Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan breaches Rs 1,000-crore mark worldwide: YRF

Shah Rukh Khan-starrer Pathaan has created history by becoming the first Hindi movie to cross the Rs 1,000 crore mark at the worldwide box office in phase one of its release, Yash Raj Films (YRF) said on Tuesday (February 21).

According to the studio, the Siddharth Anand-directorial raised Rs 1.25 crore nett in India (Hindi – Rs 1.20 crore, dubbed versions – Rs 0.05 crore) on its fourth Monday on Monday (Feb 20).

“The total worldwide gross is an incredible Rs 1000 crore (India gross: Rs 623 crore, overseas: Rs 377 crore)” YRF said in a press note. The movie, a mega comeback vehicle for the actor after his absence from leading man roles for more than four years, was released on January 25 to great hype and record advance bookings.

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According to YRF, Pathaan has become the highest-grossing Hindi film worldwide in the history of Hindi cinema in its initial run. Aamir Khan’s Dangal is the highest-grossing Indian film, with reported earnings of around Rs 2,000 crore.

In its initial run or phase one of the release, the movie earned over Rs 700 crore. In its second phase, when it was released in theatres in China, the film’s box office crossed the Rs 1,000 crore mark in worldwide gross.

Other Indian films that crossed Rs 1,000 crore mark at the global box office include “Baahubali 2: The Conclusion”, “RRR” and “K.G.F: Chapter 2”.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh termed the movie’s collection numbers “phenomenal, as the film is yet to release in China.

It (Rs 1,000 cr mark) is a phenomenal achievement and this is without China market release. In India, it (box office collection) is over Rs 620 crore and Rs 377 crore from overseas market gross… Shah Rukh Khan has come back after four years with this movie and the kind of craze the film has, not just in India but also overseas, proves his supremacy worldwide. And very few actors can boast of that, Adarsh told PTI.

Adarsh believes it is a sign of good things to come.

It is a positive sign for the industry and people who are saying Bollywood is finished, Shah Rukh Khan is finished and Yash Raj Films is finished, but Bollywood is very much zinda (alive).

Himesh Mankad, another trade expert, said the humongous success of Pathaan is a great achievement.

“It is the first-ever original Hindi film to have done this feat without China. In the past, Dangal had crossed Rs 1,000 crore but in that large chunk of the box office collection came from China. Dangal approximately had earned Rs 2,000 crore of which approximately Rs 1,200 crore had come from China, Bajrangi Bhaijaan also did Rs 1,000 crore but this was including the collection from China, Mankad told PTI.

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“After a dull (phase) we finally have a blockbuster not just in India but abroad. It has got the overseas market to life, which was not performing well for Hindi films in the pandemic world. Now things from here should be bright… the two Shah Rukh Khan films Dunki and Jawan and Tiger 3 will do well,” he added.

Pathaan, which also stars John Abraham and Deepika Padukone, is an important step in the YRF’s spy franchise where characters from different films will cross paths at some point. The film follows the titular spy (Shah Rukh) who comes out of exile to stop terrorist group Outfit X from launching a debilitating attack on India.

Pathaan is the fourth movie in producer Aditya Chopra’s spy universe, following Salman Khan’s Ek Tha Tiger and Tiger Zinda Hai, and War, featuring Hrithik Roshan.

(With Agency inputs)