The Salman Khan-starrer sports drama Sultan, that hit the screens in China on Friday, did not register great numbers at the box-office. The film witnessed a rather lukewarm start in the East Asian country as it collected over Rs 7 crore on its Day 1. The final figures, however, are yet to come out. The numbers are shocking because the film is running on over 11000 screens, which is a wide release.
If trade analysts are to be believed, the Ali Abbas Zafar-directed film might have suffered because of tough competition from the Tom Cruise-starrer Hollywood flick Mission: Impossible – Fallout. Incidentally, the American action spy film also released in China with Sultan.
Sultan has recorded the seventh biggest opening of all time for a Hindi film in China. The figures are at par with that of the Aamir Khan-starrer 2014 film PK. However, it’s been more than three years since the release of that film and market for Hindi films in China is far bigger now. The film’s letdown performance could be attributed to the fact that it has limited appeal for the female audience. The report claims that films which favour the women usually post much better numbers in China, case in point being Secret Superstar that revolved around a female protagonist aspiring to become a singer.
Back in India, Sultan turned out to be a huge hit at the box-office. The film, produced by Yash Raj Films, went on to collect Rs 300.45 crore in its lifetime run. It had Anushka Sharma playing the female lead opposite Salman.