Kartik Aaryan in Shehzada
Audiences don't seem to have embraced Kartik Aaryan's new film Shehzada in the same manner that they had his 2022 hit Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2. After a tepid weekend, Shehzada's three-day total is Rs 20.20 crore at the domestic box office, reports trade analyst Taran Adarsh. "Shehzada doesn't live up to the expectations. The weekend biz is below the mark. The big jump/turnaround on Saturday and Sunday – to improve its prospects – is clearly missing. Friday 6 crore, Saturday 6.65 crore, Sunday 7.55 crore. Total: Rs 20.20 crore. India biz," tweeted Mr Adarsh.
Read the tweet here:
The lukewarm response to Shehzada will disappoint not just the film's cast and crew but likely also Bollywood insiders who were hoping that the stupendous success of Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan signaled the end of the box office drought that the Hindi film industry has been battling for a year.
Shehzada, which Kartik Aaryan co-produces, is a remake of 2020 Telugu film Ala Vaikunthapurramuloo and co-stars Kriti Sanon, Manisha Koirala, Paresh Rawal and Ronit Roy.
In his review for NDTV, film critic Saibal Chatterjee gave Shehzada two-and-a-half stars out of five. He described it as a "fits-and-starts affair," writing: After a quick prelude that plays out 25 years ago, it slips into a moribund state, acquires some degree of vitality on either side of its halfway point and then goes right back to being what it predominantly was in the first hour and a bit - limp, lackluster and lacking in genuine humour."
Kartik's performance, however, was not lacking. "But no matter how Shehzada pans out over its two-and-a-half-hour runtime, lead actor Kartik Aaryan, also credited as a producer, is in fine fettle. He uses the film as an extended demo reel to showcase his range as an actor. Blending slow-motion swag, some cultivated effervescence and flashes of emotion, he frequently hits the sweet spot," Saibal Chatterjee writes.
Directed by Rohit Dhawan, Shehzada released last Friday.