Sikandar box office prediction day 1: Salman Khan will fail to beat Tiger 3 opening, South will be weaker despite Rashmika Mandanna | Exclusive

Salman Khan-starrer Sikandar will be released on Sunday, March 30. The film is extremely important for the box office and for Bhaijaan as well. Sikandar marks Khan's first collaboration with Ghajini director AR Murugadoss, and that itself makes it the most-anticipated film of the year. However, despite the biggest names in the industry, the advance booking of the film is "not up to the mark". 

DNA India reached out to trade experts to get an insight into Sikandar's advance booking and what could be the opening figures. Ask Komal Nahta about the advance booking of Sikandar, and he said, "It's not good." When compared to Salman's last film, Tiger 3, Komal added that Sikandar's advance booking is lower than his last film, "It's defiantly not up to the mark." 

Sikandar is directed by Murugadoss, who is quite popular in Tamil. The movie also stars Telugu star, Rashmika Mandanna and Baahubali's Satyaraj. Still, when it comes to the South, Sikandar will be weaker. That's what Ramesh Bala said, and also explained the reason. "The advance booking in here (South) is mild only, because this weekend our movies have dominated the screens. In Malayalam, we have Mohanlal's L2E: Empuraan. In Tamil, we have Vikram's Veera Dheera Sooran, which has picked up well after its release. In Telugu also, Mad Square is performing well. So we are preoccupied with our own releases. Sikandar is not having a traditional release, it's coming on Sunday, so it's a little bit of 'out of sight out of mind'." 

Why Sikandar will have a lower opening than Tiger 3? 

Komal explained the reason for the lukewarm response for advance booking, and explained, "Teaser tak buzz bahut kharab tha. Teaser ke baad jo trailer aaya, woh logo ko pasand aaya, but tab tak teaser ne kaafi harm kar diya tha (The teaser was really bad. People liked the trailer, but till then, the teaser caused damage)."

Sikandar has a chance to grow? 

Both Komal and Ramesh stated that Sikandar has the full potential to grow depending on word-of-mouth. Komal said, "Spot booking aur current booking ke wajah se film ki opening achi hogi. There have been instances when current booking was huge and it marked a good start for a film." Ramesh also added, "If the word-of-mouth is positive, the film will surely grow over the week."  

Sikandar day one estimates? 

Both trade experts confirmed that Sikandar is expected to open between Rs 30-40 crores. Ramesh added that South is expected to contribute 20% of the domestic collection, and despite Rashmika, Murugadoss, the movie will earn around 10 crores down South. Komal on the other side found it unfair to compare Sikandar with Tiger 3 but stated that the film will open to Rs 30 crores. For the unversed, Salman's last release, Tiger 3 earned Rs 46 crores on its first day, and it became his career's biggest opener. 

Also read: Salman Khan lost Ghajini due to his 'anger issue'? This actor from Aamir Khan's film claimed 'Murugadoss disciplined hai, yeh kaise kaam karega'