The box office is a fickle beast, and this weekend, it has delivered a sobering reality check to two of Bollywood’s most bankable stars. The highly anticipated crime thriller Haiwaan, which reunites the powerhouse duo of Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan under the visionary lens of director Priyadarshan, has opened to what can only be described as a lukewarm response. As the film limps into its second day, industry analysts are watching closely, waiting to see if this thriller—a remake of the cult-favorite Malayalam hit Oppam—can generate the momentum needed to turn a slow start into a respectable run.
The stakes are high. In an era where audiences are increasingly discerning, Haiwaan is finding itself squeezed in a crowded theatrical landscape. It isn’t just competing for viewers; it is battling for oxygen against the juggernaut that is Mirzapur The Movie and the unexpected, persistent surge of the sleeper hit Hanuman Ansh. With the film currently sitting at a total India net collection of Rs. 3.40 crore, the pressure is mounting for the production team to salvage the opening weekend.
A Subdued Start for a Heavyweight Cast
The math of the box office is often cold and unforgiving. Haiwaan kicked off its theatrical journey with a net collection of Rs. 3 crore on day one, bolstered by 7,224 shows nationwide. When you factor in international markets, the worldwide gross for the opening day stood at Rs. 4.60 crore. While these numbers wouldn’t be catastrophic for a mid-budget indie, for a film of this scale—fronted by two A-listers and helmed by a director known for both commercial comedy and gritty thrillers—it is a performance that has left trade experts scratching their heads.
By the early hours of Day 2, the film had managed to add only Rs. 0.40 crore to its domestic net, bringing its total to Rs. 3.40 crore. With a massive drop in show count—down to 2,463 from the previous day’s tally—the immediate concern is sustainability. Can a film that failed to capture the imagination on Friday hope to thrive on Saturday, or is the audience sentiment already drifting elsewhere?
The Priyadarshan Factor: Adaptation or Reimagination?
At the heart of the conversation is the film’s pedigree. Haiwaan is a formal Hindi adaptation of Priyadarshan’s own 2016 Malayalam sensation, Oppam. In the original, the legendary Mohanlal delivered a tour-de-force performance as a visually impaired man trapped in a murder mystery. In Haiwaan, the mantle is taken up by Saif Ali Khan, whose portrayal of the caretaker Shyam is at the center of the film’s narrative arc.
Yet, comparisons are inevitable. In a digital age where the original source material is just a click away on streaming platforms, audiences are acutely aware of the blueprint. In fact, following the release of Haiwaan, the Hindi-dubbed version of Oppam—erroneously titled Prime Witnesses on some platforms—saw a surge of 4.5 lakh views in just 72 hours. This suggests that the audience isn’t necessarily rejecting the premise; they are curious about the execution. Boman Irani, who features prominently in the film, recently defended the project, noting that Priyadarshan approached the Hindi version as an independent endeavor rather than a “cut-paste” job. The question remains: did the director’s attempt to refresh the narrative resonate, or did it lose the raw, gripping magic of the 2016 original?
The Path to the Rs. 10 Crore Milestone
Every film has a “break-even” psychological checkpoint. For Haiwaan, the first hurdle is a modest Rs. 5 crore. Crossing that in the coming hours is essential to keep the conversation—and the shows—alive. If the film can demonstrate even a marginal uptick on Saturday and Sunday, there is a realistic, albeit narrow, path to reaching Rs. 10 crore.
Beyond that, the film’s future looks murky. The 164-minute runtime, while standard for a thriller of this complexity, demands significant patience from the modern moviegoer. With a U/A 16+ certification, the film clearly aims for a mature audience, but the box office relies on the “front-loaded” energy of opening weekends. If the word-of-mouth does not pivot quickly, the film risks being relegated to the fringes of the multiplex schedules by next week, giving way to more aggressive competitors.
The Cast and the Competition
It is worth noting the impressive ensemble cast surrounding the leads. With Shriya Pilgaonkar, Saiyami Kher, and the reliable presence of Boman Irani, Sharib Hashmi, and Rajpal Yadav, the film is not lacking in talent. Even the legendary Mohanlal makes a special appearance, serving as a symbolic bridge between the two iterations of this story.
However, in the brutal arithmetic of the box office, star power alone rarely dictates success if the narrative friction is missing. As the live tracking continues through the weekend, the industry will be watching to see if Haiwaan can find its footing. Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan have both navigated rocky box office phases before; the question is whether their combined star power—and Priyadarshan’s proven track record—can perform the same kind of sleight-of-hand their protagonist performs on screen.
For now, the numbers are clear: the thriller has work to do. Whether it becomes a slow-burn success or fades into the background noise of a busy cinematic season will be determined by the footfalls over the next forty-eight hours. As of now, the “Haiwaan” of the box office is still searching for its roar.
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