Welcome to the Jungle Opens to Mixed Response; Akshay Kumar Film Earns Rs 29 Crore Worldwide
Welcome to the Jungle opens with Rs 15 crore India net; mixed critical reception.
Akshay Kumar's latest action-comedy Welcome to the Jungle has opened to a moderate start at the box office, collecting an estimated Rs 15 crore net in India on its first day of release and Rs 29 crore worldwide gross, according to industry tracker Sacnilk. Including earnings from paid preview shows held on Thursday, the film's total India net collection has reached Rs 18.75 crore. While the opening marks a decent start for the ensemble entertainer, it falls short of the first-day performance of Housefull 5, another recent Akshay Kumar release.
The Ahmed Khan-directed film received mixed reviews from critics and audiences after its theatrical release on Friday. Across India, Welcome to the Jungle recorded an overall theatre occupancy of 26.46 per cent from 10,892 shows. Occupancy steadily increased through the day, beginning at 11 per cent during morning shows before rising to 26.85 per cent in the afternoon, 28.85 per cent in the evening and peaking at 39.15 per cent during the night screenings, indicating improved audience turnout as the day progressed.
Despite trailing Housefull 5, the film has outperformed Akshay Kumar's previous release, Bhooth Bangla, which earned Rs 12.25 crore on its opening day earlier this year. It has also slightly surpassed the opening-day collection of Welcome Back (2015), which collected Rs 14.4 crore on its first day. The original Welcome, released in 2007, had opened with Rs 3.35 crore before eventually registering a worldwide lifetime collection of Rs 119.5 crore, while Welcome Back concluded its global run with Rs 168.7 crore.
The film now faces stiff competition at the box office from Imtiaz Ali's Main Vaapas Aaunga, with several major releases lined up in the coming days, including Alpha, Dhamaal 4, The Odyssey and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Trade analysts believe the film's performance over the opening weekend will be crucial in determining whether it can maintain momentum amid the crowded release calendar and recover its production costs through theatrical business.
Actress Raveena Tandon, who is part of the film's ensemble cast, expressed happiness over the audience response in an interview with ANI. She said she had received several congratulatory calls following the release and described the positive feedback as encouraging. Raveena also remarked that viewers were appreciating the performances of the large cast, adding that the appreciation made the film's release even more special for the team.
Welcome to the Jungle features one of the largest ensemble casts in recent Bollywood history, led by Akshay Kumar alongside Raveena Tandon, Suniel Shetty, Disha Patani, Jacqueline Fernandez, Arshad Warsi, Jackie Shroff, Paresh Rawal, Lara Dutta, Farida Jalal, Johny Lever, Shreyas Talpade, Tusshar Kapoor, Rajpal Yadav, Krushna Abhishek, Kiku Sharda, Daler Mehndi, Aftab Shivdasani, Mukesh Tiwari, Yashpal Sharma, Kiran Kumar, Zakir Hussain, Vindu Dara Singh and Urvashi Rautela. The film's box office trajectory over the weekend will now determine whether it can build on its opening-day collections.
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