Shows of Kangana Ranaut starrer Dhaakad CANCELLED due to ZERO audience in several cinemas; replaced with that of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2

The Kangana Ranaut-starrer Dhaakad was released in cinemas on May 20. The trailer promised a stylish action thriller and attempted to bring something new to the table. Sadly, the buzz for the film was negligible. Moreover, it received an ‘A’ rating and also, and it clashed with Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, starring Kartik Aaryan, Kiara Advani and Tabu. The comic thriller generated tremendous excitement and was the first choice for moviegoers. As a result, Dhaakad’s poor opening was expected. The hope was that it’ll grow once the word of mouth would start trickling in.

But when it came to light that Dhaakad collected a mere Rs. 50 lakhs on its opening day, the industry was left stunned. A source told Bollywood Hungama, “There was absolutely no excitement among the audience to see Dhaakad. There were reports that there were a handful of viewers in the theatres on Day 1. Many shows across the country got cancelled due to no audience. On top of it, the word of mouth was terrible. Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, meanwhile, has been enjoyed by the audience. As a result, it has grown from strength to strength while Dhaakad has got outright rejection from the audiences.” The second day collections were also in the range of Rs. 50 lakhs.

The source further added, “Dhaakad had got a limited release in the single screens. On Saturday, several theatres removed it as it didn’t make sense to play the film with less than 10-15 audiences inside the large single screen theatres. Multiplexes too reduced the shows to some extent. From today (Sunday), there would be a heavy reduction as Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 has tremendous demand. Hence, its shows will be replaced with that of Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2.”

A three-screen multiplex owner, on the condition of anonymity, said, “I am playing Dhaakad in 2 shows. For the Saturday evening show, only 2 tickets were sold, believe it or not! I’ll still play the film till Sunday. From Monday, I’ll have no choice but to remove it. Jab Saturday shaam ko 2 log aaye hai, toh Monday ko toh koi bhi nahin aayega.”

Meanwhile, Mumbai’s famous Maratha Mandir which was playing the film in 1 show has discontinued it from Sunday. It goes without saying that Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 has taken over the slot. In G7 multiplex, popularly known as Gaiety-Galaxy, Dhaakad was played for 2 days in Galaxy, which has the capacity of nearly 1000. On Sunday, the shows of Dhaakad was shifted to Gemini, which has a 230-seating capacity.

Manoj Desai, executive director, G7 multiplex and Maratha Mandir Cinema, told Bollywood Hungama, “There was hardly any audience for Dhaakad. We had to cancel a few shows due to no show by moviegoers. Hence, we decided to shift the film to Gemini. KGF - Chapter 2, which was playing in Gemini, was shifted to Galaxy, as it’s still getting an encouraging response from the moviegoers.”

Another source revealed, “Dhaakad had got a release in around 2100 screens. Its screen count reduced by around 250-300 screens on Sunday. The number of screens will further reduce from Monday.”

Also Read: Breaking: Kangana Ranaut to return as Agent Agnee in Dhaakad sequel