Box office: Panipat slips behind Pati Patni Aur Woh after first weekend

Kartik Aaryan's run of success at the box office seems to be continuing. The actor's latest venture, Pati Patni Aur Woh (2019), collected Rs33.50 crore nett at the domestic box office on the first weekend, well and truly beating Ashutosh Gowariker's historical war drama Panipat (2019).

According to figures from BoxOfficeIndia.com, the Gowariker period epic managed just Rs17.50 crore on its first weekend.

The Mudassar Aziz comedy was off to a better start on the first day itself, earning Rs8.50-8.75 crore at the counters. In comparison, the Arjun Kapoor-led historical film managed only Rs4 crore.

However, the collections for Panipat improved steadily on Saturday and Sunday, with Rs6 crore and Rs7.50 crore, respectively. Yet, this remains a low score for a film that is budgeted at over Rs100 crore.

On the other hand, Pati Patni Aur Woh's opening weekend collection tops that of the Kartik Aaryan-Kriti Sanon starrer Luka Chuppi (2019), which had collected Rs32 crore. If the film can keep its hold on Monday and through the week, it will emerge as a bigger success.

The next big Hindi release is the Salman Khan franchise, Dabangg 3, on 20 December. Thus, if either of last week's releases manages a good second week holdover, its chances of being transformed into a big success remain high.