Kartik Aaryan starrer Chandu Champion opened to critical acclaim when it arrived in theatres in June this year. However, the acclaim didn’t translate as well to box office numbers and the film underperformed financially. Actor Bhuvan Arora, who played Aaryan’s friend Garnail Singh in the film, cites the film’s collection as a “loss for the industry”.
Talking about the current scenario at the box office and Chandu Champion’s performance, Arora says, “It’s become very unpredictable for even makers to sort of understand what will work with the audience. What really matters is if people are giving a film a fair shot or not. Everyone who saw the film was appreciative of it and I feel it’s a loss for the industry when a film is made well, received well and still doesn’t do massive numbers at the box office. it is a little distasteful. It demotivates other filmmakers from making more films like that. Why would people want to invest in a film like that? I genuinely feel disheartened as someone who likes to watch good films and is committed to his art.”
However, the actor wants the discussion about box-office numbers to stop. He says, “It’s high time as an audience, we should stop talking about numbers. It has become a pressure on people. Everyone is just talking about numbers; no one is talking about the art. Why do you necessarily need to know how much money a film is making? You are not investing in the shares of the film, you are just watching the product. So, if you like it, receive it, and if you don’t, then deny it. We should stop encouraging this number discussion as it is unnecessary. Art has taken a backseat because of that. I will start a ‘boycott box office discussion’ trend,” adding, “There are average films that have done great numbers at the box office, but that doesn’t satisfy me as an audience.”
{{/usCountry}}However, the actor wants the discussion about box-office numbers to stop. He says, “It’s high time as an audience, we should stop talking about numbers. It has become a pressure on people. Everyone is just talking about numbers; no one is talking about the art. Why do you necessarily need to know how much money a film is making? You are not investing in the shares of the film, you are just watching the product. So, if you like it, receive it, and if you don’t, then deny it. We should stop encouraging this number discussion as it is unnecessary. Art has taken a backseat because of that. I will start a ‘boycott box office discussion’ trend,” adding, “There are average films that have done great numbers at the box office, but that doesn’t satisfy me as an audience.”
{{/usCountry}}Giving an example on how Chandu Champion has connected with the audience, Arora shares that even almost two months post release, he is getting a lot of love for the film. And now that it has arrived on OTT, the love has just increased. “We knew from the word go that it’s going to be a good film as it is a story that needed to be told. Kabir (Khan) sir is a fabulous filmmaker and everything that should have been right, was right from the word go,” he insists.