Shows of Sikandar pulled down due to low occupancy or campaign against Salman Khan film? Trade insiders weigh in

Salman Khan-starrer Sikandar is inching towards the ₹200-crore mark, despite reports that its occupancy is dwindling. Trade insiders tell us the truth.

"Please don't quote me, or don't write my name if you do," was the one common thing we heard as we reached out to a number of trade insiders to make sense of the performance of Salman Khan's recent release, Sikandar. Such is the state of disarray behind the scenes of Bollywood's ticket window that very few people want to put their face and name on the line. (

Sikandar has earned ₹187 crore worldwide so far, but the Salman Khan film has copped criticism too.

Ever since Sikandar released a week ago, there has been buzz about its performance. There is no doubt that the film has not performed as well as a Salman release on Eid ought to. But the narratives thrown around are extreme - with some claiming the film is minting money, and others saying that the occupancy is so low that shows are being pulled down in favour of regional films. The truth lies somewhere in between.

Were shows of Sikandar pulled down?

Several reports claimed last week that many theatres in Mumbai and nearby removed shows of Sikandar as not enough tickets were sold. Even as Sacnilk reported that the film had 8-10% occupancy in the region, the reports continued. Free Press Journal reported that Gujarat film The Best Pandya had replaced Sikandar in theatres in Vashi. An exhibitor said, "There were reports of one of our theatres pulling down Sikandar shows and screening some Gujarati films. There is no truth to it. Sikandar still has the maximum shows in the theatres of the region. Who would remove a film that is earning ₹4-5 crore a day for one that wouldn't even get ₹30-40 lakh? It doesn't make sense."

Is their a social media campaign against Salman Khan?

A Mid-Day report quoted fan clubs of the actor claiming there was some negative campaign against Salman and Sikandar, being spread by agencies through bots. When asked, a trade insider told us on the condition of anonymity, "I don't know if there is a campaign or not, because sometimes old videos surface organically. But yes, there is a lot of negative chatter about the film. But then, the product is bad, too. That is what social media does: exaggerates some aspects and creates a trend. Some of it could be pushed too, maybe."

The below video, shot in 2023 outside a screening of Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan, has been paraded as ‘Sikandar review’ by numerous sites.

So how is Sikandar faring?

A few trade insiders told us that the genesis of this trend was several old YouTube videos and Instagram Reels showing empty theatres and bad reviews from outside theatres being repackaged and republished. Many such videos were from two years ago, shot during screenings of Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan. Some were not even from any Salman film. One (now-deleted) video was of a fan outrage outside Adipurush, cleverly edited to seem like it was about Sikandar.

As all this is happening, Sikandar is inching towards the ₹200 crore mark globally. Domestically, the film has crossed the ₹100 crore barrier in a week. The pace is slow, no doubt, but it is far from the abysmal performance that social media would have us believe.