PadMan box office report: Akshay Kumar’s film earns Rs 10.26 crore on day one

Akshay Kumar had a damp start at the domestic ticket windows on Friday with his latest film, PadMan, making an opening collection of Rs 10.26 crore.

One of the most bankable stars of Bollywood, Akshay Kumar, had a rather damp show at the box office on Friday. His latest film, PadMan, made an opening collection of mere Rs 10.26 crore, much less than the trade expectations of Rs 12-15 crore.

Akshay Kumar plays the titular role in R Balki’s PadMan.

Starring Akshay, Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte in lead roles, the film is inspired by the real life story of Arunachalam Muruganantham - India’s Menstrual Man. Arunachalam made low-cost sanitary pads for the women of his village and later received the Padma Shri award for his endeavours.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh shared the figures on Twitter. “#PadMan has a DECENT start... Fri Rs 10.26 cr... The biz, expectedly, picked up towards evening/night shows... The journey ahead is crucial... Sat + Sun should witness strong growth for a good weekend total... India biz.”

The film released across 2300-2500 screens in India. Akshay shifted PadMan from January 25 to February 9, in a bid to avoid a clash with Deepika Padukone-Ranveer Singh-starrer Padmaavat. Neeraj Pandey, too, had to postpone the release of his film Aiyaary from February 9 to February 16, leaving an all clear ground for a solo release for PadMan. The film, however, did not make the expected numbers on the first day.

Trade experts, nonetheless, are hopeful that the business will pick up over the weekend and give a boost to the film.

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