Akshay Kumar and Saif Ali Khan starrer thriller Haiwaan is failing to attract moviegoers at the box office. The film, which marks the actors’ reunion 18 years after Tashan (2008), opened to Rs 3 crore net in India. Collections dipped slightly on Day 2, with the movie, directed by Priyadarshan, earning Rs 2.5 crore, taking its two-day domestic net total to Rs 5.5 crore and domestic gross to Rs 6.6 crore, as per trade tracker Sacnilk.
Haiwaan recorded an overall Hindi occupancy of 16.02 per cent across 5,759 shows in India on Saturday. Morning shows registered 6.85 per cent occupancy, which rose to 15.46 per cent in the afternoon and 16 per cent in the evening before peaking at 25.77 per cent at night. Delhi-NCR recorded 21% occupancy across 579 shows, while Mumbai registered 14.3% across 379 shows.
The film is one of Akshay’s lowest openers post the pandemic. Some of his films that opened to even lower numbers include Sarfira (Rs 2.50 crore), Selfiee (Rs 2.55 crore), Bell Bottom (Rs 2.70 crore) and Mission Raniganj (Rs 2.80 crore).
In comparison, Akshay and Priyadarshan’s previous collaboration, Bhooth Bangla, had preformed well. It has earned Rs 28.7 crore on its opening day and had grossed Rs 271 crore worldwide during its runtime.
Haiwaan is facing tough competition from Hanuman Ansh and Mirzapur: The Movie at the box office. The Ali Fazal-Pankaj Tripathi gangster drama has earned around Rs 245 crore so far. Even in its second week of release, it has managed to outperform Akshay and Saif’s recent release.
The film also failed to impress critics. CE's review of Haiwaan read: "Priyadarshan has a command over comedies. Sadly, this talent is unintentionally on display in Haiwaan, a cat-n-mouse chase thriller featuring a visually-impaired saviour and a psychopathic serial killer. You laugh where you should be scared and are confused where you should be engaged."
