Trade experts talk about Hanuman Ansh’s HISTORIC run: “Abhi toh bas shuruaat hai. Even Rs. 300 cr or Rs. 400 cr lifetime can’t be ruled out…it can collect more in Week 6 than Week 5”

Hanuman Ansh is on an unstoppable run. The film collected just Rs. 1.07 crores in Week 1 and then dropped to Rs. 50 lakhs in Week 2. Surprisingly, it then earned Rs. 11.09 crores and a whopping Rs. 62.15 crores in its third and fourth week, respectively. Many expected the film to drop in the fifth week. Instead, it has collected Rs. 49.51 crores in the fifth weekend, with the fifth Sunday collections being Rs. 22.73 crores. As of September 6, it has earned Rs. 124.32 crores. We asked trade experts about this unbelievable box office performance of the historic film.

Trade veteran Taran Adarsh said, “Look at the jump. It collected Rs. 9 lakhs on day 1 and now has crossed Rs. 100 crore mark. The first week was bad, while the film had a total collapse in the second weekend. I am sure the producers were so disheartened, looking at the second week numbers. They must have thought ki film ka pack-up ho gaya. But then it picked up and how.”

On Friday, Bollywood Hungama reported that on the day of release, the makers had to resort to a BOGO (Buy One Get One) Ticket offer. Taran Adarsh explained, “What option did they have? Now they don’t need it as it’s running on the basis of the content. The audience has become the brand ambassadors and they are carrying it forward.”

He added, “There were hardly any pre-release promotions. The makers are now visiting cinema halls. However, it is purely riding on content. As a child, my mother and I went to see Jai Santoshi Maa (1975). Many people had come with the pooja ki thali and some of them left their shoes outside the auditorium. During the song ‘Main Toh Aarti Utaaru Re’, people used to sing along, clap, or fold their hands. For Hanuman Ansh, I saw similar visuals – some people were barefoot and standing in devotion. It’s a rare phenomenon.”

Girish Johar, producer and film business analyst, revealed when he realized Hanuman Ansh is a sleeper success, “I realized in the middle of the second week. Despite low collections, the film was hanging in theatres. The producers were pushing the word of mouth. The third weekend did the trick, after which there has been no looking back.”

Distributor and exhibitor Raj Bansal, meanwhile, replied, “I realized it in the third week. In the first week, no one cared about the film. In the second week, its trending caught attention. But in the third week, I realized that it’s going the Mahavatar Narsimha (2025) way. I was also reminded of Jai Santoshi Maa.”

Lifetime predictions

After the fifth weekend’s collections, trade experts believe it won’t be a surprise if Hanuman Ansh collects more in Week 6 than Week 5. Taran Adarsh opined, “Yes, there’s a possibility. Now it’s in the hands of the public. Where the public takes it now is up to them. It’s a case study.”

Trade analyst Atul Mohan said, “It may collect more next week than this week. Abhi toh bas shuruaat hai. It can go anywhere – Rs. 200 crores, Rs. 300 crores and even Rs. 400 crores lifetime can’t be ruled out. Now, several schools are planning to take kids to watch the film.”

Raj Bansal explained, “It’s difficult to predict for such films. The sky is the limit. Who would have imagined that it would collect Rs. 20 crores plus on the fifth Sunday? There’s a lot of demand and urgency to see the film. I get so many calls requesting for tickets because its shows are sold out in every theatre here.”

Girish Johar said, “It all depends on how it tracks during the weekdays. But anything can happen in today’s times. When an Obsession can do such numbers, why not Hanuman Ansh? So why restrict it to Rs. 200 crores? At the same time, why even burden it with such numbers? At the end of the day, it’s making a huge ROI, making profits for everyone concerned. It’s getting the audiences back to the theatres. That’s critical.”

To conclude

Atul Mohan hinted that devotional films are having a dream run at present, “Two years ago, Hanuman (2024) also worked. Mahavatar Narsimha was a hit. Laalo (2025) was a sleeper blockbuster. And now, Hanuman Ansh is on a historic run.”

Girish Johar signed off by saying, “It’s a beautiful film that rests on emotions. It once again shows that emotion is the critical element the audience wants, be it in any genre – action, horror, romance, animation, etc. If the audience connects with that emotion in a film, they don’t mind who the actor, director or producer is.”

Also Read: Aditya Dhar extends support to Hanuman Ansh as the film continues breaking records at the box office