October box office collection: On day 1, Varun Dhawan and Banita Sandhu starrer has managed to earn Rs 5.04 crore net in Indian market and the expectations are that the weekend score will be much better going forward. The make or break for the movie will actually be Monday when it will be clear whether it will manage to cross some major milestones like Rs 50 cr and more. October collection prediction was for a Rs 7-8 crore opening day intake, but it was clear from the early occupancy rates at theatres that this was not going to happen. The rate was just 15 per cent in the early shows even though it improved as the day went along, especially when office-goers finished work and headed for cinemas. 

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The problems with October box office collections were three-fold. The movie was not tagged by critics as a masterpiece. This is required to fill the seats initially and then word of mouth boost takes over. Then there is the fact that the film is an offbeat one that many viewers may not take to as commercial cinema is what sells at the BO. Then there is the fact that the film released on a working day. There was no holiday, and so there is no chance of a boost from an extended weekend. However, the screen count actually shows that the filmmakers have targetted a restricted release as the screen count in India is just 1683 and 625 overseas. While the latter is more than fine for a movie of this nature, the former is guaranteed to ensure the BO does not provide a pleasant surprise as far as collection is concerned. All of this ensures the audience is limited to discerning viewership and that leaves the masses out who want unrestricted entertainment.

So, how well has October box office collection done in terms of previous Varun Dhawan releases? The actor has seen some major releases in the recent past. His movie, alongside Shah Rukh Khan,  Dilwale earned a massive Rs 21 crore on day 1. His next best was  the recent Judwaa 2 movie, which bagged Rs 16.10 crore. It is followed by the peppy ABCD 2 – Any Body Can Dance that earned Rs 14.30 crore. Badrinath Ki Dulhania, alongside Alia Bhatt made Rs 12.25 crore and this was closely followed by Dishoom, alongside John Abraham, which took in Rs 11.05 crore. With Sidharth Malhotra, his film Student of the Year pocketted Rs 9.25 crore, while another Alia starrer outing in the form of Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania earned Rs 9 crore. Regrettably for Varun Dhawan, October take was not even able to beat Badlapur or Main Tera Hero, movies that had taken Rs 7 crore and Rs 6.50 crore respectively at the box office.