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EXCLUSIVE: Decoding the Middle East market for Radhe; A look at top Salman Khan openers in Gulf
Four of the top five opening weekend in Gulf belong to Salman Khan. Will Radhe find a spot in this prestigious list this Eid? Find out.
The Salman Khan fronted Radhe is all set for an exclusive theatrical release in the overseas market this Eid, and the film is expected to set the cash registers ringing. Early buzz suggests a massive release in the overseas belt for Radhe, which will be among the widest Indian releases over the last one year abroad. While final screen count will be known closer to the release, we have learnt that Salman Khan’s production house and their studio partner, Zee are going all out for a mega release in Middle East (GCC Gulf market).
Salman Khan is the number one star in the UAE/Gulf belt by a huge margin as four of the top five biggest opening weekend slot belongs to him. Interestingly, the top 3 slots are held by Salman Khan films, Sultan ($3.97 million), Race 3 ($3.65 million) and Bharat ($3.22 million), and all three were Eid releases for the superstar. At number 4 and 5 are two Christmas releases, the Shah Rukh Khan fronted Dilwale ($3.18 million) and Salman Khan’s Tiger Zinda Hai ($3.05 million).
Salman Khan is the number one star in the UAE/Gulf belt by a huge margin as four of the top five biggest opening weekend slot belongs to him.
The Gulf market has recovered from Covid with large vaccination drives and is expected to come into force in a big way for Radhe, for the extended four-day weekend. With Eid festivities and no competition, it wouldn’t be surprising if Radhe manages to get one of the widest releases in Middle East and also emerges one of the top three openers of all time in Gulf, as Salman’s loyal fanbase is expected to throng to the cinema halls in a big way to celebrate his return to the screen after a year and half (A detailed weekend prediction will however come in the release week).
Salman’s last release, Dabangg 3 (2019) had released in 403 screens in the UAE, and there lies a strong possibility of Radhe managing to match that figure or even surpass it. At present, cinemas in some sectors of GCC Gulf belt are shut, whereas some are still running with just 30% occupancy, but things are expected to open up in a better way by the time it’s Eid.
Bhumika Tewari, Head of Revenues and Distribution (India & Overseas), Zee Studios, told Pinkvilla, “Middle East is a very big market, we have been speaking to all our exhibitor partners out there. They are very excited for Radhe. We are going exclusive theatrical there, and will follow the established window in that market. Radhe would be one of the biggest releases, as there is no big release even from Hollywood this Eid. We would get the exact release count probably in another 10 days. We are very excited and working round the clock to give the film a wide release not just in Gulf but all places abroad.”
Cinema Scenario in Middle East:
It’s a Thursday release, suggesting a four-day extended weekend and Radhe is expected to be the upside of $3Million (Rs 22 crore) with an outside chance of crossing the $3.75 million mark (Rs 28 crore) in the Middle East belt. However, it’s subject to the fact that some sectors, which are shut now, open up for exhibition, and the occupancy cap is lifted or upped to 75%. The above figure has been predicted for now, keeping in mind an optimistic scenario. However, it’s still covid time, and it is the first Bollywood film to see a theatrical release at this scale, so the cinema consumption pattern in the Middle East will be gauged with Radhe, which features the biggest name of that sector.
It’s a Thursday release, suggesting a four-day extended weekend and Radhe is expected to be the upside of $3Million (Rs 22 crore)
US, Australia, New Zealand and Fiji are the four other key markets abroad for the team of Radhe, whereas UK is expected to open up for exhibition in the window of May 11 to May 17 with the Salman Khan film being the first major Bollywood opening there. Stay tuned to Pinkvilla as we will bring territory by territory release strategy adopted by Zee Studios with SKF for this mega Eid release in the coming two weeks.
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