Dhoni biopic becomes 2nd highest opening weekend grosser of 2016

The makers of ‘M.S Dhoni: The Untold Story’, the biopic on India’s limited overs skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Monday said that the film has made Rs 66 crore during its opening weekend at the Indian box-office.

Directed by Neeraj Pandey, the film features Sushant Singh Rajput in the role of Dhoni. He has been lauded for his form and performance as the cricketer, and fans of Dhoni as well as the actor have been increasing the footfalls at the theatres for it.

According to a statement issued on behalf of the film’s makers, it “scored a massive number over the weekend, showing a huge jump and collecting Rs 24.10 crore on Sunday (October 2)”.

On its opening day on Friday (September 30), the movie minted Rs 21.3 crore, and on the following day, it made Rs 20.6 crore. Its Sunday collections have taken the total to Rs 66 crore.

“Owing to an overwhelming word of mouth from across the city, the weekend total is Rs 66 crore nett,” read the statement.

The makers claim ‘M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story’ has managed the second highest weekend collections of 2016 after Salman Khan starrer ‘Sultan’. The film beat the collections of Housefull 3, Fan and Rustom, all of which were in the Rs 50 crore bracket.

Film trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted, “M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story is sensational… Packs a solid total.”

The film is over three hours long, and its length has been a point of contention for many.

However, fans have given the movie a big thumbs up, with some calling it Sushant’s best performance till date.

The camaraderie between Dhoni and Sushant, which was evident during the film’s promotions, also helped with positive word of mouth publicity even before the film’s theatrical release.

Trade analysts are confident that the film will cross the Rs 100 crore mark by next weekend.