Box Office: Hero gets average opening

A look at this week's hits and misses.

Hero, which launched new faces Sooraj Pancholi and Athiya Shetty, was much promoted leading up to its release, and rides on a wave of expectation. 

Did it make it?

Trade analyst Vinod Mirani gives us the box office verdict for the week.

 

Hero

Cast: Sooraj Pancholi, Athiya Shetty, Aditya Pancholi, Tigmanshu Dhulia.

Director: Nikhil Advani

What works: Nothing!

What doesn't: Poorly-written film, bad performances.

Number of weeks: New.

BO verdict: Average.

Read the reviews here: Raja Sen / Sukanya Verma

Welcome Back

Cast: Anil Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Naseeruddin Shah, Paresh Rawal, John Abraham, Dimple Kapadia and Shruti Haasan.

Director: Anees Bazmee

What works: Anil Kapoor and Nana Patekar's madcap comedy

What doesn't: Senseless storyline.

Number of weeks: 1.

BO verdict: Excellent opening.

Read the review here

Phantom

Cast: Saif Ali Khan, Katrina Kaif and Mohammed Zeeshan Ayyub.

Director: Kabir Khan

What works: Good story.

What doesn't: Saif and Katrina are terribly miscast.

Number of weeks: 2

BO verdict: Flop

Read the review here

Kaun Kitney Paani Mein

Cast: Saurabh Shukla, Kunal Kapoor, Radhika Apte and Gulshan Grover

Director: Nila Madhab Panda

What works: Radhika Apte's performance

What doesn't: Poor story and bad direction.

Number of weeks: 3

BO verdict: Flop

Read the review here

All Is Well

Cast: Abhishek Bachchan, Rishi Kapoor, Asin and Supriya Pathak.

Director: Umesh Shukla

What works: Nothing!

What doesn't: Poor story and bad direction.

Number of weeks: 3

BO verdict: Flop

Read the review here

 

Manjhi: The Mountain Man

Cast: Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Radhika Apte.

Director: Ketan Mehta

What works: Nawazuddin Siddiqui’s performance.

What doesn't: Abrupt sequences

Number of weeks: 3

BO verdict: Above average

Read the review here

Brothers

Cast: Akshay Kumar, Sidharth Malhotra, Jackie Shroff and Jacqueline Fernadez.

Director: Karan Malhotra

What works: Akshay Kumar’s performance.

What doesn't: Melodramatic plot, bad direction.

Number of weeks: 4

BO verdict: Average

Read the reviews here: Raja Sen / Sukanya Verma

Bangistan

Cast: Riteish Deshmukh, Jacqueline Fernandez and Pulkit Samrat.

Director: Karan Anshuman

What works: Riteish Deshmukh

What doesn't: The gags. Film lacks substance.

Number of weeks: 5

BO verdict: Flop

Read the review here

Drishyam

Cast: Ajay Devgn, Tabu, Shriya Saran and Rajat Kapoor.

Director: Nishikant Kamath

What works: Good performances.

What doesn't: The ingredients are all there but the film never quite takes off.

Number of weeks: 5

BO verdict: Below average

Read the review here

Masaan 

Cast: Richa Chadha, Sanjay Mishra, Vicky Kaushal and Shweta Tripathi.

Director: Neeraj Ghaywan

What works: Great story, good performances

What doesn't: Offbeat subject

Number of weeks: 6

BO verdict: Flop.

Read the review here

Bajrangi Bhaijaan  

Cast: Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Harshaali Malhotra.

Director: Kabir Khan

What works: Great story, and SALMAN KHAN!

What doesn't: Too long.

Number of weeks: 7

BO verdict: Blockbuster

Read the reviews here: Raja Sen / Sukanya Verma