'Don 2' rings in over Rs.48 crore on opening weekend

Shah Rukh Khan's much talked about action thriller "Don 2: The King Is Back" has opened to encouraging reviews and cheerful opening weekend collection of over Rs.48 crore. Director Farhan Akthar thanks fans for making it a hit.

"Thank you all.. our film has taken a super start and your support has everything to do with it... Thanks for the incredible feedback on the film. We're glad to have entertained you... Do keep it coming...," tweeted Farhan.

Made at a budget of about Rs.75 crore and shot in exotic locales in Malaysia and Germany, the film earned Rs.15.30 crore Friday, Rs.15.09 crore Saturday and approximately Rs.18 crore Sunday, making a grand total of Rs.48.39 crore.

The opening day earnings are said to be the highest first-day collection on a non-holiday Friday.

"We are very happy with the response that the film has got so far in domestic as well as international markets. It has had a record opening on a non-holiday Friday and the word of mouth response is also good," Reliance Entertainment CEO Sanjeev Lamba told IANS.

A sequel to 2006 movie, the last big release of the year has reportedly earned Rs.37 crore by selling the satellite rights to Zee TV.

Directed by Farhan Akhtar, it has other big names like Priyanka Chopra, Lara Dutta, Boman Irani and Kunal Kapoor. In the overseas market, the film has grossed more than Rs.26 crore till Saturday.

"The USP of the film is that it is a sequel to an already established film and it has a completely new style as well as story. Moreover, it is a Shah Rukh Khan film. The film is not only being appreciated across the country, but also in the international markets like North America, Britian and Australia," he added.

The film released in both 2D and 3D formats. Although the screens for 3D were less, Lamba says response has met with their expectation.

"Considering the few number of screens that we have here for 3D the response has been equally good as 2D," he said.

The occupancy in theatres has been around 90 percent, says Munish Sharma, general manager (marketing) Satyam.

"It has been a very good weekend. The occupancy stayed around 90 percent. Although people are appreciating the content, some feel that the first half of the film is a little stretched compared to the second. But the film is likely to end 2011 on a good note," said Sharma.

Yogesh Raizada of Waves Cinemas predicts good second week for "Don 2" in the absence of a big release before "Players", which is coming out Jan 6.

"We see a mix of young and family crowd. The film will do a good business in the second week also as there is no strong film slated for release next week," he said.