Joginder Tuteja (DNA; February 19, 2016)
A big three-way clash at the box-office (on June 3) has been averted. Both Jagga Jasoos as well as Raaz Reboot have been moved ahead, which means Housefull 3 has a free run that weekend.
Katrina Kaif, the leading lady of Jagga Jasoos, announced that the film won’t release before July-end or August since some work on the film is still pending. On the other hand, Vikram Bhatt, too, made it quite clear on Twitter that Raaz Reboot is aiming for July-end release.
It makes sense. The much-delayed Jagga Jasoos by Anurag Basu is aiming for perfection and it would only gain further if it arrives on a day when it can have screens to itself. For Ranbir Kapoor, the film has to work and the last thing it would need is a clash with a biggie or two. As for Raaz Reboot, the film is the biggest and the most successful horror franchise that Bollywood boasts of. Raaz 3 had done a tremendous business of Rs 73 crore. A release taking place few weeks down the line won’t make a difference to the Emraan Hashmi-starrer which has the Bhatts backing it up.
“It is a good decision,” a trade expert adds, “A clash doesn’t help anyone, especially when it is between biggies. One of the films is bound to suffer, or at least have a dip in collections. It is good that rather than negativity around a clash building up, those involved with Jagga Jasoos and Raaz Reboot have announced their decision a good four months in advance. It is as mature as it gets.”
As for Housefull 3, producer Sajid Nadiadwala has reasons to rejoice. The Akshay Kumar, Abhishek Bachchan, Riteish Deshmukh, Lisa Haydon, Jacqueline Fernandez and Nargis Fakhri film by director duo Sajid-Farhad is the first multi-starrer of 2016. Moreover, with Akshay Kumar delivering a superhit even with an offbeat and niche Airlift, all eyes are on how much bigger does his out-and-out commercial Housefull 3 turns out to be.