Mumbai, April 20 - The long-awaited reunion of Akshay Kumar and director Priyadarshan has set the box office ablaze. The horror-comedy Bhooth Bangla, the duo's first collaboration in 14 years, has concluded its opening weekend on a triumphant note, clocking nearly 96 crore in worldwide gross collections.

This stellar performance is anchored by a solid Saturday and Sunday surge that saw audiences flocking to cinemas across India. The film opened to positive word-of-mouth on Friday, but it was the jump on Saturday and Sunday that shifted the narrative from a steady start to a success, with domestic collection of around 70 crores gross.

Good Opening Weekend In India

Going against the tide, the makers scheduled paid previews, and the decision paid off with better-than-expected results. The film clocked 3.75 crores net (4.50 crore gross) in previews, followed by a good opening day of 12.25 crore net. The movie scored a solid jump of over 50% on Saturday to score 19 crore net, followed by 23 crores net on Sunday.

The total domestic net for the film stands at approximately 58 crore and nearly 70 crores gross. This makes it the third biggest opening weekend for Akshay Kumar in the post-pandemic era, behind only Sooryavanshi and Housefull 5. When paired with a solid international performance, which contributed an estimated 26.50 crore from key markets like North America and the Gulf, the film's total worldwide gross reached around 95.75+ crore.

On the final day of the weekend, the film peaked at an impressive 32.65K tickets sold per hour on BookMyShow, the highest hourly rate for an Akshay Kumar film. The numbers have effectively eclipsed the opening weekends of his more recent ventures, signalling a major comeback for the Khiladi. It will be topping 100 crores gross today (day 4).

The success of Bhooth Bangla revitalises the horror-comedy genre in Bollywood, following the path set by films like Stree 2 and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. While the film faces competition from Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar 2, its unique brand of nostalgic humour and Priyadarshan's signature slapstick timing have carved out a dominant share of the market.