Director
Anurag Singh's '
Kesari' did very well on its release with Rs 21 crore nett approx on its first day which is the highest first-day collection of the year, reported BoxOfficeIndia.com. It is the second highest opening day for an
Akshay Kumar starrer after 'Gold' which opened on a national holiday as well. The report stated that the film opened in the afternoon at many places as it was Holi and did huge occupancy as it worked like a national holiday.
The best collections for the film have come in Gujarat which has recorded the best collections in the last fifteen months after 'Sanju'. The business in this belt is actually better than East Punjab.
The collections in Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar have been affected by Holi as single screens showcased very few screenings. The business of the film is expected to go up in some places on Friday while the stronger areas will drop as it's a working day. The report suggests that it will be Sunday that the film will settle as the Holi factor gets totally out of the way. The huge plus for the film is the big numbers in Mumbai circuit on day one as it is a North based film.
'Kesari' features Akshay as Havildar Ishar Singh, who led the 36th Sikh Regiment of the
British Indian Army in the
Battle Of Saragarhi
, which was fought in 1897. The film tells the incredible story of 21 Sikh soldiers fighting valiantly against 10,000 Afghan troops.
Parineeti Chopra has a guest appearance, as Havildar Ishar Singh's wife.