The irony of Akshay Kumar

This is the irony of Akshay Kumar. All his films that released last year including Tees Maar Khan, Action Replayy, Khatta Meetha and Housefull were criticized for its common, clich��d or formulaic content but managed to get good initials. And now when his first release in this year got good reviews for showing Akshay Kumar in a genuinely different light as against his conventional comic characters, the box office has a different story to say.
The opening weekend collection of Patiala House is around Rs 15 crore, which though not bad, isn���t what is usually expected from an Akshay Kumar film. The film started slow and picked up over the weekend. It���s important to see whether the good reviews and positive word of mouth help it sustain through the week.
The other release Angel directed by Ganesh Acharya and starring newcomers Nilesh Sahay and Maddalsa Sharma was weak on content and promotions and is clearly a washout.
The coming week sees the release of Vishal Bharadwaj���s first film since Kaminey ��� 7 Khoon Maaf. Based on Ruskin Bond���s novel, the film has an interesting premise where a wife kills her seven husbands through her life from 20 to 60. Priyanka Chopra shows promise playing wife to seven actors in the film. While the doors have opened to such experimental and interesting cinema, it needs to be seen how wide will the appeal of 7 Khoon Maaf be.
Bheja Fry director Sagar Ballary makes his comeback to filmmaking after a span of four years with the children���s film Kaccha Limboo. Starring Atul Kulkarni and Sarika, it needs to be seen whether this film, which has been in making for a couple of years now, still holds appeal.
These will be the last big releases before the Cricket World Cup fever hits the world this weekend. Bollywood will certainly be sidelined in the sport euphoria for the next couple of months.
Top 5 Films this Week
Film: Patiala House
Position: 1
Director: Nikhil Advani
Cast: Akshay Kumar, Rishi Kapoor, Anushka Sharma, Dimple Kapadia
Upside: Akshay Kumar does something different and decent, Rishi Kapoor���s strong performance, good dramatic moments, no melodrama, good music
Downside: Conventional plot,slow-paced
Running Week: 1
Trade Comments: Despite positive reviews, surprisingly the opening isn���t as good as other Akshay Kumar films which were weak on content yet had strong initials. Rs 15 crore weekend is not bad but more is expected from Akshay Kumar film.
Film: Yeh Saali Zindagi
Position: 2
Director: Sudhir Mishra
Cast: Irrfan Khan, Chitrangdha Singh, Arunoday Singh, Aditi Rao
Upside: Interesting story, good comedy, great performances by Irrfan-Chitrangdha
Downside: Erratic and extra fast narrative
Running Week: 2
Box Office Verdict: Consistent performance in second week thanks to good word of mouth.
Film: Dil Toh Bachcha Hai Ji
Position: 3
Director: Madhur Bhandarkar
Cast: Ajay Devgn, Emraan Hashmi, Omi Vaidya
Upside: Interesting characters, comedy not slapstick
Downside: Predictable to the core, lame end, dull screenplay, not as funny as expected
Running Week: 3
Box-Office Verdict: Average to below average
Film: Yamla Pagla Deewana
Position: 4
Director: Samir Karnik
Cast: Sunny Deol, Bobby Deol, Dharmendra
Upside: Goodchemistry between Deols, eventful second half, good humour which isn���t slapstick
Downside: Extremely dull music,Bobby Deol���s bland love story, uninspiring first half
Running Week: 5
Box Office Verdict: Hit
Film: Angel
Position: 5
Director: Ganesh Acharya
Cast: Nilesh Sahay, Maddalsa Sharma
Upside: Climax twist
Downside: Bad screenplay, bad direction, bad performances
Running Week: 1
Trade Comments: The buzz was dull and with the content being poor there are absolutely no takers for this film. A clear washout!
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