Box office: Alia Bhatt's Raazi crosses Rs100 crore nett

Actress Alia Bhatt's star power has come to the fore after her latest film, Raazi, crossed the coveted Rs100 crore mark at the domestic box office.

It is very rare for a woman-centric film with a female lead to achieve this feat. The last time this happened was when Kangana Ranaut's Tanu Weds Manu Returns (2015) earned a whopping Rs148 crore nett at the box office.

Raazi earned Rs10.75 crore nett in its third weekend, taking its India total to Rs101.43 crore nett, as reported by Boxofficeindia.com.

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Bhatt put out a thank you message on her Twitter handle, tagging director Meghna Gular, producers Junglee Pictures, Karan Johar and his company Dharma Productions, and her co-star Vicky Kaushal.

Director Meghna Gulzar expressed gratitude and thanked fans on behalf of all the people who worked on Raazi. 

Speaking with us, Priti Shahani, president of Junglee Pictures, said, “When a film and a story has garnered so much love and appreciation not just here but across the world. It reflects how audience has picked up the story and made it travel. So, it is very gratifying for the entire team. It is helmed by a director whose voice is so distinctive and it is helmed by  one of our most talented star, Alia. It is a female driven film and doesn’t have the standard trope that one would associate with this number. It is not an out-and-out comedy, action, or thriller. It is not headlined by a [male] star."

When it comes to patriotic films, Indian audiences are ideally used to jingoistic dramas. Raazi stays clears of the clichéd format and yet has managed to make its mark.

When asked if she is surprised by the positive response to the film, Shahani said, “Audience connect with emotions. To me, what is heartening is that the audience understands the futility of war. When you accept this story, you also accept that the biggest loss of war is humanity. Just because they are across the border, the people there, their emotions are no different from yours. Our patriotism still stands tall. I think the film awakened a self that has always existed in all of us but we now acknowledged it through this story."

Made at an estimated budget of Rs40 crore, Raazi was released in over 1,200 screens in India. According to sources, the producers had already recovered close to Rs20 crore through the sale of satellite, music, digital and overseas rights.

The film has become the fourth Hindi feature to cross Rs100 crore nett this year after Padmaavat (Rs283 corre nett), Baaghi 2 (Rs160 crore nett), Sonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety (just over Rs100 crore nett).