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Arab News
7 days ago
- Entertainment
- Arab News
Pakistani films attracted ‘biggest' Eid collections in 5 years, says largest cinema chain
KARACHI: Pakistani films that released on the Eid Al-Adha last week attracted the highest Eid box office collections in five years, the sales and marketing head of the country's largest cinema chain said on Friday. For the latest updates, follow us on Instagram @ Pakistani romantic comedy 'Love Guru,' starring acting powerhouses Humayun Saeed and Mahira Khan released in cinemas worldwide on Eid-ul-Adha. The other prominent Pakistani movie that released in theaters across the world was 'Deemak,' a horror movie with A-list actors Faysal Qureshi, Sonya Hussyn and Samina Peerzada starring in lead roles. As per official figures released by Love Guru, the Pakistani film collected Rs 12.8 crores [$457,143] in Pakistan during the first three days of Eid Al-Adha, making it the biggest ever Eid weekend opener in the country. 'If we look at Eid [film] business since Covid, we did the biggest business this year [on Eid],' Adnan Ali Khan, the sales and marketing head of Cinepax Cinemas, told Arab News. 'Meaning highest in five years.' He said this does not include The Legend of Maula Jatt film, which enjoyed record-breaking box office business but was not released on Eid. 'Love Guru got 50 percent of the shows and that is why it generated huge numbers,' Khan explained, adding that Deemak was the second-best performing film on Eid while Hollywood flick 'From the World of John Wick: Ballerina' secured the third-highest collections. Khan said since Love Guru was released worldwide, the international box office collections for the opening weekend were clocked in at Rs15.4 crores [$546,000]. This means the film raked in a total of Rs28.2 crores [$999,186] in the first three days of the release. After the first five days of its release, Love Guru has collected Rs19.10 crores [$676,500] locally while Deemak has generated around Rs4 crores [$142,000] at the box office, Khan said. However, there have been speculations around the authenticity of these figures, particularly at the local box office. There hasn't been an official detailed division of box office collections in cinemas across Pakistan. Pakistani film critic Kamran Jawaid, however, brushed aside claims these figures were fabricated. 'ONLY FOR THE DELUDED' 'When the audience comes out of cinemas in droves at seven in the morning — and that too from multiple shows — then countering claims about fabricated figures is only for the deluded,' Jawaid told Arab News. He said the high footfall in cinemas across the country puts to rest the opinion that attendances at cinemas are too low due to expensive ticket prices or that audiences no longer harbor interest in Pakistani movie. 'One just has to make movies that people are willing to shell money out on, whether it is Mission: Impossible: The Final Reckoning, which also ran shows till morning two weeks before Eid, or Love Guru,' Jawaid said. The Pakistani film critic broke down the numbers based on the number of screens and seating capacity of Pakistani cinemas. 'Although not big, counting all 91 screens, Pakistan's total seating capacity is a little above 21,000, which equates to 21 million in ticket sales per show/slot, with an average ticket price of a thousand,' he said. 'An average of four shows per day leads to 84 million in gross income. Depending on the number of screens a film like Love Guru gets — which is roughly between 30-40 percent of the country — per-day estimates range between 25 to 33 million in gross receipts,' Jawaid explained. 'Given that the tickets are selling hot, one cannot refute the legitimacy of the quoted figures.' Khan said the movies garnered the highest numbers at its cinemas in Packages Mall in Lahore, followed by Jinnah Park in Rawalpindi. 'We are running late night shows every day,' Khan said, adding that the coming weekend was also expected to feature 'packed' theaters as the cinemas have bookings in advance. 'We need four Pakistani movies like Love Guru every year,' he said. 'However, Deemak has started gaining momentum now alongside Love Guru.' Deemak distributor Nadeem Mandviwalla said the film has collected Rs5.58 crores [$197,200] in six days while it is expected to cross Rs7 crores [$248,000] by the end of this week. 'It is a very encouraging figure for Deemak,' Mandviwalla said. Jawaid, however, looked toward the future of Pakistani cinema. 'Pakistan's cinema needs one Love Guru a month to revive audience's interest,' he said.
Express Tribune
16-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Express Tribune
Make films, not excuses
This is not a new debate. Every few years, concerns resurface about the decline of our cinemas and for good reason. Recently, more than 48 screens have reportedly shut down due to dwindling ticket sales. Several factors contribute to this crisis: a shortage of local films, shifting post-pandemic viewing habits, and, most notably, the 2019 ban on Indian films, which once kept our cinemas running year-round. A few lists of recently closed cinemas are making rounds on social media. While they are yet to be independently verified, some cinemas that have been confirmed to have shut down include Hyderabad's Cinepax, Bambino and Cinemoosh and Karachi's Atrium and Capri to Lahore's Shabistan, Plaza, Prince, and Peshawar's Naz Cinema. Over the past week, I've come across the film fraternity online arguing that high ticket prices are a major reason audiences have stopped watching Pakistani films in cinemas. Some even pointed to the steep cost of popcorn and drinks as part of the problem. While concession stand snacks are undeniably overpriced, it's hard to believe that alone would keep moviegoers away. In response, some filmmakers propose a seemingly simple solution: lowering ticket prices. But with our cinemas struggling for nearly a decade, if not longer, is that really the answer? A lost trust Before I turned to filmmaking, I believed that I had an answer to that. And it took a conversation with an exhibitor to remind me that it's not that the audience doesn't want to pay a thousand rupees for a film. It's the fact that they want to pay a thousand rupees for a film that's worth the experience. The ticket price is inversely proportional to the number of films. However, we don't even make enough films annually to sustain our cinemas, let alone good films. We are seeing a record decline in 2025. Nobody raised an issue about ticket prices until we banned Indian films in Pakistan and were forced to sustain our cinemas only with local films. And because we failed to make enough films, better films, we look for justifications that will exempt us from blame. Over the last decade or so, the very same filmmakers, who complain about ticket prices, have lost that trust from the audience. With certain exceptions, we haven't made many truly great Pakistani films. And even among the better films that we have made, most have suffered due to the abundance of mediocrity that occupies whatever little number of screens we have left. We fed the audience garbage for decades and expected them to like its taste. But the audience isn't completely stupid. They have seen quality films and they demand better from local filmmakers. Our films shouldn't be accepted because "let's support Pakistani cinema". They should be watched because they are good films which offer something to an audience - be it an emotional rollercoaster, a fun CGI-filled cinematic experience or an introspective, thought-provoking journey. Give the audience something besides mindless rom-coms with the blandest characters performed by pretty faces with zero personality. In the past, exhibitors have tried reducing the prices to lure more people into cinemas, and that has never worked. But the same audience crowds the theatres when a big Hollywood blockbuster is released. The very same audience flocks the cinemas during Eid holidays. "The ticket price depends on three factors," says exhibitor and distributor Nadeem Mandviwalla. "The quality of a film, the facilities and projection quality of a cinema, and the location, which determine whether people will go to the cinema." If we are stuck on the first, we can't be complaining about the rest of the factors. Perhaps if we made better films and had an audience who were interested enough in local films, we would be justified in at least questioning the ticket prices. Currently, that argument fails. And then, if we had an audience willing to come watch our films, it would be the audience demanding lower ticket prices, not the filmmakers. This gives way to the need for indie cinemas and alternative, cheaper venues but that's a topic for another day. No excuses Talking about The Legend of Maula Jatt, Mandviwalla recounted that he added 200 rupees to the ticket price of the film for the first 11 days of the film's release. And yet people rushed to watch it in droves. Yes, the brand value of Maula Jatt, its history, and the star cast were all factors, but Bilal Lashari backed it up with a decent screenplay, fantastic characters and a storyline that kept you in your seat until the end. Add to it the visual and sound quality, production design, costumes and he created a world you would want to visit. This does not mean we should only try and make big budget blockbusters. That would be a recipe for disaster. However, I once again emphasize the significance of improving ourselves as filmmakers. "I don't tell the filmmakers how to write a film, why are they telling me how to run a cinema?" said the exhibitor. And he is spot on. The audience will come watch a film if they deem it worthy of their time and money. The filmmakers can rightly point out the broken system and raise issues that would improve the industry. But we should also take time to reflect on the quality of films we are making. Better facilities, grants, state support, more screens, and a million other things will only cast a spotlight on our subpar, outdated storytelling and lack of understanding of filmmaking. The audience is exposed to films from across the globe now. And our second-hand imitation of Bollywood doesn't work anymore. It was never interesting to begin with and we were too afraid to take any risks when it mattered. And now having lost the faith of our audience, we have no one else to blame but ourselves.
