Top Non Franchise Opening Day For Post-2010 Hindi Stars In Post Pandemic Era; Baby John tops, 83 & RRKPK follow

Baby John directed by Kalees and starring Varun Dhawan, targets to emerge as the biggest opener for a non-franchise film by a star who has debuted in or after 2010, in post-pandemic era.

By Rishil Jogani

Updated on Dec 25, 2024 | 11:13 PM IST | 28.6K

Baby John targets to emerge as the biggest opener for a non-franchise film post pandemic, led by an actor debuting after 2009

Baby John has hit the silver screens and is performing decently on Christmas days if the collections coming in are anything to go by. The Varun Dhawan, Wamiqa Gabbi and Keerthy Suresh starrer, directed by Kalees is looking at a Rs 12 crore net opening. The movie's collections have been adversely impacted by Pushpa 2, which is running strongly even on its 21st day in Hindi, and Mufasa: The Lion King, which is making its presence felt, significantly.

Varun Dhawan With Baby John Registers The Biggest Opening For A New Gen Hindi Actor Outside Franchise Movies Post Pandemic

A Rs 12 crore opening of Baby John places Varun Dhawan, first in the list of the highest collections registered by a film starring a Hindi actor who debuted in or after 2010, in a non-franchise movie, post pandemic. In the post-pandemic era, it is quite visible how sequels and franchises are boosting the collection of films. Franchises are seen as a safety net and audiences feel that they are assured of a good movie watching experience.

Baby John's collections, however unimpressive in the larger scheme of things, are at the end of the day, the highest collections registered by a new-gen actor in a non-franchise movie. There is a lot of work that the actioner still has to do but credit should be given where due. What is really impressive about Baby John is that these collections on the first day are coming, despite it being pretty clear that it is a remake of Theri, a movie that has been consumed a lot already. Movies like Sefliee and Sarfira couldn't even open to decent numbers because of the word 'remake' attached to it. Bholaa opened in the same range (as Baby John) but it didn't face the kind of competition that Baby John is facing with Pushpa 2 and Mufasa, among other big regional films.