid - opng weekend...
— taran adarsh (@taran_adarsh) June 26, 2017
2011: #Bodyguard ₹ 88.75 cr [Wed-Sun]
2012: #ETT ₹ 100.16 cr [Wed-Sun]
2014: #Kick ₹ 83.83 cr [Fri-Sun]
Tubelight is set against the backdrop of the Sino-Indian war and the official Indian adaptation of Alejandro Gómez Monteverde’s Little Boy, which was an all-out war film starring Jakob Salvati. The Salman Khan-starrer also had brother Sohail Khan, Chinese actress Zhu Zhu, child actor Matin Rey Tangu and the late Om Puri as a part of its cast. It also featured a cameo by Shah Rukh Khan.