BellBottom box office day 3: Akshay Kumar-starrer sees uptick in numbers, expected to close weekend with ₹12 cr

Akshay Kumar's BellBottom registered a slight improvement at the box office on Saturday. For the first time since its release, the spy film made over ₹3 crore in one day.

After failing to cross the ₹3 crore mark in its first two days of release, the Akshay Kumar-starrer BellBottom is expected to have made around ₹3.25 crore on Saturday. The spy thriller has made over ₹8 crore so far, and is expected to close out the extended weekend with around ₹12 crore.

Akshay Kumar in a still from BellBottom.

While Box Office India is reporting Saturday figures around ₹3.25 crore, Bollywood Hungama is projecting a slightly lower total - ₹2.95-3.15 crore.

The film made ₹2.75 crore on Thursday, followed by another ₹2.75 crore on Friday. BellBottom is the first major Hindi film to be released exclusively in theatres following the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.

Crucially, it is not being shown in major centres like Mumbai and Pune, as theatres in Maharashtra remain shut. However, an ease in restriction in several other centres contributed to the slight growth in numbers on Saturday.

Box Office India says that the major growth centres were the metros, where numbers improved in the multiplexes. Footfalls in single-screens, however, have decreased. Delhi NCR showed strong holds, and the numbers are expected to remain solid on Sunday. The film will face its biggest test on Monday, which is often seen as the make-or-break day for films at the box office.

Akshay Kumar had anticipated the subdued box office numbers prior to release. In an interview with SpotboyE, he'd said, "Now, in this scenario, if the movie does ₹30 crore business that means it is equivalent to ₹100 crore otherwise. If the movie does ₹50 crore then it equals ₹150 crore (under pre-pandemic circumstances). So that’s where it stands."

Director Ranjit M Tiwari said in an interview with Hindustan Times that the film not releasing in Maharashtra is a 'bummer', but added, "Personally, when you think about the film not releasing in Maharshatra right now, it feels bad. I hope they open up soon. May be the film will release in the state a week later, and then people in Mumbai and all my friends and colleagues can watch it in cinemas.