'Main Atal Hoon', starring Pankaj Tripathi, is all set to hit the screens on January 19. The 'Mirzapur' actor is playing former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee. The biographical drama is directed by 'Natarang' and 'Balgandharva' fame filmmaker Ravi Jadhav. The movie has failed to create a buzz and it seems that the Day 1 box-office collection won't be a satisfactory one. Next week, on January 25, Siddharth Anand's 'Fighter' is releasing. So, it is likely to face tough competition with the Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone starrer.
Outlook India got in touch with a couple of trade experts from the movie business to know if 'Fighter' is killing the buzz of 'Main Atal Hoon'. Read on to know what they said.
Producer and film business expert, Girish Johar said that as both movies are of different genres, so there is no question of any competition. They will have their respective audiences. He also said that 'Main Atal Hoon' is a word-of-mouth film. ''Audiences are very much well-aware and they are smart. They will watch films they want to,'' he said.
Johar also added that currently, the buzz of the Pankaj Tripathi starrer is low compared to the hardcore commercial, 'Fighter'. He added, ''We have seen films like Mrs. Chatterjee vs Norway and 12th Fail did well due to word-of-mouth. So, if Main Atal Hoon is appreciated by people, it will run well but definitely it will rely on word-of-mouth.
When asked how much it will earn on Day 1, the trade expert predicted that it would be around Rs 1-1.5 crore at the box office.
Film exhibitor Lokendra Jain feels that 'Main Atal Hoon' won't perform well at the box office. ''Atal ji's personality was very strong and Pankaj Tripathi couldn't match it. If you see the trailer, he didn't pull it off well,'' he said.
Predicting the Day 1 collection of 'Main Atal Hoon', he said it might earn a maximum of Rs 2 crore at the box office. He also feels that 'Fighter' is not creating the buzz it should have created. ''It won't be the biggest blockbuster but it will do good'', he added.
Earlier, in an interview with PTI, while talking about the film, Pankaj Tripathi said, “This is the story of Atal ji's life and also of India's journey from the time of independence, how elections would happen, how voting would happen, how society changed. The purpose of the biopic is to provide entertainment and at the same time it serves as an inspiration''. The actor also revealed that when he first arrived on the set, he didn't feel "confident".
'Main Atal Hoon' is produced by Vinod Bhanushali, Sandeep Singh, and Kamlesh Bhanushali. Bhavesh Bhanushali and Sam Khan are the co-producers of the movie.
