Raja Shivaji Box Office: A Strong Second Weekend On The Cards Amid Faded Competition

Mumbai, May 7 - Riteish Deshmukh's historical action drama Raja Shivaji is rewriting box office history for Marathi cinema with record-breaking collection. Released amid some hype in Maharashtra, the film has collected approximately 58 crores gross and is heading towards finishing the first week with around 62 crores gross, which will be the record week for a Marathi film.

No major release this Friday, the Jio Studios and Mumbai Film Company's blockbuster is expected to remain the first choice of moviegoers this weekend, with a big jump expected in the Maharashtra region. Raja Shivaji will not have an entirely free run though, as a few films are releasing this coming Friday.

Kapil Sharma and Neetu Kapoor's Daadi Ki Shaadi, along with Krishnavataram Part 1: The Heart (May 7), Nawazuddin Siddiqui-starrer Main Actor Nahin Hoon, and comedy-mystery-satire Dug Dug, are among the notable Hindi releases this week. The Hollywood film Mortal Kombat II is also hitting theatres, but neither film is expected to challenge Raja Shivaji in terms of numbers.

The low-key competition leaves Raja Shivaji as the only major title to perform in the coming days, even though there is Akshay Kumar's Bhooth Bangla running successfully, but it will already be in its 4th week. While Riteish Deshmukh's directorial and starring will lose some screens to the new releases, it will be looking to score around 20 crores gross in its second weekend, which will put it within touching distance of the 100 crores mark.

As reported earlier, Raja Shivaji is currently the 4th biggest Marathi film of all-time, and it is expected to be number 2 at the end of the second weekend, behind only Sairat, which minted 110 crores gross collection. It is certain to become only the second Marathi film ever to reach 100 crores gross mark and eventually top the top seeder to become the new all-time blockbuster Marathi cinema.