Badhaai Do is Brave, Bold & a Winner in every way

The makers of Badhaai Do took the brave and bold step to reopen theatres; as this first movie got people back to cinemas, they have now paved the way for all language movies to get to cinemas. The 2 weeks clear run and breathing space for Badhaai Do in theatres, backed by the love, positive word of mouth, unique story line helped build confidence among cinema goers to go back to theatres for a big screen viewing experience. The movie experienced all the love despite limited seating capacity & no late night shows in some important centres. This only goes to prove that strong content holds all potential to bring the audience back to cinemas, and their conviction has paid off.

Right from the word go, their marketing campaign put the topic and theme of the movie front and centre through the trailer which helped sharply define the audience for the movie as they knew exactly what was in store for them on the big screen. . Badhaai Do has been talked about as not just the most sensitive and authentic movie within the LGBTQ theme genre but also a giant step forward for Hindi cinema in recent times!

Rajkummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar sharing the screen space together for the first time, have been receiving calls and messages not only from critics and colleagues from the industry but also from viewers, especially those from the LGBTQ community, praising them to put forward such a sensitive yet bold movie. The movie has proved its mettle as a game-changer in society. It has successfully established its idea of Love is love and has been widely accepted by the audience. It has initiated a new conversation in the society where people are openly conversing about normalising all kinds of love and have taken to social media as a way of expressing their views and emotions.

The movie had the best percentage growth on all days of first weekend post-pandemic and keeping a stronghold in the next week as well. The makers have paid a tribute to the sheer resilience of good content in cinemas, despite three Covid waves.

Badhaai Do earned not just love but also strong profits across the 3 non-theatrical rights. This is over and above the theatrical collections.

The director of the film Harshvardhan Kulkarni shares, “A good and entertaining story has the power to lay down a wider canvas for a film like Badhaai do where the universal emotions of love can be explored in all its complexities and beauty without alienating the people we don’t agree with. The overwhelming response from the audience has humbled us. We feel fortunate to have had the opportunity to tell a story which is giving unbridled joy and strength to so many people. The process of normalization starts at home with the family and then must move on to the larger society if we hope to build a more compassionate world. The anticipation around the film since the release of the trailer has reflected in the footfall across cinema halls despite the pandemic. Such support and appreciation from the audience has proved that content is king and Love is love!”

When contacted, Junglee Pictures spokesperson said “We couldn’t be happier with the response Badhaai Do has been getting all over! We are delighted that we could give a super special movie like 'Badhaai Do' a much deserved theatrical release. It helped that the movie was made at a reasonable budget and with a short but front foot marketing campaign the team was able to get the right audiences back in cinemas!”

Junglee Pictures’ ‘Badhaai Do’ is directed by Harshavardhan Kulkarni, written by Akshat Ghildial and Suman Adhikary. The movie released in theatres on 11th February and is worldwide theatrically distributed by Zee Studios.