Avengers: Infinity War races Rs 1 bn, touches Rs 940 mn opening weekend

With Rs 940 million collected over the weekend, Marvel's latest cinematic outing is set to become the fastest Hollywood film to cross the Rs 1 bn mark in India

It was touted to be the biggest Hollywood release of the year and Marvel’s Avengers: Infinity War has started off its campaign at the Indian box office in line with the expectations. At Rs 943 million over the first weekend (Friday through Sunday) since its release on April 27, Infinity War has become the second biggest opener of the year, Bollywood and Hollywood included, in India. It is second only to Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s Padmaavat, which raked in Rs 1.14 billion over the first weekend of its release.

Released in 2000 screens, among the highest ever for a Hollywood release in the country, Infinity War set the cash registers ringing with Rs 313 million on its opening day, followed by Rs 305 million on Saturday and a Rs 325 million haul on Sunday. This makes it the biggest Hollywood opener ever, even ahead of 2016’s The Jungle Book which collected Rs 402 million in its first weekend. The Jungle Book, also a Disney film, went on to make Rs 1.88 billion at the Indian box office, and to become the most successful Hollywood film India ever.

"The opening weekend numbers are a testament to Avengers: Infinity War creating a cinematic milestone. The success goes to show the ever increasing fan base and the pop culture phenomena that Marvel as a brand enjoys in India,” says Bikram Duggal, head of studio entertainment, Disney India.

With this, Marvel continues its winning streak at the Indian box office, following up on the success of films like Thor Ragnarok (2017) and Black Panther (2018). Analysts believe that the film’s longevity at the box office will determine if it will sustain momentum to beat The Jungle book’s record in terms of lifetime collections. The Jungle Book had a steady run at the movies for over 6 weeks, which helped it cash in on the nostalgia surrounding the story, the localisation efforts by the studio and the summer vacation footfalls that the malls and multiplexes. With April 30 and May 1 being holidays in many states in the country and it being summer vacation, the film has bright prospects in the first couple weeks of release at least.

Even with Infinity War, the studio, Disney India, has left no stone unturned to attract as many people as it can. Apart from a Hindi dub release, the film is available in Tamil and Telugu, with Rana Dagubatti voicing the movie’s villain Thanos in the Telugu version. Apart from a hefty release strategy at 2000 screens and a sharp focus on localisation, the studio has also focussed on marketing through TV and digital advertising and forging partnerships with brands across categories.

At Rs 940 million, Infinity War is already among the top Hollywood films in India. The film has also benefitted from the fact that there is no significant Bollywood film running in the theatres currently. Baaghi 2 has run its course while films like October are fairly niche in their appeal. Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor starrer 102 not out releases on May 4, but that too may not be much competition for Infinity War since it’s a different genre which may well complement the Hollywood superhero flick.

Top Hollywood grossers in India (lifetime net of tax box office collection)

The Jungle Book (2016) – Rs 1.88 billion

Fast and Furious 7 (2015) – Rs 1.06 billion

Jurassic World (2015) – Rs 960 million

Avengers: Infinity War (2018) – Rs 943 million*

Fate of the Furious (2017) – Rs 860 million

*still running in theatres

Source: Industry estimates