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| Edited By: |Source: PTI |Updated: Jul 20, 2010, 09:29 PM IST
Tere Bin Laden, the small-budget satire about a fake Osama bin Laden, has come out on top at the box office, grossing over Rs5 crore in its opening weekend.
The film beat off competition from the star-studded Kashmir drama Lamhaa and Vikramaditya Motwane's Cannes entry Udaan.
The comedy, which marks the acting debut of Pakistani pop star Ali Zafar as an overambitious television reporter who uses a Laden lookalike as his ticket to the US, is finding favour with multiplex audiences.
The film by debutant director Abhishek Sharma, which grabbed headlines after being banned by Pakistani censors, is doing well in the overseas market too, said producers Pooja Shetty Deora and Aarti Shetty in a press statement.
"The film has already grossed $150,000 from the UK, UAE, and Australian territories," said the producers' statement. "Encouraged by the strong response Boney Kapoor's BSK Network & Entertainment, distributors of the film, are planning to widen the release by an additional 40-50 prints in the second week."
Meanwhile, Anurag Kashyap's production Udaan, a growing-up saga about a 17-year-old played by debutant Rajat Barmecha, has not been able to convert international critical acclaim into box-office revenue.
"In terms of occupancy, both Tere Bin Laden and Lamhaa have had 60-65% audience turnout, but Udaan is lagging behind with 25%. The movies are also of different genres so that could have effected the turnout," said Jayendra Banerjee, vice-president (operations), Satyam Cineplexes.
"Among the three films, Tere Bin Laden is the clear winner," Banerjee said.
While the star power of Bipasha Basu, Sanjay Dutt, Kunal Kapoor and the promise of "Kashmir's untold story" gave Lamhaa a head start, it gradually slipped down the ladder.
Lamhaa started off well but then its turnout dipped. On the other hand, both Udaan and Tere Bin Laden did not start off well but picked up later.
"In percentage terms, audience turnout for both of them has been between 50 and 60%, which is a good sign," said Rahul Singh, senior vice-president (operations), PVR Group.
