Chennai Express Review
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/tʃɨˈnaɪ/ /ɪkˈsprɛs/ is a 2013 Indian romantic action-comedy film[2][3] directed by Rohit Shetty and produced by Gauri Khan under the film production company Red Chillies Entertainment.[8] The film features Shahrukh Khan and Deepika Padukone in lead roles. This is the second collaboration between Khan and Padukone after the 2007 blockbuster Om Shanti Om.[9][10] Chennai Express is about a man's journey from Mumbai to Rameshwaram and what happens along the way after he falls in love with the daughter of a local don.[11] Principal photography began on 27 September 2012. Filming began in October 2012 and was wrapped up by May 2013.[12]
The film was released in the overseas markets[2][3] on 8 August 2013 and in India on 9 August 2013. Extensive paid previews were held in India on 8 August 2013 as well.[13][14][15] Upon release, the film received mixed reviews from critics. Despite this, the film broke several records in India and abroad[13] and became the fastest film to collect
1 billion (US$15 million).[14]The film surpassed Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani and was the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2013. The film broke the record held by 3 Idiots (2009) in the domestic market[16] and was declared a Blockbuster in India by Box Office India.[17][18] It is also the third highest-grossing Bollywood film in overseas markets. Chennai Express went on to become the highest-grossing Bollywood film worldwide, surpassing 3 Idiots.[6][7]
Contents
- 1 Plot
- 2 Cast
- 3 Production
- 3.1 Development
- 3.2 Casting
- 3.3 Filming
- 4 Release
- 4.1 Statistics
- 4.2 Marketing
- 4.3 Controversies
- 5 Music
- 5.1 Critical response
- 6 Critical reception
- 6.1 India
- 6.2 Overseas
- 7 Box office
- 7.1 India
- 7.2 Overseas
- 7.3 Records
- 8 Notes
- 9 References
- 10 External links
Plot
Rahul Mithaiwala (Shahrukh Khan) is a forty-year-old bachelor who lives in Mumbai.
Rahul's parents died in a car accident when he was eight years old, so
he was brought up by his grandparents. His grandfather has a
sweet-selling chain store – Y.Y. Mithaiwala. Before his birth centenary
celebration, two of Rahul's friends suggest a vacation in Goa, which he accepts. On the eve of the celebration, his grandfather dies whilst watching a cricket match. His grandmother tells him that his grandfather desired to have his ashes divided into two parts – to be immersed in the Ganges River and Rameswaram
respectively. She requests Rahul to go to Rameswaram and immerse them.
Rahul reluctantly accepts her request but was also eager to attend the
Goa trip. He and his friends thus make plans to dump the ashes at Goa.
They are forced to change the plan when Rahul's grandmother wanted to
personally see him off. This forces him to travel by train and he books a
single ticket on the Chennai Express. He plans to meet his
friends at the Kalyan Junction station from where they would travel to
Goa by car. Rahul forgets to take his grandfather's ashes on reaching
the station and when he comes back to get it, the train started to roll
on its wheels. While trying to step off of the train, he notices a girl
(apparently South Indian) running to catch the train. He helps her board
the moving train. He then sees four people running behind to catch the
train, helps them all to get in and himself misses the platform to get
off.
He tries to flirt with the girl, assuming she does not know his language. To his surprise, she starts communicating by singing parodies of Hindi
film music, so that the others don't understand. Rahul, on her demand,
lends his mobile phone so that she can contact her friends; the men with
her throw it away from the moving train. He gets annoyed by this,
however keeps quiet seeing that they carry weapons and guns along. He
informs the ticket examiner about them but they push the man into a lake
below the railway bridge. Extremely panicked, Rahul learns that those
men were actually kidnapping her and that her real name was Meenalochni
Azhagusundaram (Deepika Padukone) a.k.a. Meenamma. She was trying to flee from a forced marriage to Tangaballi (Nikitin Dheer). Her father Durgeshwara Azhagusundaram (Sathyaraj), is a powerful headman of the Komban Kaum (an anagram of Kumbakonam) in Tamil Nadu. He wants her to marry Tangaballi so that he would assume control of the neighboring village as well.
Rahul (Shahrukh Khan) helps Meenamma (Deepika Padukone) board the train, a spoof of the famous train scene in Khan's 1995 film Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge.
Meena takes Rahul to her father and introduces him as her lover. Tangaballi challenges Rahul for a duel which he accepts in sign language. On the night of the fight, Rahul escapes with the help of a local Sikh
policeman but in the turn of events, ends up in Komban Kaum again.
Surrounded by sickle-wielding henchmen of Azhagusundaram, Rahul then
pretends to take Meena as hostage and escapes again in her father's
favorite car. When the jeep breaks down, they quarrel and go separate
ways. But, Rahul not knowing which way to go, comes back to Meena who
takes him to the Vidhamba village where a wedding was taking place.
Meena lies to the people that they are a married couple who have eloped
and needed protection and rest.
The villagers grow fond of the couple and take care of them as long
as they stay. Meena realises that she has fallen in love with Rahul.
When Rahul has plans of leaving secretly, Meena does not want to earn
the distrust of the affectionate villagers. As he tries to leave, he is
caught by Tangaballi but the villagers help them escape again. Meena who
persuades him to immerse his grandpa's ashes travels with Rahul to
Rameswaram. There they complete the rites and on their way back, Rahul,
realising that he has also fallen for Meena, does not tell her where
they're going. He takes Meena back to her father again and tries to make
him understand and honor his daughter's wish. He also confesses for the
first time that he loves her. Rahul tells Tangaballi and his goons that
he has come ready for the fight this time. In the fight that follows,
Rahul though severely injured emerges the winner. Meena's father and
Tangaballi finally turn over a new leaf and accept that the heart of a
common man like Rahul is much bigger than their physical ability and
political clout. Azhagusundaram, allows Rahul to marry his daughter, the
twist that changed his life forever. When they finally unite, the film
leaves a message that love knows no barriers of region or language and
that with a strong heart, there is no limit to what a common man can
achieve.
Cast
- Deepika Padukone as Meenalochni Azhagusundaram
- Shahrukh Khan as Rahul Mithaiwala
- Sathyaraj as Durgeshwara Azhagusundaram, Meena's Father[19]
- Nikitin Dheer as Tangaballi
- Kamini Kaushal as Rahul's Grandmother[20]
- Lekh Tandon as Y.Y Mithaiwala (Rahul's Grandfather)[20]
- Mukesh Tiwari as Samsher, Inspector of Komban area
- Priyamani in an item song "1 2 3 4 Get on the Dance Floor"
Production
Development
Sandeep Mishra and Rohit Shetty had originally planned to team up for a remake of the 1982 film Angoor. After the 2011 blockbuster Singham, Rohit Shetty had begun writing the script of the film but left it mid-way. Incidentally, he had the script of Chennai Express ready to be narrated to Khan as a back-up due to the difficulty of obtaining the actor's filming dates.[21] Upon being narrated the script, Khan was impressed with the idea of Chennai Express and agreed to star in it before the Angoor remake. With this development, the remake of Angoor was pushed back. When Rohit
was asked about the story of the film, he said, "It's a hard-core
commercial film with a romantic angle. The story is about this man's
travel from Mumbai to Rameshwaram and what happens during the journey."[22] About 68 minutes of footage were augmented with CGI by Reliance MediaWorks.[23]
Casting
Shah Rukh Khan was the first actor to be approached with the script,
and hence the first lead actor to be signed for the film. Incidentally, Rohit
stated that despite the title, Khan would not play the role of a South
Indian in the film. The casting of the lead heroine was speculated for a
good deal of time. Names such as Kareena Kapoor, Asin Thottumkal and Deepika Padukone were rumoured by the media.[24]
In an interview, a visibly angry Shetty denied all rumours surrounding
the leading heroine, stating that the cast would be finalised in April
2012 and that he was going to cast an established actress as the leading
lady.[25] However, in October 2012, it was confirmed that Deepika Padukone
had been signed to play the lead opposite Khan, when stills were
released from the set showing Padukone and Khan shooting. This would be
her second film opposite Khan, with whom she made her Bollywood debut
with in the 2007 blockbuster Om Shanti Om.[26][27]
Rohit Shetty wanted Manorama to play Deepika Padukone's aunt[28] but dropped the idea later. Sathyaraj was cast to play the role of Deepika's father and the main antagonist of Chennai Express, making his debut in Bollywood.[29] Actress Priyamani was signed late January 2013 for an item number in the film.[30] Other personalities from Tamil cinema cast in minor roles include Delhi Ganesh and Mohan Ram.
Filming
The filming began at Mehboob Studio in Mumbai
on 5 October 2012 . The lead actor was dressed in black shirt and
pants; while the actress was in a South Indian attire, wearing Kanchipuram sari.[26] Filming was done at Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus railway station with minimal crew members. These working stills of the lead actor were unofficially released in mid-October 2012.[31] In November 2012, the cast and crew went to Goa for the first filming schedule.[32] The railway station of Vasco da Gama was used to portray Kalyan. A romantic scene on board a train passing next to Dudhsagar Falls was also shot.[33] In December 2012, the team travelled to Jakarta for filming some scenes.[34] By early January 2013, the next schedule was supposed to happen in Ooty but Khan opined that the Ooty would be too far from commercial venue, Mumbai. Hence, recreation of the lanes of Ooty along with some of its tourist spots, was constructed as a set on the outskirts of Panchgani in Wai by art director Narendra Ruharikar. It took over 40 days to make the set at an estimated cost of
15 million (US$230,000).[35][36] The Wai schedule of filming ran for entire month of March 2013.[37] A 10-day shooting schedule began in Munnar, Kerala from mid of April 2013, scenes were canned at Devikulam Lake, Meesapulimala, Wagavara and Kannimala.[38]The shoot had to be stopped for a few days due to the heavy rainfall
and the schedule was slightly extended until end of the same month.[39] A press conference was also held in the town Munnar.[40] In May 2013, certain scenes were canned in North Goa[41][42] The lead actress wrapped up all her portions of shoot on 25 May 2013.[43] Khan flew to Hyderabad by end of May 2013 for remaining filming.[44] The film has several Tamil dialogues, but sans subtitles, to retain context.[45]
Release
Shah Rukh Khan has a strong fanbase and the demand for the movie is
enormous overseas. We are releasing the movie in over seven
non-traditional markets and the movie will also witness a day and date
release for the first time in Peru for any Hindi film.[46]
—Amrita Pandey, Executive Director,
(Syndication, International Distribution and Disney Media Distribution),
Studious, Disney UTV, said in a statement.
The film had paid previews in India on 8 August 2013 with 10–12 shows at multiplexes.[47]
The jump in weekday ticket prices is largely due to the fact that
currently they are sold at a lower price. Eid has been traditionally
good for business and during the Eid week, we expect to sell more
tickets than we do in a full month otherwise. A Shah Rukh Khan film is
coming after nine months and history shows that Rohit Shetty's films
have not gone wrong at the box office.[48]
—Anand Vishal, Head of Operations, Fun Cinemas told Mirror.
Chennai Express, besides domestic and usual international
markets, was scheduled to be released in non-traditional international
markets. In Peru, it was the first Hindi film to be released on the same
day as in India. Earlier, Shah Rukh Khan-starrer My Name Is Khan and Hrithik Roshan-starrer Guzaarish opened as delayed releases in Peru. The film was also released in Morocco, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, France and Israel.[46]
The price of tickets for Chennai Express will cost up to 40
percent more than usual tariff. The raise, which includes 40 per cent
increase in ticket prices during the weekday shows and up to a 20
percent hike over the weekend, will not be uniform across all
multiplexes. Increasing ticket prices around festivals is not unusual
but this much raise is uncommon.[48]
Statistics
The film was released in 2550 cinemas in 3,550 screens (includes 1000 single screens) in India,[49] and 700 screens internationally (including 195 screens in the United States, 175 in the United Kingdom,[50] 55 in the Middle East and 30 in Australia), making it the widest Bollywood release of all time.[5][51][52]
Marketing
The first look of Chennai Express was revealed on 1 January 2013.[53] A thirty-one seconds title track teaser sung by S. P. Balasubrahmanyam was released on 23 May 2013.[54] The official trailer of the film was released at an event in Mumbai on 13 June 2013 and crossed the 4 million views mark on YouTube just two days after its launch.[11] A platform running game based on the film, developed by Disney UTV's digital wing, titled Chennai Express: Escape from Rameshwaram was launched on 24 July 2013 for Android
systems and featuring Shahrukh Khan & Deepika Padukone. It takes
the player on a roller-coaster ride where he has to fight off goons and
dodge obstacles like trucks, buses, cars, coconut carts, etc. to collect
more than 10,000 coins so as to unlock Deepika Padukone's game avatar.[55]
The outfits donned by Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone in the film
was auctioned, and proceedings from the sale was gone for a charity.[56] The auction took place around the day of its release.[57] A Karaoke app was launched on 2 August 2013 for Android and iOS based smartphones developed by Singbox, a Sweden based gaming studio.[58] The film's satellite rights were sold to Zee Network for
480 million. The deal was also linked to the film's box office collection, first of its kind in Indian cinema. If Chennai Express crossed the cut-off amount, which was said to be around 1.3 billion (US$20 million) nett, then for every 100 million earned after that, the producers get an additional 20 million.[59]Khan also promoted his film on reality television shows such as Comedy Nights with Kapil, DID Super Moms, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 6 and Indian Idol Junior.[60] The film which premiered in television on 20 October 2013, fetched a record gross viewership, about double of that of the highest rated fiction show and helped to catapult its broadcaster, Zee TV to the top position among all General Entertainment Channels that month.[61] The Zeitgeist, Google's year-end compilation of the most frequent search queries, named Chennai Express the most trending topic in India for year 2013.[62]
Controversies
Chennai Express along with Akshay Kumar starrer Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai Dobara
were initially abandoned by Pakistani distributors and exhibitors in
the interest of four of their films releasing on the same day that was 8
August, but both films later changed their date to 9 and 15 August
respectively.[63] During its Wai schedule of filming, the film's unit ran in trouble for over use of water from Dhom Dam in drought-hit Satara district of Maharashtra. The state's Relief and Rehabilitation minister Patangrao Kadam raised his concern for the same.[64]
The film's poster and trailer, released on Twitter and YouTube, were criticised by some Tamil media for depicting Tamil ethos
in poor light. The heavily accented dialogue delivery by Deepika
Padukone resembled a Malayalee accent rather than Tamil, according to
them.[65][66]
Padukone however defended the film, claiming that it does not spoof
South Indian culture and adding that nearly the entire crew (including
herself) are South Indians, she said, "Why would we spoof our own
culture?"[67]
Adopting an aggressive stance on Wednesday, 31 July 2013 the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's
Film Wing threatened to disrupt and stop its release on 8 August as it
reportedly attempted to dislodge ongoing popular Marathi movies from
single-screen cinemas in the state. The party was upset with reports
that the Rohit Shetty directed movie had demanded prime slots in single
screen cinemas and even some multiplexes in the state where the superhit
Marathi film Duniyadari
has been running to packed houses since 19 July. Later, on 1 August
2013, both the film directors, Rohit Shetty and Sanjay Jadhav were
called on Raj Thackeray to hammer out a solution. After listening to both parties, Thackeray ruled that if Duniyadari was not removed from single screen cinemas across the state, then the MNS would not object to the release and run of Chennai Express in Maharashtra.[68]
Music
| Chennai Express | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Soundtrack album by Vishal-Shekhar | ||||
| Released | 1 July 2013 | |||
| Recorded | 2012–2013 | |||
| Genre | Feature film soundtrack | |||
| Length | 39:34 | |||
| Language | Hindi | |||
| Label | T-Series | |||
| Vishal-Shekhar chronology | ||||
| ||||
The music score of the film was composed by the duo Vishal-Shekhar. Amitabh Bhattacharya and Yo Yo Honey Singh
stamped their lyrics in the album. Recording of the songs began in late
October 2012. The track "Ready Steady Po" was attributed as "insane" by
the music composers and was recorded by November 2012.[69]
Several sources claimed that the director and actor were unsatisfied
with the score of the film and hence the former were reported to rework
entirely.[70] However, the composers denied all such rumours.[71] In mid-April 2013, singer S. P. Balasubrahmanyam
recorded the title track for the film, marking his return to Bollywood
for playback post fifteen years. He claimed the song celebrates the
spirit of togetherness. Initially, the singer was apprehensive but opted
to sing considering the content and leads of the film.[54] The song "1 2 3 4 get on the dance floor" was released as a promotional single on World Music Day.
On 27 June 2013, the video promo of the song "Titli" was released and
on 11 July 2013, the promo video of "Kashmir Main Tu Kanyakumari" was
released. On 19 July 2013, T-Series has uploaded a song on its official channel of YouTube named as "Lungi Dance – The 'Thalaivar(r)' Tribute" in honour of the South Indian film actor Rajinikanth and sung by Honey Singh.[72] On 25 July 2013 a promo video of the song "Tera Rasta Main Chhodoon Na" was released.
The music album was launched on 1 July 2013.[73]
| Tracklist | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| No. | Title | Singer(s) | Length | |||||||
| 1. | "1 2 3 4 Get on the Dance Floor" | Vishal–Shekhar, Hamsika Iyer | 3:48 | |||||||
| 2. | "Titli" | Gopi Sunder, Chinmayi | 5:50 | |||||||
| 3. | "Tera Rastaa Chhodoon Na" | Anusha Mani, Amitabh Bhattacharya | 4:13 | |||||||
| 4. | "Kashmir Main Tu Kanyakumari" | Sunidhi Chauhan, Arijit Singh, Neeti Mohan | 5:07 | |||||||
| 5. | "Ready Steady Po" | Brodha V, Smokey, Enkore, Natalie Di Luccio | 3:28 | |||||||
| 6. | "Chennai Express" | S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, Jonita Gandhi | 4:47 | |||||||
| 7. | "Titli (Dubstep Version)" | Zoheb Khan, Phoenyx | 3:40 | |||||||
| 8. | "Chennai Express (Mashup)" | DJ Kiran Kamath | 3:37 | |||||||
| 9. | "Lungi Dance" | Yo Yo Honey Singh | 4:36 | |||||||
Total length: | 39:34 | |||||||||
Critical response
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Devesh Sharma (Filmfare)[74] |   |
| IBN Live[75] |  |
| Yashika Mathur (Daily News and Analysis)[76] | |
| Joginder Tuteja (Rediff)[77] | |
The soundtrack album of Chennai Express received positive reviews. Devesh Sharma of Filmfare
gave the album 4/5, saying that one should opt to listen to the music
of the film, because it is full of new music and zany surprises. He also
said that Vishal-Shekhar had put in a lot of effort to bring out their best for the film. [74]
IBN Live
gave the album 3.5/5 and said that "Here's another winner from
Vishal-Shekar. It is likely to appeal music lovers of all age-groups and
sentiments. An entertaining all-rounder, the composers must be
applauded for fusing different music and beats to pep up the otherwise
usual Bollywood music."[75]
Yashika Mathur of DNA gave the album 3.5/5 and stating that Chennai Express has a soothing, typical Bollywood soundtrack that music lovers will enjoy. She praised the mixing of the peppy songs as "exceptional".[76]
Joginder Tuteja of Rediff.com gave the album 3/5 and wrote, "Rohit Shetty is said to have kept the narrative of Chennai Express quite fast -paced, and the music should complement that overall flavour of the film."[77]
Anand Holla of Mumbai Mirror
has said that "It's easy to imagine director Rohit Shetty's crystal
clear brief to Vishal-Shekhar, involving words such as catchy, peppy,
fun, and of course 'hit songs'. Given how happily formulaic the
soundtrack has turned out, V–S have given us a fair idea of what awaits
us this Eid."[78]
Critical reception
Chennai Express received mixed reviews from critics in India and abroad.[79]
India
Khan (top) and Padukone (bottom) attracted positive reviews for their performance and chemistry in the film
Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama
gave the movie 4/5 stars and wrote "On the whole, Chennai Express has
the trademark Rohit Shetty stamp all over. You seek entertainment,
entertainment and entertainment in a film like Chennai Express and the
movie lives up to the hype and hoopla surrounding it."[80] Rachit Gupta of Filmfare
rated the movie 4/5 stars, stating, "The film's peppered with humorous
set pieces and colourful locales and songs. Rohit Shetty makes
chettinad-style masala movies. And that's the perfect description of
this film. If you don't plan to engage in a multi-lateral critique of
dramatic elements and narrative, this film can be fun."[81] Sarita Tanwar Of DNA
gave the movie 3.5/5 stars and said that, "This is a treat for all
Hindi film lovers. It has all the ingredients you'd expect from a big
commercial masala film – big star cast, drama, action, comedy, songs,
the car chases and the big finish, all delivered in Rohit Shetty's
unapologetic ishtyle...Overall, this is a bubblegum blockbuster."[82] Meena Iyer of Times of India
gave the movie 3.5/5 stars, saying, "Chennai Express is a magnificently
mounted film. In an ode to his own cinema—read Golmaal series or Bol
Bachchan, Rohit Shetty, the director, who has grossers in Bollywood's
100-crore club, ups the scale for his Eid offering."[83]
Saibal Chatterjee of NDTV
gave the movie 3/5 stars and said that, "The whole-hearted zeal that
SRK and Deepika bring to the table and the steady flow of funny
one-liners serve Shetty's purpose well, turning Chennai Express into a
full-on masala film that is completely unapologetic about its
intentions. And that is its USP."[84] Zee News
rated the movie 3/5 stars, stating, "If you ignore the few clichés (the
repetition of 'DDLJ' scenes and the lines that we have heard SRK
speaking in his popular films), the lack of punch in the script and even
the high predictability factor, then you are onboard for a fun ride
with 'Chennai Express'!"[85] India Today
gave the film 3 stars: "The good news first. "Chennai Express" is a
pleasant and likeable film in parts. The bad news is, it does nothing
for Shah Rukh Khan's imdomitable star power except to tell us he can
still play a 40-year Rahul without faltering."[86] Abhishek Gupta of India TV
gave it 2.5 stars and wrote, "The comedy along with the action is
rarely served with equal entertainment in today's cinema. We discern
Rohit Shetty for his mass leisure which includes cars fluttering from
the unknown corners and comedy which isn't slapstick but works."[87]
Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express
gave the movie 2.5/5 stars, and wrote, "The film's pair is trying to
have some fun, and comes up with some genuinely funny moments. Padukone
looks lovely and sticks to a spunky over –the- topness, and doesn't
waver, till she's made to go all emotional. That's when her graph dips.
That's when Shah Rukh's raffish charm slips. And that is also when
'Chennai Express' derails. And wannakum becomes wannago."[88] Sukanya Verma of Rediff.com
gave the film 2.5 stars, saying "Chennai Express evokes a few laughs
but otherwise it decides to shift tracks from droll comedy to dreadful
drama."[89] Khalid Mohamed of Deccan Chronicle gave the film 2.5 stars and commented "board Chennai Express at your own risk."[90] Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN
gave the film 2/5 rating and commented "[Chennai Express] is a big, fat
bore. A bloated vanity project for an actor capable of so much more."[91] Mayank Shekhar of Dainik Bhaskar rated it 1 (out of 5) stars, saying "You've paid for the ticket? Yes. Now just sit back and suffer."[92]
Overseas
Rachel Saltz of The New York Times
wrote, "Chennai Express" feels like a sumptuous meal with carefully
chosen wine and tasty appetizers but a botched main course. Money and
visual care have been lavished on this Bollywood action-comedy-romance
and glossy stars engaged (Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone). But the
movie chugs along for most of its 2 hours and 20 minutes searching for
comedy and characters in a frantically overplotted story."[93] Sneha May Francis of Emirates 24/7
wrote "Rohit Shetty's s(h)tyle of romance relies heavily on buffoonery
and will be applauded mainly by Shah Rukh Khan loyalists". She added
"Rohit's carnival-like comedy coaxes some laughs, but can leave you
exhausted." Sneha argued that Deepika's performance "outshines" that of
Shahrukh in the movie.[94] Ronnie Scheib of Variety
wrote "Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone are ill matched in this
overworked comedy/romance/actioner ... Shetty's need to maintain his
characters' romantic heroism constantly grates against his depictions of
their ridiculousness."[95] Simon Foster of the Special Broadcasting Service
gave the film 2 out of 5 stars and described it as "a loud,
lame-brained romantic comedy from the (very) broad directorial brush of
Rohit Shetty, SRK's over-hyped vehicle sees the charismatic but ageing
actor badly miscast and easily overshadowed by his leading lady, Deepika
Padukone."[96]
Box office
See also: List of highest-grossing Bollywood films
Chennai Express became the highest grossing Bollywood film in India and around the world by collecting
3.95 billion (US$60 million) at the end of its run. The film beat the 3.92 billion (US$60 million) record set by 3 Idiots according to Box Office India.[97][98]
India
Chennai Express collected very well in paid previews on Thursday. According to Box Office India, the total collections of the Hindi version were
67.50 million (US$1.0 million), thereby surpassing the previous record held by 3 Idiots.[99] The film collected 292.50 million (US$4.5 million) on its opening day, making it the second highest opening day collection behind Ek Tha Tiger.[100][101] The film broke the second day and third day box office records as well collecting 264.30 million (US$4.0 million)[102][103] and 292.10 million (US$4.5 million) respectively[49] and collected 870.8 million (US$13 million) (938.3 million (US$14 million) including paid previews[104]), breaking the previous weekend record set by Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.[105][106] Chennai Express set another record for worldwide opening, earning 1.59 billion (US$24 million) in the three-day weekend.[107][108] The film fared well on Monday collecting over 120 million (US$1.8 million).[14] It grossed 115 million (US$1.8 million) nett on its first Tuesday, thus becoming the highest grossing Shahrukh Khan starrer film in India.[109][110] The film remained steady and grossed 125.60 million (US$1.9 million) on Wednesday.[111][112]Box Office India reported that the film grossed
190 million (US$2.9 million) nett on Thursday, taking its first week total (including paid previews) to 1.461.50 billion (US$22 million), beating the previous record of Ek Tha Tiger.[113][114][115] It had a worldwide gross of 2.5 billion (US$38 million) in the first seven days.[116] The film collected 225.50 million (US$3.5 million) on its second weekend, taking the total domestic nett to 1.68 billion (US$26 million), and also became the second highest grossing Bollywood film in ten days with a worldwide gross of 3.14 billion (US$48 million).[117][118]The film earned
1.85 billion (US$28 million) in two weeks and amounted to 1.94 billion (US$30 million) after its third weekend in the domestic market.[119] The film grossed 160 million (US$2.4 million) in its third week, bringing up its total to 2.00.75 billion (US$31 million).[120] Chennai Express broke the domestic nett record set by 3 Idiots in its fourth weekend[121][122] and added around 57.40 million (US$880,000) in week four to take the total to 2.06 billion (US$32 million).[16][18][123] After its sixth week, the film ended its run for a final total of 2.08 billion (US$32 million).[124][125][a]
Overseas
Also at overseas, the film broke records, with paid previews in the
UK amounting more than any first day of a Bollywood film in the UK.[127] The film made opening weekend records in foreign territories taking in a total of
504.70 million (US$7.7 million), including record collections from key markets USA ($2.22 million), UAE (AED 7.73 million) and UK (£934,118).[13][128][129][130] Chennai Express set a record opening weekend overseas gross of US $7.1 million.[131] It proved a big hit in Pakistan as the film collected $300,000 [Rs. 18.4 million] in its opening weekend.[132] By 18 August, the film broke all box office records in Pakistan's biggest city, Karachi, by grossing over 40 million rupees.[133][134] The film earned 720 million ($11, 667,477) in just nine days in overseas.[135][136][137] By the second weekend, the film grossed around $14 million.[138] Chennai Express grossed about US$16 million by its third weekend overseas.[139] The film took its overseas total to US$16.85 million by the fourth weekend.[140] By the fifth weekend, the film grossed about US$17.25 million abroad.[141] The film was still collecting in its sixth weekend, taking its total to US$17.40 million.[142]
Records
Upon release, the film broke the following records:
| Box office record | Record details | Previous record holder | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Number of screens | 3,700 screens | Dabangg 2 (2012, 3,450 screens) | [143] |
| Paid previews | 67.50 million (US$1.0 million) | 3 Idiots (2009, 27.50 million (US$420,000)) | [99][144] |
| Second day | 264.30 million (US$4.0 million) | Ra.One (2011, 229 million (US$3.5 million)) | [145] |
| Third day | 292.10 million (US$4.5 million) | Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (2013, 224.40 million (US$3.4 million)) | [49] |
| Opening weekend | 1 billion (US$15 million) (920 million (US$14 million) including paid previews) | Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (630 million (US$9.6 million)) | [104] |
| Opening week | 1.39 billion (US$21 million) (1.461.50 billion (US$22 million) including paid previews) | Ek Tha Tiger (2012, 1.28 billion (US$20 million)) | [114] |
| Worldwide opening weekend | 1.59 billion (US$24 million) | Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani (1.07 billion (US$16 million)) | [107] |
| Opening weekend in the United States | $2,220,497 | My Name Is Khan (2010, $1,944,027) | [128][129][146] |
| Overseas opening weekend | $7,100,000 | My Name Is Khan ($5,300,000) | [13][147] |
| Worldwide gross | 3.95 billion (US$60 million) | 3 Idiots 3.92 billion (US$60 million) | [148][7] |
| Days to reach 1 billion (US$15 million) | 3 days (including paid previews) | Ek Tha Tiger (6 days) | [14][49] |
| Days to reach 2 billion (US$31 million) | 21 days | 3 Idiots (56 days) | [149] |
| Television Premiere | 55.5 million views | 3 Idiots (43 million) | [150][151] |
Notes
- Jump up ^ While Box Office India confirms that the film grossed
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