Will Ayushmann Khurrana’s Doctor G struggle at the box office? Film sells advance tickets worth just Rs 50 lakh
The change in audience sensibilities appears to have affected nobody more than Ayushmann Khurrana. The actor, who was a brand unto himself in the pre-pandemic era, with the ability to guarantee strong openings for unusual films with his name along, is now looking at his third underperformer of in a row.
According to Pinkvilla, the actor’s latest social comedy — Doctor G — has sold only 19,000 tickets at the three leading cinema chains in the country ahead of its debut today, which translates to around Rs 50 lakh in revenue. According to Hindustan Times, the number might increase to around Rs 70 lakh to Rs 80 lakh, but that still isn’t good enough Ayushmann’s standards.
Since his films mainly target multiplex audiences, the same audiences that are likely to pre-book tickets, Doctor G will have to rely on abnormally high walk-ins at single-screen locations to bolster its day one figures. It should be noted that Doctor G has been rated A the CBFC, unlike most of Ayushmann’s earlier hits. In the film, Ayushmann plays a medical student who is shafted to the gynaecology department, where he must learn to shed his backward mindset.
comparison, Badhaai Ho made Rs 7.6 crore on its first day, and Dream Girl made Rs 10.05 crore. Ayushmann’s last two films — Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui and Anek — made Rs 3.75 crore and Rs 1.7 crore on their opening days, respectively. Both films gained a new lease on life after debuting on Netflix. It would appear that Ayushmann’s brand of cinema is losing its theatrical value, with audiences happy to wait for movies of this scale (and subject matter) to arrive on streaming platforms.
Doctor G is directed Anubhuti Kashyap, and stars Sheeba Chaddha, Shefali Shah, and Rakul Preet Singh. The film will face off against the Hindi dub version of Kannada hit Kantara.
