Avatar: Fire and Ash opened with Rs. 22 crore (Rs. 18 crore nett) / USD 2.50 million on Friday at the Indian box office. That ranks as the seventh/eighth biggest opening day for Hollywood in India, depending on whether the actuals come over or under Thor: Love and Thunder.
Good as these numbers are for the film, they are significantly down from its predecessor, Avatar: The Way of Water, which grossed Rs. 48.50 crore on its first day in India. A drop from Avatar 2 was always on the cards, and the trend is visible globally as well, but the extent of the decline is striking, with Fire and Ash opening at well under half of The Way of Water.
Some in trade will be attributing this fall to competition from Dhurandhar, but that explanation only goes so far. The declines from Avatar 2 are sharper in the South than in the Hindi circuits, which suggests that competition is not the primary factor. Telugu states dropped by nearly 60 per cent from the record-breaking first day that The Way of Water had. The best hold also did came from the South, in Tamil Nadu, which was down 40 per cent. Hollywood films have consistently done strongly in Tamil Nadu during the Christmas-New Year window over the last couple of years. Hindi circuits were a little better than the halfway mark.
Avatar 2 was a highly anticipated sequel to the world’s biggest film, which was released thirteen years after the original. The pent-up demand for an Avatar film, which was there for The Way of Water, isn’t there in play this time. The sequel also probably wasn’t as well-received as the original was, which has likely translated into lower anticipation for the third film.
Looking ahead, the film does have a big holiday period at its disposal, during which it can pick up. With the opening being so far below Avatar 2, there is also room for growth. The film should go on to post a big final number, albeit below the franchise standards. Both the previous Avatar films were the highest grossers for Hollywood in India at the time of their release; Avatar 3 will be falling well short of that.
NOTE: Including 3D charges, Avatar: Fire and Ash grossed Rs. 25 crore approx in India.
