BY SUNIT JANGIR

Mumbai, July 13 - Comedy has firmly re-established itself as one of the most dependable genres at the Indian box office in 2026, particularly in Bollywood. After a string of successful theatrical outings, Bhooth Bangla, Welcome To The Jungle, and now Dhamaal 4 have delivered a hat-trick of successes, proving that audiences continue to embrace wholesome entertainers on the big screen. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The remarkable run also highlights the strong demand for family-friendly films that offer laughter and carefree, light-hearted entertainment. The winning streak began with Akshay Kumar's Bhooth Bangla in April, which emerged as a solid theatrical success, grossing over 270 crores worldwide and setting the tone for the genre's resurgence in the summer to come. Welcome To The Jungle carried the momentum forward in June, while Dhamaal 4 has now laid the foundation for another successful box office run with an excellent opening weekend. Together, the three films have reaffirmed that comedy remains a major crowd-puller when backed by entertaining content. The success of Welcome To The Jungle and Dhamaal 4 is particularly significant because the two films arrived just two weeks apart. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Conventional industry wisdom has often suggested that two big-budget comedies releasing in proximity would end up affecting each other's business. However, their performances have effectively debunked that belief. Instead of competing for the same audience, both films have found acceptance, demonstrating that moviegoers are willing to support multiple entertainers if each offers a satisfying theatrical experience. The trend sends a strong message to filmmakers and exhibitors alike - release dates alone do not determine a film's fate—content does. When a comedy connects with audiences through its humour, emotions, and family appeal, theatrical success follows regardless of nearby competition. The consecutive success of Bhooth Bangla, Welcome To The Jungle, and Dhamaal 4 has once again established that laughter remains one of the safest bets at the box office, provided the entertainment quotient is high enough to bring audiences into cinemas.

BY CHRISTA LINCY

Plans are reportedly in motion to bring Ranbir Kapoor's Ramayana to Chinese theaters, signaling a significant attempt to re-enter the world's second-largest movie market. According to a recent report by Mid-day, director Nitesh Tiwari and producer Namit Malhotra are making significant moves to release and promote Ramayana: Part 1 in China. This is a huge development because the Chinese market has been largely closed off to Bollywood films since 2020. The choice of Nitesh Tiwari to lead this charge makes perfect sense. He is the man behind Dangal, which remains the most successful Indian film in China to date. That movie proved that Indian stories, when told with deep emotion and family values, have a massive fan base in the neighboring country. Now, with a story as culturally significant as the Ramayana, the makers are looking to tap into that potential once again on an even larger scale. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The promotional strategy seems to be quite elaborate. Sources suggest that the team is planning a four-day promotional tour featuring the lead trio: Ranbir Kapoor, Yash, and Sai Pallavi. The tentative plan includes a press event and a special screening at the Pingyao International Film Festival on September 24. Following this, they are looking to capitalize on China’s Golden Week, which starts on October 1, with a multi-city promotional run. This period is a major holiday season in China, making it the perfect time to grab the attention of the local audience. For context, Indian cinema had a golden run in China during the last decade. Films like Dangal and Secret Superstar became massive blockbusters there, often earning more in China than they did in India. Other films like Hindi Medium and even Thugs of Hindostan managed to find a place in Chinese theaters. However, geopolitical situations and the pandemic caused a long break. Ramayana is now being positioned as the film that could bridge that gap and bring Bollywood back to the global stage in a big way. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The scale of this project is unlike anything we have seen before. With a masive budget, the makers are leaving no stone unturned to ensure the VFX and production quality match international standards. Having Namit Malhotra's DNEG on board—a firm that has won multiple Oscars—already gives the film a global edge. By targeting the Chinese market, the producers are clearly aiming for a worldwide gross that could shatter many existing records. While the plans are still awaiting final approvals, the intent is clear. Ramayana is not just being treated as a domestic release, but as a global event film. If Ranbir Kapoor, Yash, and Sai Pallavi do head to China this September, it will mark the beginning of a new chapter for Indian cinema's international outreach. Fans are eagerly waiting to see how this ancient epic is presented to a modern, global audience.

BY CHRISTA LINCY

The Dhamaal franchise has returned to the big screen with its fourth installment, and the 2026 box office is feeling the heat. Directed by Indra Kumar and featuring the beloved ensemble of Ajay Devgn, Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, and Javed Jaffrey, the film has successfully leveraged its brand value to draw massive crowds. The buzz translates directly into the numbers, as the movie has already crossed the significant ₹50 Crore net milestone within its opening weekend, finishing its first three days with a net collection of ₹65 Crore in India. One of the most impressive aspects of this run is the sheer volume of ticket sales on digital platforms. In the context of 2026 releases, Dhamaal 4 has secured the third position for the highest ticket sales on BookMyShow during an opening weekend. The film managed to sell approximately 1.25 million tickets, effectively moving ahead of other major comedy entertainers like Welcome to the Jungle and Bhooth Bangla. This highlights a strong interest from the general audience who have been waiting for a high-energy comedy to hit the screens. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Here is how the top films of 2026 rank based on their opening weekend ticket sales on BookMyShow: Dhurandhar 2: 8.26 Million | 4 Days Border 2: 2.59 Million Dhamaal 4: 1.25 Million Welcome To The Jungle: 1.19 Million Bhooth Bangla: 1.16 Million When looking specifically at the national multiplex chains including PVR, INOX, and Cinepolis, the film shows a slightly different but equally strong standing. In these premium circuits, Dhamaal 4 is currently the fourth-highest selling movie of 2026. While Bhooth Bangla maintains a stronger grip on the third spot in multiplexes with around 293,000 tickets, Dhamaal 4 is not far behind with approximately 236,000 tickets sold. It successfully remains ahead of Welcome to the Jungle in these chains as well, proving its appeal across both mass markets and urban centers. Here is the 2026 leaderboard for tickets sold specifically within National Multiplex Chains: (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Dhurandhar 2: 2.75 Million Border 2: 535,000 Bhooth Bangla: 293,000 Dhamaal 4: 236,000 Welcome To The Jungle: 207,000 The global footprint of the film adds another layer to its success story. With a worldwide gross collection currently standing at ₹92 Crore, the movie is just ₹8 Crore shy of reaching the prestigious ₹100 Crore gross mark. Given the momentum from the weekend and the high volume of tickets already sold, it is expected to achieve this milestone within the first half of the weekdays. The steady growth seen from Friday to Sunday suggests that the film has been well-received by the target audience, making it one of the standout performers of the year so far. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) In conclusion, Dhamaal 4 has used its comedic heritage to dominate the 2026 charts. By surpassing its immediate competitors in ticket sales and maintaining a strong hold across diverse theater chains, the film is well on its way to a long and successful run. For the trade, the focus now shifts to how it sustains during the week, but the record-breaking start has already established it as a major winner for the season.

BY CHRISTA LINCY

The Dhamaal franchise has officially returned to the big screen with its fourth installment, and the opening weekend numbers suggest that the audience was more than ready for another round of laughter. Directed by Indra Kumar and featuring the signature comedic energy of the ensemble cast including Ajay Devgn, Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, and Javed Jaffrey, the film has successfully leveraged its legacy to draw massive crowds. Dhamaal 4 has completed its first three days on a very strong note, showing a consistent growth trajectory that highlights its broad appeal across different age groups. By finding its rhythm so quickly on Saturday and Sunday, the movie has already cleared a significant hurdle, officially crossing the ₹50 Crore net milestone within its opening weekend itself. To understand the magnitude of this opening, we have to look back at how the previous films in this series performed. This franchise has grown significantly over the years, with each installment setting a higher bar than the last. Dhamaal 4 has now officially become the biggest opener in the history of this series, surpassing the record previously held by Total Dhamaal in 2019. Here is a comparison of the opening weekend net collections for each film in the franchise over the years: Dhamaal (2007): ₹7.08 Crore Double Dhamaal (2011): ₹21.75 Crore Total Dhamaal (2019): ₹62.40 Crore Dhamaal 4 (2026): ₹65.00 Crore (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Let's break down the India collections for the current film. The movie opened on Friday with a net collection of ₹14.00 Crore. While this was a solid start, the real momentum kicked in on Saturday. Day 2 saw a massive jump of 60.7 percent, bringing in ₹22.50 Crore. The upward trend continued on Sunday, which is typically the biggest day for family comedies. On its third day, the film collected ₹28.50 Crore, representing another 26.7 percent growth from Saturday. This steady climb pushed the total India net collection to the ₹65.00 Crore mark in just three days. Dhamaal 4 - India Box Office BreakdownDayGross CollectionNet CollectionShowsOccupancyDay 1 (Friday)₹16.80 Cr₹14.00 Cr10,66924.0%Day 2 (Saturday)₹27.00 Cr₹22.50 Cr10,95435.0%Day 3 (Sunday)₹34.20 Cr₹28.50 Cr11,48144.0%Total Weekend₹78.00 Cr₹65.00 Cr33,104- (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The ticket sales data provides even more context regarding the film's popularity. On the popular booking platform BookMyShow, the film sold a total of 12.53 Lakh tickets over the weekend. This includes 92,000 tickets from pre-sales, followed by 2.70 Lakh on Friday, 4.55 Lakh on Saturday, and 4.35 Lakh on Sunday. It is interesting to note that while Saturday had a slightly higher number of tickets booked via the app, the overall occupancy and collections were higher on Sunday due to better walk-in crowds at the counters. The performance in national chains, which includes PVR, INOX, and Cinepolis, was particularly impressive. For Sunday alone, Dhamaal 4 sold approximately 1.19 Lakh tickets across 3,700 shows in these major chains. This resulted in a gross collection of roughly ₹4.40 Crore from these venues. If we look at the weekend as a whole, over 2.36 Lakh tickets were sold at these national chains, showing that the movie found a lot of takers in urban centers and multiplexes. The overall occupancy in these chains stood at around 14.7 percent on Sunday, with PVR leading the pack at 17.6 percent occupancy. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) A closer look at the regional breakdown for Sunday reveals how the film performed across different major markets with varying show counts. In the National Capital Region (NCR), the movie ran across 1,041 shows with an overall occupancy of 45.0 percent, peaking at 65.0 percent during the evening slots. Mumbai recorded the highest engagement among major cities with a 55.5 percent overall occupancy across 868 shows, where evening screenings saw a massive 80.0 percent turnout. Ahmedabad followed closely with 55.0 percent occupancy over 718 shows, hitting a high of 78.0 percent in the evening. In other regions, Surat maintained a 43.8 percent occupancy across 388 shows, while Pune and Bengaluru saw steady numbers of 47.8 percent and 46.3 percent across 372 and 273 shows respectively. On a consolidated level for the Hindi 2D version, the day started with 22.31 percent occupancy in the morning and climbed to 56.31 percent in the afternoon, eventually reaching a peak of 71.62 percent in the evening before concluding the night at 47.62 percent, bringing the total Sunday occupancy to 49.46 percent. In the North American territory, the film is maintaining a steady pace and attracting the diaspora audience. Based on figures shared by Venky Box Office, the Saturday gross stood at 182,000 dollars (approximately ₹1.53 Crore). This brings the cumulative total in the region to 322,000 dollars (approximately ₹2.70 Crore), further strengthening the movie's overall performance in the international market during its first weekend. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The film is also making its mark globally with a strong performance across international markets. On its opening day, the movie collected ₹5.00 Crore overseas, bringing the first-day worldwide gross to ₹21.80 Crore. This momentum continued into Saturday, where it added another ₹5.00 Crore from international circuits, taking the two-day worldwide gross to ₹53.80 Crore. Based on early estimates for Sunday, the overseas market contributed approximately ₹4.00 Crore, pushing the total overseas gross to ₹14.00 Crore. When combined with the India gross of ₹78.00 Crore, the total worldwide gross collection stands at ₹92.00 Crore at the end of its first weekend. With the movie just ₹8 Crore shy of the ₹100 Crore milestone, it is well-positioned to cross that mark during the early part of the week.

BY SUNIT JANGIR

Mumbai, July 13 - The global box office has witnessed a historic milestone as Michael, the biographical drama based on the life of pop icon Michael Jackson, has officially crossed the $1 billion mark worldwide. The achievement makes it the first-ever biopic in cinema history to reach the prestigious milestone, cementing its place among the biggest box office success stories of all time. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Driven by positive word-of-mouth and strong performances across North America, Europe, Latin America, and several international markets, Michael has continued to attract audiences weeks after its release. The film has resonated with both longtime fans of the King of Pop and younger moviegoers, resulting in remarkable legs at the global box office. Directed by Antoine Fuqua and starring Jaafar Jackson as the Pop legend, Michael has grossed $372 million domestically (North America) and $629 million in the international markets so far for the worldwide cume of over $1 billion. It is the second movie of 2026 to hit the milestone of a billion dollars after Super Mario Galaxy Movie, and the 62nd film of all time to do so. Its success also highlights the enduring popularity and cultural impact of Michael Jackson's legacy. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Meanwhile, Disney's live-action adaptation of the billion-dollar toon, Moana, has failed to meet expectations. Despite carrying one of the studio's most beloved animated brands and featuring a massive production budget, the remake has struggled to generate audience interest, tanking at the box office with less than $100 million in worldwide opening weekend box office. Domestically, the Catherine Laga'aia and Dwayne Johnson-fronted adventure grossed just $43 million while its overseas debut landed at $52 million.

BY SUNIT JANGIR

Mumbai, July 12 - Bollywood star Ajay Devgn's Dhamaal 4 is turning out to be a bona fide box office success with better-than-expected opening weekend collection. After taking a good opening at 14 crores net, the comedy entertainer witnessed a massive jump of over 60% on Saturday, and it is simply running riot on Sunday to close the weekend on a strong note. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) Directed by Indra Kumar, Dhamaal 4 has registered a phenomenal jump of around 25% on its first Sunday at the Indian box office. As per early estimates, the comedy entertainer has collected over 28 crore net on Day 3, following its impressive 22.50 crore net haul on Saturday. The film's opening weekend now stands at approximately 65 crore net, making it one of the biggest Bollywood opening weekends of 2026. After a solid opening on Friday, Dhamaal 4 witnessed excellent growth over the weekend, driven by strong family footfall and positive word-of-mouth. The film recorded excellent occupancy across multiplexes and single screens, with evening and night shows performing particularly well. The healthy day-on-day growth reflects the audience's acceptance of the film and the enduring popularity of the Dhamaal franchise. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}) The Sunday collection of Dhamaal 4 is the biggest single-day collection for a Bollywood movie of 2026, outside Dhurandhar 2: The Revenge. The strong weekend has also placed Dhamaal 4 among Ajay Devgn's biggest box office starters. More importantly, the film has built a solid foundation heading into the weekdays. If it manages to hold well on Monday and maintain steady collections through the first week, it will be on course for an impressive lifetime total at the domestic box office. Directed by Indra Kumar, Dhamaal 4 features Ajay Devgn alongside Riteish Deshmukh, Arshad Warsi, Jaaved Jaaferi, Sanjay Mishra, Ravi Kishan and an ensemble cast. With excellent weekend momentum and encouraging audience response, the comedy entertainer has emerged as a clear box office winner and is expected to continue its successful run in the coming days.